John Adams

There isn't a one-size-fits-all business model or editorial strategy or solution to the local news challenge.

The organizations that we're seeing that are having so much success are entities that really know their community.

They know what their community is looking for.

What's the gap?

What is the information that people most need or most want?

And so they're...

they're so tied in with what is happening.

They're part of the community that they build trust.

They're reflecting the flavor of the community in many ways.

Like you, you can sense the familiarity because you recognize the people, you recognize the voices, you, you recognize, you know, the issues that are happening around you.

And, you know, like, you know, you know, a lot of craft breweries will, you know,

the water that they have access to is part of what makes their beer special.

You know, the makeup of the water is a big deal.

You know, people use local barley, local malt, local hops.

You know, maybe if you're in certain parts of the country, like Montana, you might add a huckleberry beer to your mix during huckleberry season.

And, you know, these are all things that people see kind of reflected in

They see their lived experience, their world reflected in this thing, and that's something that they feel an attachment to.

And I think that is what we're trying to do with Local News Day is sort of recreate that same kind of connection, that same kind of attachment with the information about what's happening around them and empowering people.

Yeah, well, I mean, it's one of those situations that, you know, I didn't really have any idea what I was getting into when Kimberly Reid, the documentary filmmaker, reached out to me.

Kimberly's a Helena native, born and raised here in Montana.