Connecting with community is crucial for regional news media. Photo: Region.
More hyperlocal news, human-interest stories and practical information are key to revitalising journalism in the regions, according to a new report from the University of Canberra and RMIT University.
Engaged Journalism In The Heartland: Understanding Regional News Audiences is the product of multiple studies in which researchers surveyed audiences, analysed more than 3000 news stories and interviewed more than 200 people from regional communities across the country.
Report lead author and Director of UC’s News and Media Research Centre, Professor Sora Park said local news organisations risked becoming irrelevant if they did not adapt to their audiences’ shifting news habits.
“The Australian regional audience profile is shifting,” said Professor Park.
“Local communities are finding ways to produce news themselves to fill information gaps relevant to their needs.
“If news organisations invest in local news topics and formats that resonate with audiences, they stand to better serve their communities.”
The report found that while regional audiences trusted local media, stories and images needed to be relevant to their communities.
While topics such as sport and crime dominate headlines, Professor Park said telling more human-interest stories would help re-engage audiences.
“Locals can read about crime and sport on social media but turn to media outlets to learn about issues that matter to them and their community,” she said.
“Boosting coverage of culture and community issues instead of relying on crime and sport would improve diversity and representation in news coverage.”
Researchers found regional audiences were also tired of negative stories and wanted more positive and constructive storytelling that included solutions not just problems.
The report says tapping more into the community through audience channels, notice boards, locally authored columns and participating in events outside of the newsroom such as forums, festivals and workshops could also rebuild and retain audiences.
Report co-author Dr T.J. Thomson from RMIT University said visual storytelling was under-used, missing opportunities for deeper audience engagement.
“Visuals attract attention, spark emotional connections and help audiences make sense of news,” Dr Thomson said.
“Outlets should consider using more video, photo galleries, graphs and maps to help tell stories.
“When visuals are an afterthought, their full audience engagement potential isn’t realised.”
The report’s findings were no surprise to Region Canberra editor Claire Fenwicke who said while the way we consume news may have changed, that didn’t mean people wanted to lose touch with their communities.
“Our news might now be located on websites and reels, but the subjects people want to read about remain the same: what’s going on in my community, why is that shopfront closed, who’s behind the new mural that’s popped up around the corner, what’s planned for the land down the road?” she said.
“That’s what we’re doing here at Region Canberra, alongside our other mastheads About Regional, Region Illawarra and Region Riverina, and what we strive to do each day.
“Recording the big news events and making people aware of them is important, but so is letting people know about those niche stories, that’s what helps them feel connected to their communities.”
The report did not examine the commercial challenges regional news companies face.
