From Northeastern University's School of Journalism. Local news, the bedrock of democracy, is in crisis. Dan Kennedy of Northeastern University and veteran Boston Globe editor Ellen Clegg talk to journalists, policymakers and entrepreneurs about what's working to keep local news alive.
What Works: The Future of Local News
Claim This Podcastby Dan Kennedy and Ellen Clegg
4.9(19 reviews)
121 episodes
Updated Weekly
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62
Podcast Authority
BetaGoodBased on show quality, social media presence, reviews, charts, and more
Quality93
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Engagement77
Podcast Overview
From Northeastern University's School of Journalism. Local news, the bedrock of democracy, is in crisis. Dan Kennedy of Northeastern University and veteran Boston Globe editor Ellen Clegg talk to journalists, policymakers and entrepreneurs about what's working to keep local news alive.
Language
🇺🇲
Publishing Since
10/5/2021
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62
Podcast Authority
BetaGoodBased on show quality, social media presence, reviews, charts, and more
Quality93
Social0
YouTube0
Engagement77
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excellent
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41 minutes
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Recent Episodes
June 25, 2026
Episode 121: Emily Sweeney
<p dir="ltr">Dan and Ellen talk with <a href= "https://www.bostonglobe.com/about/staff-list/staff/emily-sweeney/"> Emily Sweeney</a> of The Boston Globe. As the Globe's first social video journalist, Emily broke through the clutter on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram with <a href= "https://youtu.be/KE_NpBc1BUs?si=vzkBvo3SYmqrQ923">her Boston accent</a> and her collection of track suits. Not to mention her skills as a reporter. </p> <p dir="ltr">There's a Northeastern connection, as well. Sweeney played on NU's championship-winning Division 1 women's ice hockey team. </p> <p dir="ltr">Dan has a Quick Take about <a href= "https://www.njspotlightnews.org">NJ Spotlight News</a>, a website and a newscast that covers politics and public policy in New Jersey. It's also featured in <a href= "https://www.beacon.org/What-Works-in-Community-News-P1978.aspx">"What Works in Community News."</a> Spotlight was in danger of being seriously downsized after Donald Trump and the Republican Congress zeroed out funding for public media. The state of New Jersey, facing a budget crisis, cut its public media subsidy as well. Now, though, it looks like there's good news to report. </p> <p dir="ltr">Ellen's Quick Take is on a comprehensive investigation into a Trump donor named Tim Barnard. Barnard Construction has received billions in taxpayer dollars to build the border wall in the Southwest. The story was reported by the nonprofit <a href= "https://www.hcn.org">High Country News</a> in Colorado and republished by another nonprofit news site, <a href= "https://azluminaria.org/2026/06/10/trump-donors-company-lands-billions-in-border-wall-contracts-including-arizona-projects/"> AZ Luminaria</a> in Arizona. It's a strong example of how a national story can be localized and, in doing so, pack a real punch.</p> <p> </p>
June 12, 2026
Episode 120: Carlene Hempel and Sydney Woogerd
<p dir="ltr">Dan and Ellen talk with <a href= "https://camd.northeastern.edu/people/carlene-hempel/">Professor Carlene Hempe</a>l at Northeastern and her student <a href= "https://www.linkedin.com/in/sydney-woogerd-a42052341/">Sydney Woogerd</a>. This spring, Carlene brought a team of student journalists to Asheville, North Carolina, for a week-long intensive reporting trip that focused on the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Helene.</p> <p dir="ltr">The result: a digital multimedia investigation called <a href= "https://journalismdesign.camd.northeastern.edu/caught-in-the-current/"> Caught in the Current: Helene Recovery in Asheville and Beyond.</a></p> <p>Put simply, this is a stunning project, with podcasts, videos, photos and text. There's a great soundtrack. We'll drop a link in the show notes.</p> <p>Carlene has been a journalism professor at Northeastern University for more than 20 years. She specializes in teaching long-form narrative writing as well as creating on-site, pop-up newsrooms domestically and abroad for her courses. Her 2025 reporting class and resulting magazine about the 10-year anniversary of Flint, Michigan's <a href= "https://whatworks.news/2025/05/13/northeasterns-carlene-hempel-and-harrison-zuritsky-tell-us-about-the-flint-uncovered-project/"> water crisis</a> won two national reporting awards. </p> <p>Sydney is studying journalism and international affairs at Northeastern University with a focus on multimedia storytelling. She serves as co-photo director for <a href= "https://www.theavenuemag.com">The Avenue Magazine</a>, a student-led fashion publication, where she directs visual strategy and creates editorial content. She has also contributed to <a href= "https://huntnewsnu.com">The Huntington News</a> and <a href= "https://www.linkedin.com/company/artistrymag/">Artistry Magazine</a> as a writer and photographer documenting community stories across Boston. Sydney served as the project's photo editor.</p> <p dir="ltr">Dan has a Quick Take about the recent What Works <a href="https://whatworks.news/webinar-2026/">webinar</a> for local-news publishers, journalists and volunteers. Ellen shares five lessons learned from watching how the projects that were subjects of the book, <a href= "https://www.beacon.org/What-Works-in-Community-News-P1978.aspx">"What Works in Community News,"</a> have evolved.</p> <p dir="ltr"> </p>
May 24, 2026
Episode 119: Ron Mitchell
<p dir="ltr">Dan and Ellen talk with <a href= "https://baystatebanner.com/tag/ron-mitchell/">Ron Mitchell</a>, publisher and editor of the <a href= "https://baystatebanner.com">Bay State Banner</a>. In 2023, Mitchell and Andre Stark, both seasoned television news journalists, purchased the Banner, a newspaper covering the Black community in Boston.</p> <p dir="ltr">The Banner was started in 1965 by Melvin Miller. The print weekly is legendary for covering stories that were ignored by other publications. Stories about the Black and Latino communities in the Boston neighborhoods of Roxbury, Dorchester and Mattapan. Mitchell and Stark are expanding its digital footprint.</p> <p dir="ltr">During his 27 years at WBZ, Mitchell created news coverage focused on racism in elementary school textbooks in 2014, and a series chronicling an 11-year lawsuit that culminated in an $11 million dollar award to a <a href= "https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/brookline-firefighter-gerald-alston-settlement/"> Black firefighter</a> in Brookline.</p> <p dir="ltr">Dan and Ellen also talk with Sanjana Mishra, a Northeastern journalism and criminal justice graduate. She's worked in local news, communications and social media. She took two courses with Dan last semester and somehow lived to tell the tale. She wrote a final paper called "<a href= "https://whatworks.news/2026/05/24/how-private-equity-and-corporate-ownership-are-killing-local-journalism-and-american-democracy/">How private equity and corporate ownership are killing local journalism and American democracy,"</a> an in-depth examination of how Alden Global Capital and USA Today Co. — known as Gannett until recently — have hollowed out newsrooms in a never-ending quest for higher profits.</p> <p dir="ltr">Ellen has a Quick Take on North Star Stories, a daily radio broadcast on local news carried by <a href= "https://ampers.org">AMPERS</a>, a network of 17 community FM stations across Minnesota. It's by community, for community, and it's funded partly by donors and partly by the state.</p> <p dir="ltr">Dan has a Quick Take about the latest on <a href= "https://dankennedy.net/2026/04/14/the-pittsburgh-post-gazette-will-go-nonprofit-after-being-acquired-by-the-baltimore-banners-owner/"> The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette</a>, which announced earlier this year that it was shutting down in the face of mounting losses. What's happened since is mostly good — but it comes with a <a href= "https://therealnews.com/venetoulis-institute-saves-the-pittsburgh-post-gazette-by-purging-union-members-who-went-on-strike"> sour aftertaste</a>.</p> <p> </p>
121 total episodes available
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Linda Forry
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