Ponderings on the Future of Journalism; Recalls of Kias and Dodges: Coachella Valley Independent's Indy Digest: June 10, 2024 - Coachella Valley Independent (2024)

Indy Digest: June 10, 2024

I’ve spent significant chunks of the last few days putting together grant applications for the Independent and our sister paper in Reno.

As I’ve assembled updated budget spreadsheets, written out strategic plans, and explained how we’d use the funds if we’re fortunate enough to be awarded the grant(s), I’ve also been thinking a lot about the future of the Independent—and the future of journalism as a whole.

There’s no doubt that the journalism business model is broken. Thirty years ago, if someone wanted to advertise a business, privately sell a car, or find a date, they’d probably head to a newspaper (like the Independent’s alternative-newsweekly forefathers) and buy an ad, a classified, or a personal.

You likely know what happened next: The internet came. Social media arrived. Google, craigslist, Facebook and other platforms did what those ads in newspapers used to do—but for less of a cost. Newspaper ads in newspapers like the Independent still offer advertisers great bang for their buck, but it’s getting harder and harder to convince businesses of that fact these days.

This business disruption created a problem: All of those ads and classifieds and personals funded journalism. So less ads meant less journalism, especially at short-sighted corporate-run publications desperate to keep high profit margins. The result: Today, newspapers employ just about a third of the number of journalists they did in 2005.

Many of us who remain in journalism—especially those of us who ventured out on our own fill community needs by starting our own publications—are working at an unstainable pace. Personally, I am about to turn 50. I have exactly zero dollars saved for my retirement. That needs to change, no matter how much I love what I do.

So, what does the future hold for journalism? I am still trying to figure that out. To that end, I’ll be spending the next few days at the Institute for Nonprofit News’ annual conference in San Diego. I am already working on converting our sister newspaper in Reno into a nonprofit news outlet—and it’s possible that could happen to the Independent down the line, too.

Thanks to reader support and just enough advertising support, the Independent is in decent shape, and barring some huge and unforeseen occurrence, you, dear reader, don’t have to worry about us going anywhere, at least not anytime soon. But change for the Independent, and many other independent local news outlets, is coming at some point. It has to.

—Jimmy Boegle

From the Independent

More News

• The European Union is dealing with some election results that are rather disconcerting. The Associated Press reports: “For decades, the European Union—which has its roots in the defeat of Nazi Germany and fascist Italy—confined the nationalist far right to the political fringes. With a strong showing in elections Sunday, far-right forces could now influence or block joint EU-wide policies on migration, security and climate change. … The new parliament’s first session starts in mid-July in Strasbourg, France. Pro-EU conservative parties are expected to have the biggest group. Populist or far-right forces have more seats than ever, but their views diverge on many issues. One thing is clear: The results will slow decision-making and the passing of legislation on issues from climate change to farm subsidies.”

• It does not appear Paxlovid is helpful to people dealing with long COVID. Time magazine reports: “Taking the COVID-19 antiviral Paxlovid does not appear to improve long COVID symptoms in a meaningful way, a new study finds. Those results are a blow to the millions of people living with the condition, which currently has no approved treatment or cure. Paxlovid has long been a source of hope for those with long COVID. Scientists don’t know exactly what causes long COVID, but many have hypothesized that viral material lingers in the body, potentially causing long-lasting symptoms including fatigue, the inability to exercise, brain fog, and more. Given that theory, a drug like Paxlovid, which stops the virus from multiplying and reduces the amount of it in the body, seemed to many like a promising treatment. But the new study, which was published June 7 in JAMA Internal Medicine, found that taking Paxlovid for 15 days was safe but did not improve key long COVID symptoms better than a placebo.”

• A deadline is coming up for some California student-loan recipients to apply for relief. Our partners at CalMatters report: “As many as 300,000 Californians have until June 30 to take advantage of a one-time offer to qualify for faster student loan forgiveness, lower monthly payments or outright forgiveness for federal loans borrowed before 2010. The U.S. Department of Education’s June 30 deadline is a big deal because borrowers who submit their applications would become eligible to receive credit for past years of repayment that previously didn’t qualify for student loan forgiveness. The department’s one-time ‘adjustment’ will largely help borrowers who took out federal student loans before 2010 called Federal Family Education Loans—as well as borrowers with two other types of loans. … Nationally, about half of borrowers 60 and older have been repaying their student loans for more than 15 years, a key reason why debt among this population has skyrocketed. By May, more than 1 million Americans have already gotten $51 billion in debt relief through this adjustment program, according to the department.”

• Today’s recall news involves … cars! First up: Stellantis/Dodge! The Associated Press reports: “Stellantis-owned Chrysler is recalling more than 211,000 SUVs and pickup trucks in the U.S., due to a software malfunction that could disable the cars’ electronic stability control systems. The recall covers certain model year 2022 Dodge Durango, Ram 2500 and Ram 3500 vehicles. According to documents published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, these cars may experience a malfunction in their anti-lock braking control module—which could cause stability control, a key safety feature, to fail and increase the risk of crash as a result. As a remedy, dealers will update the anti-lock braking control module software for free. Notification letters to dealers and owners are set to be mailed out July 26, the NHTSA notes. It’s unclear if the update will be available for all (impacted) owners before then. Stellantis advises customers with questions or concerns to contact their dealers or Chrysler’s recall assistance center.”

• Next up: Kias! And this one is a biggie. The Washington Post says: “Kia is recalling about 460,000 Telluride SUVs from model years 2020 through 2024, telling car owners to park outside because of ‘a risk of fire while parked or driving,’ according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The fire risk comes from a problem with the front power seat motor, NHTSA said in a Friday announcement. An internal control switch can become dislodged if the car is hit with an external impact, leading the seat motor to operate continuously and overheat. The vehicle fires are typically preceded by a burning or melting smell and smoke coming out from underneath the driver seat, NHTSA said in a safety recall report issued separately. The company said it isn’t aware of any related injuries, crashes or deaths, although a timeline put out by NHTSA shows that the current recall was caused by a passenger who noticed and reported a burning smell. There were six other instances of ‘localized melting of a power seat motor,’ according to Kia.”

• And finally … anyone who’s taken the “back way” to Vegas has gone through Amboy. The Los Angeles Times over the weekend published a piece documenting the place’s struggles, as well as its future prospects. The headline: “Amboy, population 0 — a Mojave Desert ghost town and Americana icon fights to survive.” Some details: “’It’s in the middle of nowhere in the desert, but you see a multitude of different types of people in Amboy,’ said Kyle Okura, 31, who owns Roy’s gas station, along with the rest of the ghost town, after inheriting it from his father last year. ‘That’s what’s so amazing. You hear stories from all different parts of the world.’ Amboy has long served weary travelers—first as a railroad station, and later as a roadside attraction that’s especially popular with people touring the Mother Road, Route 66. But this slice of Americana has been beset by a series of crises that stretch back more than half a century. Most recently, heavy rains forced road closures that cut off traffic for weeks at a time, while international tourism faltered during the COVID-19 pandemic and has yet to recover. Still, Okura thinks he can turn it around. No less than his father’s legacy is resting on it.”

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