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Area Journalists Address Alarming Trends Hurting Journalism, but also Relay Reasons for Optimism

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Chappaqua Library Panel on the Future of Local Journalism.  Photo by Andrew Vitelli

Fewer Reporters, Social Media & Artificial Intelligence Challenges, and an ongoing Funding Puzzle were Discussed at the Chappaqua Library Panel Event

David McKay Wilson, now a columnist for The Journal News, began working for the Gannett in 1986. At the time, he recalled, “every town was covered, every school board.”

“You got that Sunday newspaper that was like this,” he said, using his hands to signal the edition’s heft. “That of course has all changed.”

Wilson was one of four journalists on a panel on the future of local journalism held March 22 at the Chappaqua Library. The panel was moderated by Inside Press publisher Grace Bennett.

Martin Wilbur, editor-in-chief of The Examiner, expressed a similar concern, recalling that in the past every community and school district would be covered by its own fulltime reporter.

“When you consider just in about 30 years, the diminishment of that, it is alarming,” Wilbur said. “At The Examiner, I feel like a guy with one water bucket, and I’ve got 10 places where my roof is leaking, and I am running around.”

The diminished presence of local news was a major theme of the panel discussion. Since 2005, Bennett noted in her introductory remarks, some 2,500 newspapers have closed in the US, a quarter of the total, with the Covid-19 pandemic accelerating that trend.

“The influence and purpose of journalism and the value of the Fourth Estate has been clear for centuries,” remarked Bennett. “In trying times like these, our nation could use not less journalism, but more, and we need new government funding and research and a template for saving and even expanding journalism.”

(L-R): “Future of Local Journalism” panel moderator Grace Bennett, Inside Press, with Panelist Martin Wilbur, Examiner News, Chappaqua Library Program Coordinator Joan Kuhn, Panelist Michelle Falkenstein, freelance writer, and Panelists David McKay Wilson and Asher Stockler, Journal News.
Photo by Denise Mincin

 

Modern Day Tech Challenges

“It is very difficult to adapt the traditional structure of news to a lot of newfangled media,” said Asher Stockler, a government accountability reporter for The Journal News. “I don’t know how I could condense a story, let’s say, about police brutality into a TikTok.”

While local newspapers have been shut down or scaled back their staff, there’s been an explosion of low-quality news sources.

“In 2019, the Pew Research Center found that 54% of Americans got their news sometimes or often from social media, the number one source being Facebook,” said Michelle Falkenstein, a freelance culture reporter. “So, it is alarming, really.”

A handful of social media sites have a tremendous impact on what articles get views and clicks, a dynamic Stockler called “one of the biggest threats” to a robust news industry. Clickbait headlines can skew a social media site’s algorithm to promote vapid regurgitations of old stories.

“Even with, ‘if it bleeds it leads,’ a lot of times it was a sensationalized version of some sort of actual basis,” Stockler said, referring to the old adage that gruesome stories were typically featured prominently. Often with clickbait, he said, “there is no new information.”

And then there is the effect that 280-character tweets and 30-second reels have had on the attention spans of news consumers.

“You can’t write long anymore,” said Falkenstein. “If I get 800 words, I feel like I hit the jackpot.”

Addressing Artificial Intelligence

Soon, reporters will have to contend with advanced AI – artificial intelligence – which Stockler called an “impending disaster.”

AI can be a reporting tool, he acknowledged, but there is a danger if it is used to replace instead of supplement the reporting process.

“What do you do when an algorithm creates something libelous or something defamatory?” Stockler asked. “I just think it is going to open a rift in terms of whatever trust is left in the content generation business.”

Despite all the headwinds facing local news, the conversation was far from all gloom and despair. Social media brought with it some benefits, the panelists noted, including the ability to engage with their readers.

“I’m a boomer and I love Facebook,” said Wilson. “I know that is not popular in some settings but I really do.”

Wilson said he posts all his stories on Facebook and other social media sites.

“Part of my journalism is being on Facebook and having these interactions with people who I know,” he said. “It’s an engagement that I enjoy, and I think that it has got to be part of journalism today.”

Certain parts of the country, Falkenstein explained, are news deserts, where there is little to no coverage of what is happening locally. “People end up paying more to live in these communities, because they are not aware of things that are going on with taxes and that sort of thing or pet projects that might come up,” she said. “They also don’t vote as much. They don’t feel as invested.”

Better News in Places Like Westchester

Though the local news scene is less robust than it once was, Westchester and the Hudson Valley have “bucked the trend a little bit,” Bennett posited.

“In Westchester, we are relatively lucky. There is an informed citizenry or a citizenry that wants to learn more about what is going on,” said Wilbur. “And there is enough disposable income among businesses and organizations that a lot of places around the country do not have.”

And while the platforms and the technology may continue to change, the key to retaining readers’ trust is much the same – “doing really good work,” he added. That includes transparent sourcing, printing opposing opinions, and running corrections when necessary.

“We don’t know the next platform or the next thing six weeks, six months, six years. We just know it’s going to change, and it’s going to continue to change,” concluded Wilbur. “And the organizations that survive are the ones who will best be able to adapt to whatever might come their way.”

 

Meet The Inside Press Contributing Team!

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PHOTO BY CHRISTINA SCHOONMAKER

I hope these pages make it clear that ‘the secret sauce’ to the Inside Press is very much our valued contributors. I knew from the start, to succeed, I’d need editor/contributor relationships to offer a regular roster of compelling voices whose professional work I could also rely on. Over the years, so many wonderfully talented individuals have approached me to help me produce all ‘the Creative’. I had just the right space available here to bring out ‘the faces’ and descriptors of the individuals who have been part of our team over the last two years, to paint the picture. Please know I’m forever grateful to every past, present and future contributor. – Grace

The Inside Team…

Grace Bennett

Publisher, editor & writer Grace Bennett, proud mom to Anna and Ari, launched Inside Press two decades ago. A child of Holocaust survivors, Grace is a former board, and now advisory board, member of the Holocaust and Human Rights Education Center. She enjoys walking and the arts.

 

Beth Besen

Beth, a former Inside Chappaqua and Inside Armonk editor, is a freelance writer and essay coach. She, along with her husband, two children and dogs, called Chappaqua home for 27 years, but they now split their time between Tarrytown, NY and Park City, Utah.

 

Pamela Brown

Pamela, a resident of Connecticut, is a 20+-year journalist and founder of PMB Writing & Consulting.  In her free time, Pamela plays tennis, gardens, cooks, and spends time with her daughter, Alexis, and their dogs, Rafa and Andy.

 

Cathy Deutsch

Cathy is a freelance writer, essayist, and former restaurant columnist. She is a regular contributor to Inside Press Magazines and to other platforms supporting essay writing. Formerly the owner of Tiger Lily boutique, she is also a private shopping/stylist and closet rehabber.

 

More Inside Players…

Vicki deVries

Vicki is a local freelance writer/editor and a former adjunct Associate Professor of English (Pace University), Editorial Director for a Manhattan marketing agency, and in-house magazine and book editor for several companies. Vicki has contributed to Inside Press publications since 2009 and enjoys wordsmithing.

Ronni Diamondstein

Ronni is a journalist, photographer and the author of her debut picture book biography “Jackie and the Books She Loved”. She lives in Chappaqua with her dog Maggie Mae. Follow her at www.ronnidiamondstein.com

 

John Fisher

John joined Inside Press in October 2021 as Director of Business Development to help re-launch Inside Pleasantville & Briarcliff Manor. A long-time resident of Pleasantville, John heads up his own marketing consulting firm, John Fisher & Associates. John’s clients have been concentrated in the fields of health, education & publishing.

 

Michael Gold

Pleasantville-based writer Michael Gold’s articles have appeared in numerous publications here and abroad. A Queens native, Michael also loves the New York Mets more than can possibly be warranted by their long record of futility. A kidney donor, he regrets he only had one kidney to give to his country.

 

Pia Haas

Pia is a long-time performer/director and artistic director of academic, community, and regional theatres, including The Theatre Connection at Westchester Community College and The Armonk Players. She was the director of press and public relations at Westchester Broadway Theatre. Pia also writes about the arts and other subjects.

 

Janine Crowley Haynes

Janine is a freelance writer and author of My Kind of Crazy–Living in a Bipolar World. Her book is used in AP Psych classes and in colleges. She has been a guest speaker for various mental health organizations and has helped raise funds for Silver Hill Hospital.

 

Ella Ilan

Ella is a frequent contributor to the Inside Press. She is a former attorney who has always had a passion for writing, a knack for editing, and a love of interviewing interesting people. Her favorite pastimes include family time with her husband and kids, reading, cooking, and traveling.

 

Megan Klein

Megan graduated from Boston University in May 2022 and has found the perfect combination of sports and communications in her job with the Boston Red Sox. In her free time, she freelances for local Boston publications as well as the Inside Press.

 

Tara Madden

Millwood resident Tara Madden, a graduate of Greeley High School (2017) and Chapman University (2021), is an accounts manager for the Inside Press. She appreciates all the experience she has gained from this opportunity! She loves spending free time outdoors, specifically at the beach or on a hike with her dog!

 

Donna Mueller

Capturing treasured moments is what fuels Donna Mueller’s soul, and it’s what she does best! Mueller loves photographing events such as Sweet 16’s, Mitzvahs and small Weddings. Despite being a 3x Best of Westchester winner specializing in Family Photography, Donna still considers herself ‘Just a Girl with a Camera’.

 

Christine Pasqueralle

Christine is a freelance writer, wife and mom of two who makes her home in Hawthorne, NY. She has worked in the marketing and public relations fields. Christine enjoys reading, travel and the arts. She also works part-time at the Briarcliff Manor Public Library.

 

Stacey Pfeffer

Stacey, a Chappaqua-based freelance writer, lives in a noisy household with her husband, Larry, plus three kids and three dogs. She can be spotted walking her dogs on the North County Trailway or swimming laps at Club Fit. She writes for many regional publications and local businesses.

 

Lisa Samkoff

Lisa has been The Inside Press contributing Art Director since 2016. It was then she designed and introduced new branding and style formats for the publication. She is a freelance graphic designer and also Founding Partner and Creative Director for the local media collaborative–King Street Creatives.

 

Jean Sheff

Jean is an award-winning writer, editor, and Pilates instructor. Her local roots are deep. She grew up in Yorktown Heights and raised her daughter in Chappaqua. She writes for a variety of industries including healthcare, manufacturing, education, and retail. Her Pilates studio, INSPIRE: Personalized Pilates, is in Briarcliff Manor.

Carolyn Simpson

Carolyn has been a professional photographer for over 30 years. She is the owner of Chappaqua-based Doublevision Photographers which specializes in family portraits, lifestyle/corporate headshots, and events.She strives to capture the moment and works closely with clients to create beautiful and natural photos.

 

Ryan Smith

Ryan is the founder of Play Nice Together, Inc., a full-service digital design agency based in Westchester County. The company serves local businesses with branding, graphic design, website development, website hosting, and systems integration services. In his free time, he enjoys hiking and ballroom dancing.

 

Nolan Thornton

Nolan is a journalist and screenwriter based in New York’s Hudson Valley. When not writing, he enjoys creating music. He dreams of one day writing his own television show or movie–maybe even based on an original article. More than anything, he enjoys a good story.

 

Irene Unger

A retired English teacher and now freelance writer, Irene Unger has been living with MS for 24 years. Irene volunteers with the NY Southern Chapter of the MS Society and captains the 2Steppers WalkMS team. She resides in Briarcliff Manor with her husband Geoff, son Ben and dog, Jesse.

 

Andrew Vitelli

Andrew has been a journalist in Westchester since 2009 and has served as editor of Inside Armonk and as editor-in-chief of The Putnam Examiner and The White Plains Examiner. A Hastings-on-Hudson native, he now lives in White Plains with his wife Zeynep, daughter Zoe, and dog Beasley.

Why We Must Work Together to Save Journalism and the Press

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Plus, Busting the Myth that Kids Don’t Care About the News

By Maddie Stone

Pleasantville, NY — My name is Maddie Stone, and I’m 13 years old. I’ve found some people form an assumption about kids that just isn’t true. They automatically infer kids don’t follow the news. Why? Because we’re an inch or two shorter? Because we haven’t yet studied trigonometry? I intend to shoot down this myth and explain the importance of following the news.

It seems the day people turn 18, they immediately begin to believe anyone younger is completely clueless about what’s happening in the world. Don’t they recall the previous day, when they knew as much?

Our author with her publisher dad–long time editor and journalist, Adam Stone.

While kids almost always understand more about what’s going on than adults realize, including the importance of local news, I have a slight advantage. My dad (people other than my sister and I call him Adam Stone) is publisher of The Examiner, our local weekly print and online community newspaper. Having a publisher as a dad, I grew up learning all kinds of lessons about the press and why it’s important. But don’t let that make you think I’m one of the rare few. Just listen to what my friend Max Rubinstein has to say:

Max Rubinstein

“The idea of children being dismissive to the media is simply preposterous and is most likely a result of modern stereotyping,” Max said.

Max, like me, is a 13-year-old seventh grader at Fox Lane Middle School in Bedford and we often talk about current events. How are we informed? By reading, watching, and listening to quality journalism.

“I watch the news to gain insight into the international community and to learn about the status and structure of American politics,” Max added.

My friends, my teammates and I are keenly aware of the world around us; we’re not naive and ignorant. For the most part, we listen to our local news broadcasts, read our community newspapers, just as much as the average person. Keeping up with the times is important for people of all ages.

The press informs the people of important issues and events, from a local carnival to a global pandemic. Especially in times like the present, when faced with a crisis, it is even more urgent to stay updated on the data, or, in this case, the spreading and containing of the coronavirus. Even on a local level, when a mayor, town supervisor, or school board reveals a proposal, it is critical for the public to be alerted of the news.

In addition to keeping citizens informed, journalists provide coverage that allows people to remain up-to-date, and, therefore, safe and free from harm. Once again circling back to the coronavirus, newscasters and print journalists are frequently encouraging self-quarantine, hand washing, and remaining six feet apart if you must leave home. This does not just apply to the epidemic that has swept the nation. Most news outlets will showcase topics such as poverty, equality, environmental contamination, and, locally, clean drinking water, jobs, and crime. News supplies citizens with knowledge they can use to make decisions about their safety and general well-being.

“An informed society is an educated society, and you cannot have a well-functioning democracy unless a country’s citizens are informed,” observed Martin Wilbur, editor-in-chief of The Examiner. His insight led me to my next point: It’s essential for every country, every state, every county, every city, to remain educated. If the general public is educated, the people are empowered.

However, people can only be educated if the news sources they’re using are reliable. It’s like dominos; if you’re educated, you’re informed. If you follow reliable news sources, you’re educated. But even if you read the news, and you read a biased, untrustworthy source, the whole thing comes crashing down. That’s what makes becoming a knowledgeable citizen so challenging.

Furthermore, journalists keep the government in check. They expose fraud and unethical behavior in our leaders. An invisible fourth estate that monitors authority figures. This includes local government. Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tip O’Neill, was perhaps most famous for saying, “all politics is local.” This certainly applies here. Most controversies that arise in local government and are exposed by local reporters can’t be compared to controversies as grand in scope as, say, the Watergate affair. But those stories are often the ones most impactful to people’s everyday lives.

Also, keeping the government in check does not just involve reporting on controversy and scandal. Keeping the government in check means keeping elected leaders honest, so when a government official says or does anything, and a journalist reports on it, that’s a perfectly valid example of keeping the government in check.

Speaking of keeping an eye on local government, whether my dad is talking about his work day at the dinner table or running away from the dinner table to write about a breaking political story, the news is definitely a large part of our life at home. I’m aware of what’s happening locally, so I know journalists are always attending school board meetings, writing about statements from politicians, and scrambling to meet deadlines. Either way, they are constantly busy with elected officials. But never too busy to watch their awesome, fleet-footed, line-drive hitting, 13-year-old daughter’s softball games, of course.

While I usually like to just make fun of my dad, I figured I would quickly take this unique opportunity to suggest you read his column on how The Examiner has been trying to survive these turbulent times: https://www.theexaminernews.com/want-to-save-journalism-start-local-support-the-examiner/

And as much as I love Inside Press, The Examiner, and local news in general, let’s take a moment to step away from our neck of the woods. Journalism also allows us to understand places beyond our backyard. Without journalists to report on places far away, how would we know what’s happening in India? What about Canada? What about upstate New York? What about anywhere outside our little bubble?

As important as it is to study journalism, it is equally as important to support it. The adult consumers of today were once kids and the kids of today are the adults of the future. In the words of Thomas Jefferson, “Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost.”

In order to preserve this liberty, the youth of today must value and support well-sourced, quality journalism. We must be thankful for the news outlets we have but also think back on how much we’ve lost. Just a few years ago, the country enjoyed so many more journalists, especially print journalists. In case you didn’t know, over the past 15 years, one in five newspapers have gone out of business, and the number of journalists employed at newspapers have been cut in half. These numbers are only getting worse. My dad taught me most of what I know about journalism, but the following I can infer on my own: save the press now while there’s still time.

Maddie Stone is a 13-year-old, seventh grader at Fox Lane Middle School in Bedford. This article is also appearing in next week’s print editions of Examiner Media’s four community newspapers and is also live now at www.theexaminernews.com

 

From Paper to Screen: How New Media Platforms Are Changing Journalism

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“And I am learning that writing truthfully and emotionally about my own experiences often resonates with readers the most.”

By Lindsay Hand 

Being a young millennial is a truly unique experience. Born in the mid-90s, I have been privy to incredible technological and societal change and advancement. I am still young enough to never have lived without a computer in my house, but old enough to remember a world without smartphones, now staples. As a college student, I cannot even begin to imagine my life without my iPhone, Macbook, and constant access to e-mail, social media and the Internet. In our increasingly multi-media world, journalism is perhaps the largest field affected.

lindsay hand picture for odyssey story
The way people access and read content is evolving, mostly moving online to various outlets. My parents still watch television news and read the newspaper, but I definitely do not. Especially since coming to college, though, keeping up with current events has become extremely important to me; I get daily news blast e-mails, and use Twitter and my phone’s News app to constantly keep myself updated between classes. I also enjoy and search out different ways to see my peers’ thoughts about events both on campus and around the world, and visiting the growing online outlets where college students express these opinions.

Part of the Change

I am fortunate to have the opportunity to work directly with one of these groundbreaking new platforms. As Contributing Editor for Cornell University’s branch of the Odyssey, I have the privilege of playing an important part in the growth of this exciting new business. Founded by two Indiana University students and launched in 2014, Odyssey already has over 3,000 writers and a massive presence in campus media nationwide. According to Odyssey Editorial Director Kate Waxler, “We believe that the traditional top-down editorial model is broken, and created Odyssey to flip that model upside down. We’re redefining the way content is created, tapping into the relevance and engagement associated with hyper-local content and distributing our content in a unique and authentic way.”

Odyssey is unique in that it is both entirely online, and allows for the expression of diverse viewpoints and opinions. This was what initially drew me to Odyssey: the idea of writing each week about whatever I wanted, without limitations, constraints or assignments. It is a distinct platform for college students to speak their minds, explain their views, and discover how influential their writing can be. “We felt that there were many perspectives unrepresented and many voices not breaking through to the surface,” Waxler adds. “Odyssey enables those perspectives and voices to be heard.”

Advertisers love it, too. According to Waxler, since Odyssey is closely integrated with millennials, brands and agencies are “offered access to and insights about this sought-after demographic through our research and advertising opportunities.” What also makes Odyssey unusual is its reliance on social media and “shares” to spread content. “We are a hybrid between a publisher and a social media platform, and bring the best of both,” Waxler explains. “Our audience encounters Odyssey content (90% of the time) because someone they know shares it with them in social channels.” In this way, Odyssey is distinctly attuned to millennials–our lives, particularly our online lives, are defined by our mediated social circles, the way we hear about happenings local, national, and international.

Looking Toward the Future

Beyond gaining important leadership experience and practice meeting weekly deadlines, I have found in Odyssey an outlet to express things I would have never previously thought to write about. And I am learning that writing truthfully and emotionally about my own experiences often resonates with readers the most.

Possible topics are unlimited. I have written about everything from a review of “Supergirl” to heartfelt reflections about my sister and being a summer camp counselor. Interestingly, these personal pieces have clearly struck a nerve in others, based on the number of social media shares they have received. Other Cornell Odyssey pieces have ranged from campus libraries to the show “Friends” to the current conflict in Israel. Odyssey always gives students the opportunity to express their thoughts about absolutely anything.

Odyssey and its ilk represent the future of journalism. As a millennial and a Communication major, I know that I have an obligation and a challenge to bring traditional journalism into today’s world. It is a changing field, and my generation will help bring about this change. As Waxler says so well, “We are investing in the next generation of writers, and are using our proprietary technology and data science to bring content and ideas to the world.”

Interested? Check out theodysseyonline.com. Search for particular colleges on the Odyssey homepage.

Two-time Inside Chappaqua Guest Editor Lindsay Hand is a sophomore at Cornell University.