Every March, two Georgia cities transform. Dublin goes green. Macon goes pink. And in both places, a local newspaper owned by the Georgia Trust for Local News is at the center of it. A St. Patrick's Parade float in Dublin, Ga. At The Courier Herald , that role stretches back decades. The paper has been involved in Dublin’s St. Patrick’s Festival since its first days , when a local radio host’s on-air Irish music and jokes grew into something bigger – a collaboration between t

The Maine Trust for Local News was a big winner in the 2025 Better Newspaper Competition presented by the New England Newspaper & Press Association. The professional trade organization announced the honorees at a banquet during the New England Newspaper Convention in March. Newsrooms across the Maine Trust, including The Portland Press Herald, Morning Sentinel and Sun Journal, earned multiple recognitions for reporting, photojournalism, columns, feature writing and advertisin

At the National Trust, we renew civic life by rebuilding local news. Our 70-plus local news brands are cornerstones of the communities they serve. As a founding partner of the inaugural Local News Day  – a nationwide effort to reconnect communities with trusted local news sources – we’re proud to celebrate the impact of local news and its foundational role in civic engagement and democracy across our state trusts : Maine In recognition of Local News Day, and as a thank-you t

The National Trust for Local News’ mission comes to life through the work of the teams on the ground at each of our state trusts. In our ongoing Building the Trust feature, we highlight the people at the forefront of constructing a new model for local news. Christopher Wheelock, business & enterprise reporter, Sun Journal The biggest stories of Christopher Wheelock’s 44-year career unfolded on the world stage. From a control room at CNN International, he helped produce the ne

Kevin Smalley is a long way from home.   His family is on the East Coast. His personal and professional roots in New York State run deep – and as a suffering backer of the NFL’s Jets, he has the fandom to prove it. When he wound down the operations of a large Schenectady, N.Y., press in 2023, he was ready to retire and be a grandpa.   Kevin Smalley, Production Director, The Trust Press But when you work in newspaper production for 38 years, it’s difficult to resist the call t

The National Trust for Local News’ mission comes to life through the work of the teams on the ground at each of our state trusts. In our ongoing Building the Trust feature, we highlight the people at the forefront of constructing a new model for local news. Leslie Bridgers' most recent column in the Portland Press Herald about a man who visited all 454 cities & towns in Maine -- all for something to say in his obituary. As a columnist for the Portland Press Herald, Leslie Bri

When Kyle Dominy writes, the town seems to talk. He’s a journalist at his core, an observer.  His most talked-about recent work, headlined “ Shopping Carts and Living at the End of Civilization ,” was a column on the absence of the decent act of returning carts to the corral after finishing at the grocery store. For Dominy, it was part of one day in a small town that he thought spoke to kindness and caring for your neighbor. “I'll take 30 seconds of my day and stretch it into

What if readers didn’t just read about tough civic decisions — but made them? To engage and inform audiences on important local issues, The Colorado Trust for Local News is turning complex community debates into interactive experiences. In January, senior education reporter Suzie Glassman received a $10,000 grant through The National Trust for Local News’ News Innovation Sprint  to develop "Interactive Democracy: Choose Your Own Adventure" – a digital tool that allows readers

When a seat opened  on the Macon-Bibb County Board of Commissioners, The Macon Melody  didn't just cover the race. They created a space for the community to gather and learn about the candidates themselves. In February, The Melody hosted a public debate for the six candidates vying to fill the vacant District 5 commission seat – a district that Executive Editor Joshua Wilson describes as "vast" in its geography, history and population mix. The idea came from Senior Reporter L

Growing up in Middle Georgia, Rodney Manley remembers waiting every day as a child for his local newspaper to arrive. And when he finally got his hands on The Courier Herald , he went straight to the sports section. Rodney Manley, reporter, The Courier Herald Back then, he had no idea that he’d one day end up working for his hometown newspaper and uncovering the dire financial condition of the Dublin City School District. Manley has covered just about everything over a 35-yea

The Colorado Trust for Local News has completed a strategic digital expansion that brings community journalism directly to the inboxes of readers across the Front Range. Over the first six weeks of 2026, the COTLN newsroom launched six newsletters that are custom-built for email. The goal is to provide readers with topic- and community-centric news in a convenient digital format. These free newsletters also allow COTLN to build one-to-one relationships with new readers, reduc

"Innovation lives in the space between we can't and we did." The National Trust for Local News brought together leaders from its newsrooms in Maine, Georgia & Colorado for an energizing summit in Atlanta to galvanize a culture of innovation across the organization.  As the industry continues to evolve, we empower our local teams to innovate and experiment with new ideas that can secure a bright future for vital community news.

Katherine Lee understands the power of harnessing new technologies to drive journalistic impact. Earlier in her career, her team’s timely adoption of social media at the Tuscaloosa News earned them a Pulitzer Prize. Now, she carries that embrace of fresh innovations to her work leading features coverage as the news and culture editor at the Portland Press Herald. “We have to get outside our comfort zone and figure out how to use it,” Lee said of new technology. When Lee was c

Over the past two years, Central Maine reporter Emily Duggan started noticing routine school board meetings weren’t so routine. Parents who organized against the anti-LGBTQ rhetoric from growing conservative parents’ organizations stand outside school administration offices in Gardiner, Maine. Candidates with Christian nationalist agendas were elected to the boards, and the rhetoric changed from budgets and field trips to cultural issues such as LGBTQ+ youth and putting Bible

A town-by-town snapshot of everyone detained  by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents after a week of enhanced enforcement in Maine. Protesters gather for anti-ICE rally in Portland's Monument Square on Jan. 30. A Maine-focused analysis  of the people identified in the Department of Homeland Security’s “worst of the worst” list.  Interviews with Mainers who welcome immigration sweeps  and on-the-ground coverage of protests against ICE enforcement. A father detained on h

Joshua Wilson has spent nearly two decades telling stories about the Deep South. But when he relocated to Macon in 2025 to lead The Macon Melody, the Mississippi native noticed something remarkable: Everywhere he turned, he encountered the city's extraordinary contributions to music. "Macon's influence on American music is staggering," Wilson said. "The Allman Brothers, Little Richard, Otis Redding, Jason Aldean — this city shaped, and continues to shape, the music we cherish

As the National Trust for Local News works to transform community news assets to grow the reach and impact of local journalism, the nonprofit today announced the launch of its new digital marketing agency, Switchline Digital . Led by experienced executives at the National Trust, Switchline will provide human-led, AI-driven marketing strategies for businesses across every industry. “Switchline Digital represents one example of the National Trust for Local News’s enhanced focus

In early 2025, The Portland Press Herald  stopped running nationally syndicated op-eds and started focusing solely on the state of Maine. The Maine Trust for Local News  also created a single Opinion and Letters section to serve all of its daily papers, giving top priority to Letters to the Editor and op-ed submissions that have a local or statewide focus.  📈 The result? Within six months, web visits to opinion stories or letters were up by 63%, with more than 300 new subscr

Strong communities rely on strong local news and information. That's why the National Trust for Local News is proud to be a founding partner of the inaugural  Local News Day .  Launching April 9 , this national day of action is designed to connect communities with trusted local journalism and encourage people to engage with and subscribe to their local news outlets.  This coordinated effort can help local newsrooms nationwide broaden their impact and build ongoing engagement

Srengthening local news requires bold ideas ignited by journalists in the field. Catalyzing sparks of innovation that come from those working every day to educate, engage and inform our readers can transform the industry and charge growth.  The National Trust for Local News believes in accelerating visionary concepts from our journalists to power solutions for market challenges. The News Innovation Sprint, sponsored by the  Google News Initiative , represents one way the Nati