The informed citizen in local communities: a user-centred study on how the public values local journalism

While political and academic debates often focus on the challenges facing local journalism, there is limited understanding of how citizens themselves experience local news and what they expect from it. This study addresses that gap through 15 focus groups, adopting a user-centred approach to explore how local communities engage with and interpret the world through local journalism. We move beyond a fixed geographic definition of “locality,” conceptualizing local media as fluid entities that relate to dynamic concepts such as “social cohesion.” The findings show that while there is a strong appetite for local news, audiences frequently experience the land scape as fragmented and overwhelming, making it difficult to access the information they need. Furthermore, the study high lights a desire for reporting that goes beyond surface-level, day-to day coverage. People are looking for journalism that deepens public understanding, addresses real-life concerns, and meaning fully engages with the issues that shape their daily lives.