News Desert U

By: Teri Finneman, Pamela E. Walck

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eText | 6 August 2026 | Edition Number 1

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What does it mean when the university owns the news?

As hedge funds and corporations dismantle and drain existing media, Teri Finneman and Pamela E. Walck demonstrate how news-academic partnerships provide an antidote by doing the opposite. The news desert publications resulting from these collaborations lend support to rural towns, marginalized communities, and others overlooked by mainstream media as they aim to reinvent what journalism can and should be in the hands of the next generation of journalists.

Through six case studies across the United States in Nevada, Kansas, Iowa, Ohio, Georgia, and Massachusetts, Finneman and Walck explore the opportunities and challenges that come with running community news outlets from campus. Their coverage of these initiatives offers critical insight into how these outlets started and guidance on day-to-day structure, operating challenges, finances, student impact, community reaction, and lessons learned.

While these case studies illustrate that there is no single model for success, News Desert U provides an in-depth and groundbreaking analysis of how university faculty and students are stepping up to save local news.