WASHINGTON—As part of an ongoing push to strengthen local reporting, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has awarded a $649,703 grant to the Appalachia + Mid-South Newsroom (AMSN).
AMSN is a collaboration of public radio and television stations, led by Louisville Public Media, that was launched last fall to provide relevant, fact-based information to local communities across Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia.
One example of their work occurred when deadly floods swept through the region in the wake of Hurricane Helene last fall. In the wake of that disaster, AMSN and nine partner stations moved quickly, deploying a veteran journalist to cover storm damage in Eastern Tennessee, while statehouse reporters in Nashville provided useful information and context from the capital.
In addition to Louisville Public Media, the other stations in the Appalachia + Mid-South Newsroom are: WKU Public Radio (Bowling Green, Ky.); WEKU (Richmond, Ky.); WKMS (Murray, Ky.); WPLN Nashville Public Radio; WUOT (Knoxville, Tenn.); and West Virginia Public Broadcasting.
“Local journalism is essential to the civic health of America’s communities,” said Patricia Harrison, CPB president and CEO. “In addition to providing fact-based reporting and emergency information, public media stations respond to the information needs of the communities they serve, reflecting and respecting local voices and perspectives, including stories of civic pride and engagement. These stations are committed to working together with the communities they serve, and they have already started.”
The grant builds on the nearly $50 million CPB has invested in journalism collaborations across the country during the past 15 years. The collaborations, which involve public media stations working together to provide information and news to residents in rural areas of the country, cover topics of regional concern, such as agriculture, veterans and active military issues, and rural life.
“We’re thrilled to have CPB’s support to extend shared services and capabilities that will make our journalism more impactful and sustainable,” said Ellen Oost, co-interim CEO of Louisville Public Media. “This collaboration allows us to coordinate journalism resources to strengthen local news across our region, which covers a swath of rural America as well as population centers—each with a distinct culture and common concerns.”
In awarding the grant, the CPB noted that the 2024 Medill State of Local News Report found that 13 counties in Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia have no local news sources, and 187 counties have only one local news source.
It also stressed that rural communities are at especially high risk of losing local news and this region is no exception. The Appalachia + Mid-South Newsroom provides access to local and regional news to all these counties, connecting rural communities and nearby population centers.
“West Virginia Public Broadcasting can only strengthen our storytelling by working with other stations in greater Appalachia,” Eddie Isom, executive director of West Virginia Public Broadcasting, said. “We see this collaboration as a positive step in working together to tell the important stories that are happening in an often overlooked region.”
Each station in the collaboration contributes the equivalent of one reporter’s time to producing stories for a regional audience. CPB support over three years will fund a video journalist and a project manager and support four shared positions.
