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IBJ will celebrate its 40th birthday this year. Much has changed over the last 40 years in our city and state, including massive change and consolidation in the newspaper industry.
In 1980, in addition to the new IBJ, Indy had two daily newspapers, the Star and the News. Today, only the Star survives as a print daily, but its readership has dwindled and it employs only a fraction of the number of reporters it did then. The Star (along with most of Indiana’s daily newspapers) is no longer locally owned, but part of the Gannett Co. headquartered in Virginia.
Local ownership matters. When the owners and top executives of any business live and work in the same community where that business functions, they are more likely to invest in the long-term success of the company and engage in the community. There is a reason every city attempts to lure corporate headquarters. When the top executives live in your community, they give to more local charities, civically engage and generally preserve more local jobs when times get tough. Their reputations are at stake.
Now don’t get me wrong—I root all day long for the Star, along with local newspapers throughout our state. I am a Star daily print subscriber and have been since I moved back to Indy in 2003. Back then, it usually took me a good 15 minutes to get through the paper; now, I’m usually through in five.
I was a big fan of the late Matt Tully. I didn’t always agree with him, but I appreciated his passion, thoughtfulness and independence. Now, I enjoy Star sportswriter Gregg Doyle and columnist James Briggs—two great journalists who bring local stories to life.
The hollowing out of local newspapers is bad news for our cities and state. The media is often referred to as the fourth branch of government because of its role in holding public officials accountable and keeping the electorate informed. When fewer reporters are covering city hall and the state capitol, you can bet more shenanigans will follow. Social media—which so often deals in rumors, conspiracy theories and misinformation—is no substitute for good journalism.
The importance of local, trustworthy information is highlighted when crisis hits. The COVID-19 crisis is a prime example of when we all need the most up-to-date local information to evaluate risks and protect our families. How quickly is the virus spreading? Where can we get tested? Which hospitals are prepared? Where can we shop for essential products and services? When our families are threatened, along with our economic well-being, local, accurate information is essential.
During these challenging weeks, IBJ’s team has been working overtime to keep you informed. While other news organizations furlough employees and cut pay, we have held strong and instead launched new products that are free to the community, including a daily COVID-19 email that includes more stories outside of our paywall, and a podcast titled “Beyond COVID” hosted by our managing editor, Lesley Weidenbener.
As a result of our three daily news emails (Eight@8 in the morning, IBJ Daily in the afternoon, and now the COVID-19 Daily Wrap-up in the early evening), IBJ.com, and our Breaking News and News Update alerts, we are a 21st century daily newspaper. Our weekly print edition that hits your mailbox on Fridays goes more in-depth with stories and commentary that keep you informed.
IBJ is not immune to the challenges that have hit daily newspapers and the media in general. But your local owners are investing in people and innovating with new products to ensure that we will be your trusted local news source for the next 40 years.•
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Feltman, an attorney and former Indiana secretary of commerce, is a shareholder in IBJ Corp. To comment on this column, send email to nfeltman@ibj.com.
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I appreciate the fact that most of the time IBJ is pretty unbiased. It would be nice if the star printed the truth instead of their Democratic agenda. I rarely read unless I have google a certain topic because of this. I know better than to trust most of what they write because it is so skewed to their agenda intstead of reporting facts.