EOTO #2: News Deserts

    For EOTO #2, my topic was News Deserts. In today's digital era, access to reliable, local news should be easier than it has ever been. Yet, numerous communities in the United States and worldwide find themselves in what many have come to describe as "news deserts". These are areas where the local news outlets have either disappeared or diminished, leaving residents to know very little of what is occurring within their communities. This reality carries with it profound implications for democracy, civic engagement, and informed decision-making.

    News deserts refer to communities where there is virtually no local journalism. In large part, this occurs when newspapers close, decline in circulation, or are absorbed into large media chains that put the bottom line above reporting. According to research from UNC's Hussman School of Journalism, the U.S. has lost more than a quarter of its newspapers since 2004, while over 2,500 counties have only one or no newspaper serving them locally. This trend has been driven by economic pressures, with advertising revenues often too low for operations in rural areas. Digital platforms like Facebook and Google only make matters worse by sucking up all of the ad dollars without replacing any of the local news coverage. Without access to local journalism, information gaps around matters integral to community well-being widen.

     Where local journalists are missing, corruption and mismanagement go unchecked, and voter turnout shrinks because residents don't know anything about local elections or issues. Moreover, local news plays a unifying role by helping residents connect and build interest in their neighbors. This sense of communion quickly disappears without it, as communities in news deserts lack a shared sense of identity and purpose. People in news deserts regularly turn to social media or non-verified sources for information, being highly susceptible to misinformation and fake news. Without advertising opportunities in local outlets, local businesses struggle to reach their communities, further weakening the fabric of the community. News deserts present challenges that cannot be surmounted without innovative solutions and collective action. Funding from governments and private foundations can give grants or subsidies for independent local news outlets as a way to soften financial constraints on small publishers.

    Nonprofit news organizations, such as ProPublica, have proved that successful journalism does not have to be solely supported by advertising revenue. Growing nonprofit newsrooms in areas of news deserts would help bridge vital gaps. Subscriptions or donations from residents can also help to subsidize and save local newspapers. Cooperative ownership models are grassroots initiatives where communities can own their news. But leveraging technology to reduce production costs and improve access can help revive local journalism, too. Hyperlocal digital platforms can create news that is specific to smaller communities with reduced costs. News deserts represent a growing crisis that threatens democracy, civic engagement, and community identity. Though the challenges are great, solutions exist. By fostering local journalism through innovative funding, nonprofit models, and community engagement, we can rebuild the vital networks that connect and inform our communities. Providing every citizen with access to credible, local news is not a luxury; it's absolutely critical to the proper functioning of our society. 

EOTO #1

     

    The printing press is a revolutionary invention that transfers text and images from movable type onto paper or other media with ink. This invention revolutionized the process of knowledge circulation and idea propagation. Movable type and paper originated in China, where both were invented. The oldest extant book printed with movable type is *Jikji*, a collection of Buddhist teachings, produced in Korea in 1377. Although these innovations originated in East Asia, the mechanization of printing became a signature development in Europe in the 15th century where it fundamentally changed how information was disseminated and preserved.

    The first recorded mention of a mechanized printing press in Europe is a 1439 lawsuit in Strasbourg. This legal case described the construction of a press for Johannes Gutenberg and his collaborators. Gutenberg's press borrowed much from the medieval paper press, itself an adaptation of the ancient wine-and-olive presses of the Mediterranean. His press used a long handle to turn a wooden screw, which pressed down upon the paper laid over inked type mounted on a wooden platen. This design allowed the printing to be accurate and even.

    In 1455, Gutenberg printed with his press a text of the Bible-so-called Gutenberg's Bible-which is the first complete surviving book in the West printed from movable type. It heralded a giant leap in mass production of printed books whereby they would become accessible, not to a limited few, but to the masses at large. This technology of the Gutenberg wooden press remained unchanged for over three centuries and was only capable of printing about 250 sheets an hour on one side.

    By the end of the 18th century, metal presses came into general use, which were more durable and efficient. It was during this era that the cylinder press appeared, with incorporation of the main technological innovation-rotating cylinders-to make printing faster and uniform. At about the same time, inventors began experimenting with steam power as a means of increasing productivity. In the mid-19th century, Richard M. Hoe of New York perfected the power-driven cylinder press, which could produce up to 8,000 sheets per hour. A large central cylinder in his press printed successively on the paper of four impression cylinders, an innovation that made high-speed newspaper production possible. While rotary presses dominated large-scale high-speed printing, flatbed presses-which held type on a flat surface and pressed paper against it by either a reciprocating platen or a cylinder-continued to be used for smaller-scale jobs.

    Another transformative innovation of the late 19th century was the offset press. This replaced the old process with a blanket cylinder that continually ran in one direction and imparted the inked image onto the paper by means of an impression cylinder. The offset was very good for color printing as it could apply more colors in one run. This Offset Lithography became the method of choice for books, newspapers, magazines, business forms, and direct mail. Offset printing would remain, in the early 21st century, the most common printing technique, though increasingly put into tension by a growing array of competing digital technologies-including inkjet and laser printing-that allowed for much greater flexibility and personalization.

    The printing press changed not only the way books and printed materials were produced but also became a cornerstone of cultural and intellectual development. Such a press made possible the swift dissemination of ideas, standardization of texts, and democratization of knowledge-three precursors necessary to lay the groundwork for modern mass communication. From Gutenberg's pioneering work to improvements afforded by the industrial and digital eras, printing technology continues its evolution in shaping how information is created, shared, and consumed.