Why Local News Still Matters

By Kerri Parker

In a world that feels louder and faster by the day, community news remains one of the quiet miracles holding us together. It’s the neighbor’s small business making a difference. The local nonprofit rallying volunteers for a cause that matters. It’s how we remember that – beneath all our differences, we share the same streets, schools, and skies.

Last weekend, CBS Sunday Morning aired a thoughtful segment featuring columnist Charles M. Blow, exploring the crisis facing local newspapers across America. Since 2005, more than 3,200 newspapers have disappeared—an average of two closing every week. The piece called local news the “connective tissue” of communities, and it’s true. When that thread frays, neighborhoods lose something sacred: their shared story.

Here at home, we’re grateful for those still telling it. Publications like The DeFuniak Herald Breeze remind us that the local paper is more than ink and pages—it’s a record of who we are and how we show up for one another.

At HWY331.com, we’re part of that same calling—only our canvas looks a little different. We blend digital storytelling, podcast conversations, newsletters, and social platforms to bring relevant local news to the forefront and make it easy to share.

Because sharing is how stories live on. When you clip a story for a distant family member, text a link about a local business to a friend, forward an email newsletter, or share an event post online, you’re doing more than passing along information—you’re helping your community thrive. Every shared story, every newspaper subscription, every click, every “you’ve got to read this” moment keeps the light on in local life.

The stories that move us are the ones that connect us. And connection, in all its quiet grace, is what turns a place into a community.