There was a time when local news existed to inform, clarify, and connect a community. It gave neighbors a shared understanding of what was happening around them — not just what happened, but why it mattered, and how we could move forward together.
Somewhere along the way, that mission quietly changed.
Today, too many local stories are no longer driven by facts, context, or public service. They are driven by clicks. By outrage. By which headline will travel fastest on social media — not which one will actually help our community understand itself.
And the consequences are showing.
Outrage Is Easier Than Accuracy
In an attention economy, outrage performs better than nuance. A calm explanation doesn’t go viral. A complicated truth doesn’t generate comments. But conflict? Conflict spreads like wildfire.
So stories are framed to inflame rather than inform. Partial facts are elevated. Context is minimized. Allegations are treated like conclusions. And the quiet, responsible voices working behind the scenes to solve real problems rarely make the cut.
The result is a public that is not better informed — just more divided.
The Human Cost of Sensational Narratives
When stories are told without care, real people become collateral damage.
Families. Small business owners. Tenants. Property owners. Nonprofits. Volunteers. Teachers. First responders. Community leaders.
They are no longer neighbors — they become “characters.”
They are no longer individuals — they become “sides.”
They are no longer people — they become headlines.
And once a narrative is published, it spreads faster than truth can catch up.
Even when facts later emerge, the damage has often already been done — reputations shaken, relationships fractured, and trust weakened.
Pitting Neighbor Against Neighbor Is Not Journalism
One of the most troubling trends in recent reporting is the persistent framing of housing, development, and civic issues as moral battlegrounds — “good versus bad,” “victims versus villains,” “us versus them.”
This framing does not create solutions.
It creates camps.
It does not encourage dialogue.
It encourages division.
It does not help struggling families find housing.
It makes it harder for anyone to work together to build it.
We cannot fix complex community problems through emotionally charged soundbites and simplified villains. Real solutions require cooperation, trust, and shared responsibility — none of which survive well in an outrage-driven media cycle.
Facts Should Come Before Feelings — Not After
Responsible journalism does not mean avoiding hard stories. It means telling them fully, accurately, and with restraint. It means verifying before amplifying. It means respecting due process. It means understanding that public trust is a fragile thing — and once broken, difficult to repair.
Facts should anchor the story — not become footnotes beneath a viral headline.
Context should be the foundation — not an optional extra.
We Can Demand Better
Communities are not built by clicks.
They are built by conversations.
By relationships.
By truth.
By accountability — not just from leaders, but from those who shape the narratives that define us.
We deserve reporting that informs rather than inflames.
We deserve journalism that strengthens civic trust rather than erodes it.
We deserve stories that recognize our complexity, our humanity, and our shared future.
Because the way a story is told does more than describe a community — it actively shapes what that community becomes.
And it’s time we start asking:
Are our headlines helping us build something — or just tearing us apart?