Foundation Provides $1.7-Million for a Study on Local News

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Aspen Institute have appointed a committee to examine how the changing news-media market is affecting people’s ability to obtain important information about the cities and towns where they live, reports the Associated Press.

With newspaper readership slipping, people using online news sources, and a number of news organizations cutting back their reporting staffs, the commission intends to examine the consequences on people’s ability to get local news to help them make informed decisions about their neighborhoods.

Alberto Ibargüen, president of the Miami-based Knight foundation, which is providing $1.7-million in grants for the roughly yearlong project, said the commission might recommend actions that the Federal Communications Commission could take or changes in the tax code that could have an impact on the changing news environment.