The State of the Local Media on this Independence Day

It’s become an annual tradition on our program to mark the Fourth of July by examining the status of New Mexico’s fourth estate — the ecosystem that comprises our local news media.  

We’re living in a unique moment for the industry, and we seek to capture what that looks like in New Mexico and what it means for news consumers.   

The future of public media is in peril as the U.S. Senate debates yanking back over $1 billion dollars Congress allocated to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for the next two years. 

How does the first new general manager at KUNM Radio in 30 years see that threat and plan to respond? 

How about the leaders of smaller stations like KSFR in Santa Fe and KGLP in Gallup, who rely even more heavily on federal support?  

Newspaper subscriptions and circulation continue to dwindle nationwide, forcing the industry to explore new funding models. 

How is the Albuquerque Journal’s new executive editor working to keep the state’s family-owned paper of record relevant and sustainable?  

Free online news outlets have sprung up rapidly in recent years, but some of those platforms are looking different these days as they struggle to make ends meet. 

Did a local publisher expand too quickly?  

Traditional news organizations have largely done a poor job of reaching people on social media, and doubt has arisen about how helpful or even realistic objectivity is when it comes to journalism. 

As many New Mexicans get their information from content creators instead, how is a self-described “news collective” in Santa Fe meeting the moment?  

These are the questions we explore on this week’s New Mexico in Focus State of the Local Media special.  

I know many of you have plans for the Fourth and may miss our 7 p.m. broadcast on Friday. So, a reminder that you can always catch up when you’re free on the PBS app or the New Mexico in Focus YouTube channel.