Working Paper: NBER ID: w29743
Authors: Michael Ewens; Arpit Gupta; Sabrina T. Howell
Abstract: Local daily newspapers historically played an important role in U.S. democracy by providing citizens with information about local policy issues. In recent decades, local newspapers have struggled to compete with new online platforms. In the first study of private equity (PE) in a struggling industry, we find nuanced effects. PE leads to higher digital circulation and lower chances of newspaper exit. However, the composition of news shifts away from local governance, the number of reporters and editors falls, and participation in local elections declines. The results have implications for knowledge about local policy issues and highlight trade-offs surrounding media ownership.
Keywords: local journalism; private equity; civic engagement; newspaper ownership; media economics
JEL Codes: G23; G32; H42; L82
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Private equity ownership (G32) | decline in local governance reporting (H70) |
| Private equity ownership (G32) | decline in total number of articles published (A14) |
| Private equity ownership (G32) | decline in number of reporters (J63) |
| Private equity ownership (G32) | decline in number of editors (A19) |
| decline in local governance reporting (H70) | decline in civic engagement (K16) |
| Private equity ownership (G32) | decline in voter turnout in local elections (K16) |
| decline in local news coverage (H70) | decline in civic engagement (K16) |
| Private equity ownership (G32) | increase in digital circulation (L86) |