The path to sustainability through innovation, collaboration and infrastructure with Knight Foundation’s Jim Brady

Local News Matters

Jim Brady, vice president of journalism at Knight Foundation, shares his insights into the current state of local journalism and the quest for sustainability. He discusses Press Forward, a $500 million-plus national initiative aimed at supporting local news. Drawing on his extensive experience in digital media, Jim reflects on the challenges and opportunities facing local news outlets today, with an optimistic view of how new technologies and business models can help them thrive.

He also emphasizes the role of philanthropy in creating a stronger, more resilient local news ecosystem. From increasing audience engagement to reducing operational costs, Jim explores how local journalism can adapt to the evolving media landscape. He also touches on the importance of rebuilding trust with audiences and the need to reconnect local news with community needs.

Throughout the conversation, Jim highlights how local news plays a vital role in a functioning democracy, advocating for a collective effort to ensure its future. Whether through innovative startups or legacy media adapting to new realities, the future of local journalism hinges on collaboration and creativity.

Episode chapters:

(00:02:23) - The state of local news: Challenges and progress

(00:09:33) - Building infrastructure for local news sustainability

(00:15:31) - The “huddling for warmth” phase of journalism

(00:25:53) - Press Forward’s national effort to save local news

(00:31:10) - Public awareness of the local news crisis

(00:34:10) - Adapting to the new reality

(00:37:16) - Hopes for a transformed news ecosystem

(00:48:03) - Trust, bubbles, and journalism’s future

(00:58:07) - Rapid-fire questions

(01:05:47) - Media and local recommendations

Links:

• Jim Brady: Linkedln,Twitter/X

• Knight Foundation

• Mentioned

• Press Forward

• The Washington Post

• AOL

• ESPN

• Seattle Times

• News Revenue Hub

• Billy Penn

• Newspack

• WordPress

• Indie Graf

• Tiny News Collective

• Jennifer Preston

• American Journalism Project

• Report for America

• Institute for Nonprofit News

• LION Publishers

• Kansas City Defender

• Big Bets by Raj Shah

• Gates Foundation

• USAID

• Rockefeller Foundation

• KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation)

• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

• Documenters

• Salt Lake Tribune

• The Daily Memphian

• The Baltimore Banner

• LMA (Local Media Association)

• Bloom Lab

• Local recommendations

• El Carajo

• Joe’s Stone Crab

• Coconut Grove

• Coral Gables

• Vizcaya Museum and Gardens

• Miami Beach

• Wynwood

• Media recommendations

• 12 Angry Men (1957)

• Parting the Waters by Taylor Branch

• Moving Pictures by Rush

• The Silence of the Lambs (book) by Thomas Harris

• Annie (musical)

• Annie (Original Broadway Cast Recording)

• Local News Matters: web, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn

• Pirate Audio

• Colorado Press Association: web, Twitter, Facebook

• Tim Regan-Porter: bio, Twitter

For show notes, transcripts, newsletter sign-up and past guests on the Local News Matters podcast, please visit localnewsmatterspodcast.com or lnmpod.com.

Past guests on the Local News Matters podcast include: Candice Fortman (Exit interview, Outlier Media), Jean Friedman-Rudovsky (Resolve Philly), Jay Rosen (NYU), Sue Cross (Exit interview, INN), Mary Margaret White (Mississippi Today), Amy Kovac-Ashley (Tiny News Collective), Michael Shaprio (TAPinto), Kenny Katzgrau (redbankgreen and Broadstreet), John Garrett (Community Impact), Shannon Kinney (Dream Local Digital), Larry Ryckman (The Colorado Sun), Frank Mungeam (Local Media Association), Kelly Ann Scott (Alabama Media Group), Sara Lomax and S. Mitra Kalita (URL Media), Elizabeth Hansen Shapiro (National Trust for Local News), Mike Rispoli and Richard Young (via When the People Decide), Sarabeth Berman (American Journalism Project), Rabbi Hillel Goldberg and Shana Goldberg (Intermountain Jewish News), Lyndsay C. Green (via The Journalism Salute), Rashad Mahmood and Mark Glaser (New Mexico Local News Fund), Christian Vanek and Barbara Hardt (The Mountain-Ear), Dan Grech (BizHack), Zack Richner (Easy Tax Credits), Tracie Powell (Pivot Fund), Dan Oshinsky (Inbox Collective), Linda Shapley (via What Works), Yehong Zhu and Jake Seaton (Zette, Column), Charity Huff (January Spring), Joaquin Alvarado and Dave Perry (Aurora Sentinel), Steve Waldman (Rebuild Local News), Maritza Félix (Conecta Arizona), Michael Bolden (American Press Institute), Jeff Roberts and Corey Hutchins (CFOIC, Colorado College), Eve Pearlman and Erica Anderson (Spaceship Media), Jennifer Brandel (Hearken, Democracy SOS), Corey Hutchins with Bay Edwards, Todd Chamberlain and Raleigh Burleigh (Sopris Sun).