What Happens After the Election
Editor’s Note: This article previously appeared in a different format as part of The Atlantic’s Notes section, retired in 2021.
What else is going on in the country, with less than two weeks in this consequential election season? Here is a sampling of recent articles and developments worth notice.
Prospects for local journalism: The strength and importance of local journalism have always grown from its attention to the local: What is happening in the town or region, what is getting better or worse, how local institutions are responding. Even as national politics have become more polarized and tribal, local news organizations have often been able to focus attention and engagement on important issues (rather than divisive spectacles) that can be solved (rather than just argued about).
This is why several trends of recent years have been so destructive in civic terms. These include the economic pressures on small, of many surviving outlets by private-equity chains; and the determination of national TV chains to convert local TV-news outlets of the national-politics crusades. A recent story by Davey Alba and Jack Nicas has drawn a lot of attention for showing how the Sinclair model—franchised, faux-“local” versions of national messaging—is spreading to the print and online realms.
