Say the word “journalist” in our loud and online culture, and most people may think about the national coverage — especially of politics — that they see in their social media feeds or on national cable.

But anyone who cares about division in our country shouldn’t forget local journalists. These people who live in the communities they serve cover what’s happening in local governments, among local businesses, the art scene and among neighbors — news that affects people deeply and daily.

Perhaps that’s why local news remains more trusted than national. But local news is challenged. “News deserts” are multiplying, and the workforce that remains is stretched thin.

Those who care about overcoming division — whether social science researchers or civil society leaders — have a lot to gain from exploring how their work might help dedicated local journalists across the country. We’ve seen it up close in our nonprofit programming for news leaders — and we’ve seen how it can improve the work of researchers and bridge-builders, too.

But don’t take our word for it. Here, we’ve gathered reflections from researchers in social science who have attended recent API Local News Summits, where they had the chance to interact with and explore how their work helps — and can be improved by insights from — local journalism.

The authors for this collection are “non-news” experts who attended our API Local News Summits, where tapping ideas outside of journalism to solve news challenges is a key element. These essays were commissioned ahead of a report on how API and other journalism support organizations are learning to bring journalists and non-news experts together in fruitful exchanges.

API is also involved in efforts to close the gaps between news leaders and researchers already studying media. We welcome opportunities to help make research more practical and useful for busy news leaders seeking to improve their local journalism and their local communities.

If you are interested in learning more about any of this work, please email Kevin Loker and Sam Ragland at hello@pressintitute.org.

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