Tucson and the Arizona journalism community are still reeling from Monday’s mass layoff at the Arizona Daily Star.
Like all legacy newspapers, the state’s second-largest newspaper had already suffered steady bone-deep cuts over the decades, yet somehow continued to put out great journalism on a daily basis.
But this week, its corporate overlords decided to slash the jobs of another 10 reporters, editors, designers and others, including many who had spent their lives and careers serving and reporting on their community.
Nearly a quarter of the newsroom and some of the most talented journalists in this state got the ax.
It was a particularly dark day in a generally dark industry.
We’ve been having a lot of discussions lately with other reporters and journalism nerds about the news industry — how can we grow the Agenda, what kinds of funding models work best for different products and audiences, and how we can fill a small part of the giant hole left by the tragic slow death of venerable local news institutions like the Arizona Daily Star.
But we’d rather hear from you readers — both our paid and our free subscribers — about how to save the local news industry.
What news organizations do you support with your dollars and why? And what tipped you over the edge from free reader to paid subscriber, or donor?
What local news organizations do you read, but not pay for? Why not?
What are local news organizations not covering that would be valuable enough for you to start paying?
And more generally, what are your big ideas for saving local news?
Drop us your advice and some links to examples of great coverage you’ve read in the Star or your local paper. And go subscribe or donate to a local news organization that deserves your money.
And, as always, we hope we’re one of many on that list.
Arizona Agenda is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Saving every journalist is a noble effort. Assuring that your product is not only protected but enhanced in the process is even more noble. My thoughts - which you are always welcome to ignore (or scoff at or laugh at) - you know who the best people are. You know whose work compliments and adds to your effort. I'm certain there is a 2+2=6 opportunity here someplace, but I'm also sure only you, Rachel and Hank, know who those other two are.
Expanding your very successful platform is more than just a matter of improving your own financial condition or protecting the careers of others. It's a superb service to the Arizona community.
My one caveat - which you can ignore - but I hope not - maintain political balance. I love the Tucson publication. I'm a recovering Republican with a blazing wild ass radical hippy past. So I can talk GOP trash one moment and Malcolm X the next. I'm not a normal reader, however. You've already got my $7/month and you'll keep it no matter how hard right or left any column you publish might tilt.
Your greatest service will be pulling far more people to your platform, making the rest of the Recovering Republicans in this State feel cautiously safe as they tiptoe into your reporting world, and helping us all find a new purpose for our political efforts in the process. The world is always a better place when a few Grant Woods type characters sneak into the sanctuary of the political right. Republicans don't want to be evil. We just tend to do so sometimes unless someone jerks on our choke collar and stops us from biting our own friends.
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I am a recent transplant from Phoenix to Flagstaff. I am considering unsubscribing to AZ Central and may add your paid service instead. I have subscribed to the online Flagstaff paper, but it is not very comprehensive. I love that you cover the AZ legislature so in depth, but I am a political nerd.
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I wonder why outside overlords determine everything about a local newspaper when it is turning a profit. What about a community-owned newspaper that buys some national stories, but maintains a robust local news team?
I'm worried also about the Arizona Republic -- it seems as if more and more of the paper is about national sports. Is this a sign of financial deterioration? I hope not.
I subscribed for a month but cancelled. Your articles were far too opinionated and clearly left leaning. I want facts, NOT opinions. I am a 40 year resident of Phoenix originally from Chicago, had a 30 year career in Public Relations and Jounalism and am a resistered Independent voter since 2006.
I don’t subscribe to any publications, on line or in print any longer, because I can get most of the news I need for free MINUS opinions; liberal, conservative or other.
The world is gray not black or white and I can make up my own mind based on factual reporting, not articles that purposely leave out important information to create a certain narrative, thank you. I don’t need to be “influenced” by writers but that seems to be the agenda these days. You know what they say about opinions…that’s why I won’t pay for your “service” ie opinions, nor do I appreciate hypocrisy
Best of luck. Sadly, the days of real, factual journalism, in my opinion, are over!
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
Dear Dedicated Journalists -- Your work is essential to giving us the information we need to help preserve democracy and protect/improve the quality of life in our state and local community. Just saying "thank you" doesn't come close to expressing our gratitude for what you do.
We subscribe to Axios, Agenda, Mirror and the Republic as well as Heather Cox Richardson's blog.
Suggestion: Include a link at the bottom of each issue to purchase a gift subscription for a friend. Perhaps a second such link elsewhere. Also consider including links to Axios and Az Mirror. Hopefully, they will reciprocate.
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
Hi, so I also subscribe to the Capitol Times and read Axios Phoenix w/o a subscription. We also have an Arizona Republic subscription. I have loved the Axios stories about the death penalty cases in AZ. I would pay something for a local online pub covering Tempe. I would like to support local news more, but limited resources (money) and time are the limiting factors.
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
My daughter, Susan Marie with the Arizona Commerce Authority, specifically asked that I throw some support your way when you were starting out. You have lived up to your mission so far and so it’s easy for me to continue to pay for the Agenda. I don’t read every word every day, but I do scan through and usually read a bit. Lately I’ve noticed myself thinking, “wonder what the Agenda will have to say about that.” So keep up the great work! Thanks.
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
The best way to help journalism is to subscribe to your local newspaper, no matter how bad it gets. I appreciate the Agenda for its original reporting and for how it creates a sense of how all the stories fit together. Context is so important. But the Agenda is also an aggregator. It gathers stories from news sources around the state and gives us the links if we want to read more. If we lose AZ Central, the Daily Star, the Daily Sun, or any of the smaller outlets in Arizona, it means less content on the Agenda. I’m a retired journalist. My last news job was for a regional news network in the Pacific Northwest. It was similar to the Agenda in how we did original reporting but also ran stories from local stations. From experience, nothing, absolutely nothing beats a local news outlet with reporters in the community.
Recently relocated to Tucson and retired after several decades with the Baltimore Sun and Orange County Register. I really think the quality journalism is moving to Substack-style platforms. The Bari Weiss model with Free Press would be great if we could do something similar in AZ. But it would take a critical mass of support from paying members to hire a few more reporters. I am currently unpaid here because I'm paying a lot of Substack subs! :) But I would be willing to join to do something better in AZ. But folks, the Weiss model and others work because they really return to the pursuit of objective, fair, factual journalism. Notice I said 'pursuit.' I came of age in the '80s and worked through the 2000s. Too many journalists today are out to save the world by promoting 'good' narratives. People need quality journalism they can trust. I believe there is still a market for it.
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I read and donate monthly to the Az Mirror...really like it's local coverage. I do not read or subscribe to the Az Republic. Too much blah, blah, blah and advertising. I like your local coverage...sometimes I read you carefully, other times skim. I do support you for that local coverage. I subscribe to NYT & WaPo for national news. I do want political analysis and coverage. Thanks for all you do.
Sadly, journalism as I knew it during the Johnson, Nixon, Carter and Reagan administrations is dead. Its death was assured when the Fairness Doctrine was killed during the Reagan administration. Free content on the internet for additional advertising revenue was the crucifragum.
In my opinion, we need a new Fairness Doctrine that also encompasses the internet to resurrect journalism.
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I am an Arizona voter who also spends time during the year in upstate New York. I read, and pay for, The AZ Agenda and the AZ Republic daily whether I am in NY or AZ. I was a 40+ year subscriber to The Middletown Times-Herald Record - supposedly my local daily newspaper (owned by Gannett as is the Republic) - until they decided that they would cover very little that happens in my county - Sullivan County NY. Since they no longer cover my area, I dropped that subscription. I do read, and pay for two local papers in Sullivan County - The Sullivan County Democrat (publishes 2x weekly) and the River Reporter ( a weekly).
My first job out of college was as a district sales manager in the circulation department of the Newburgh (NY) Evening News. Very little is more important to maintaining a democracy than a free press. Anything that inhibits legitimate, professional journalists from doing their job is anti-democratic. And those reporters - from either side - who print falacious stories do not deserve the title journalist.
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I've tried several times to subscribe to the Star and their website is a mess., refusing to complete the transaction. Called twice, several months apart and the customer service reps were unable to help. Really?
Please, for the love of journalism, stop accepting and promoting "culture war" narratives.
The tamale bill is a perfect example: tamales are trendy and popular, and a source of pride for the people who make them. It's easy to adopt a "tamales are great, duh, stoopid legislators" attitude. It's way more boring (and probably less popular) to address the obvious food safety implications of allowing foods that contain meat and require refrigeration to be legally classified as cottage foods—a category that contains non-perishable food items like cookies and breads.
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I reluctantly subscribe to the Star online but their app is so atrocious that it’s a challenge to read it. It’s already stuffed with articles from other sources (not just AP but the Mirror, Capitol Times, etc.) that there’s barely any local news. Still I want to support folks like Patty Machelor (who sadly left when she saw mene, mene, tekel, upharsin) and Tim Steller. I’m upset that Curt Predergast is gone as I appreciated the editorial pages, which focused on local issues. I’ll miss David Fitzsimmons but follow him on FB.
I subscribe to the Agenda, the Star, the Sentinel, and read and support the Mirror and Capitol Times. But I get most of my news from the NYT and WaPo. They both cover Arizona politics well.
I live in Flagstaff and subscribe to our local Daily Sun, the White Mountain Independent, Arizona Central (Republic online), this blog and several other Substack blogs (Cox Richardson, Joyce Vance, Simon Rosenberg), WAPO, the NYTimes, and the Los Angeles Times. I also read Axios and Arizona Mirror sometimes. Of course, I don't have time to read all of these thoroughly, but I hit the headlines daily and read a lot. I like different slants on the same story and now that I know Hank is a Republican, it explains why his take irritates me sometimes. But that's good - I need different perspectives so long as they are grounded in fact as this one is.
The Flagstaff paper has gone downhill since the loss of its decades-long editor a few years back. Lee promoted the sports editor to managing editor and I'm sure we get the best coverage of high school sports of any paper in the nation. So far, they haven't cancelled the AP news subscription, so that's valuable. But they have stopped regular coverage of city council and school board meetings and many local events -- sometimes they send a photographer without a reporter. They dropped regular publication of Capitol Media so thank goodness for you guys. The editorial page is all syndicated. Luckily, we have a group of engaged citizens writing letters to the editor. Democracy has been dying on the vine for a long time because our citizens are dumbing down - defunding education is a bigger part of that than starving good journalism but the latter is truly important.
I donate and listen to KJZZ on morning dog walks as 1st daily dose of AZ news. Subscribe AZ Central since arrival in '99 but stopped hard copy long time ago, columnists predictable in slant. Have supported Mirror but far amount overlap with Agenda. iLke Mike Norton as have known him but have always been a registered Democrat though 50 years ago while in college worked for highly regarded consultant who handled PA republicans like Spector and Heinz and converted Mayor Lindsay besides many Dems. Moderation needs to be covered and encouraged.
I subscribe to the Republic/AZ Central. I don't feel great about giving money to Gannett, but I've met several reporters there who do great work, and I want to read and support them.
Also, not exactly news, but I subscribe to The Defector. I was a fan of the old Deadspin site, and when that all blew up, I remember thinking that it would be great if all of those affected writers got together and created an outlet that they owned themselves, and that I would definitely pay for something like that. And lo and behold, they did it, and it seems to be sustainable and working well. I don't know how universal that model is, and if it would work for local news, but I thought it was worth mentioning.
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I could write a thousand essays on how journalism does it right and how it, as an industry, frequently gets it wrong. On the wrong side, everything from pandering to false narratives (looking at you, NYT) to ominous paywalls that discourage readership (WSJ). On the right side? Limited free content, great story curation/summarization, deep dive explainers, and fact checkers (WaPo and, of course, our very own Agenda).
As for great local reporting (other than the Agenda), there's none better than Howie Fischer (AZ Capitol Times), Jeremy Duda (Arizona Mirror), and Jen Fifield (VoteBeat). If you want to save local journalism in Arizona, give me a way to read these three on the daily in a single subscription. I'd gladly give over my Gannet $$ to a publication that promotes the best in objective journalism and adds a little local color here and there.
But here's where I think journalism as an industry has completely gone off the rails: they, like most other industries, have mistaken market domination for free-market capitalism. In a system based on free-market capitalism, you have a supplier and a consumer engaged in a private transaction where the consumer receives a specific product of value for an agreed upon price. Both supplier and consumer benefit equally. In the market domination model, however, the goal is to turn a profit and pay shareholders; the product is irrelevant. In fact, in many industries, the need to actually provide a product or service that is of value to a consumer is seen at best as a necessary evil and at worst as a gross inconvenience that should be avoided at all costs.
For some examples, take a look at the airline industry. You'd think they are in the business of transporting people safely across long distances in a short amount of time. But their real business model seems to be selling airline miles to credit card companies and the fact that they are required to actually fly planes around the world and deal with passengers is the undesirable cost of doing business.
Or think about the medical industry. In a true capitalist system, supplier consumer relationship would be between the doctor and patient. But it really isn't. It's between the doctor and the health insurance provider. The patient, who should be the customer, is treated by the insurance provider as an unnecessary evil that should be denied coverage whenever possible even as the patient's employer forks out huge premiums every year to keep the insurance companies in business.
There are reasons these things are the way they are, but the point is that we've gotten away from the capitalistic model of providing something of value for an agreed upon price. Instead, the consumer pays premium prices for low quality, bad information, and even worse treatment. The news industry has fallen into this same pattern. Free news is almost guaranteed to be fake news and usually toxic misinformation. But paid news injects its fair share of garbage into the mix as well. The problem with all of these business models is that they've lost sight of who the customer is. The product suffers even as profits increase. Low value for high costs is not market capitalism; it's market domination. When the consumer doesn't have a choice (or the choice is muddled by misinformation or the need to be an expert in the field from which you're trying to make a purchase) it's no longer a free market.
But back to saving local journalism. If you really want to save it, you need to change up the business model. Prioritize product over profit and customer service over self-service (value over villainy, if you will). Create a business model that allows you to make a decent living while preserving journalistic integrity. The Agenda does this well, but it's an uphill battle because the balance between an affordable subscription fee and keeping the lights on is tenuous at best. Substack is currently the only platform that seems to come close to allowing you to maintain that balance but in a local market, it might not be enough to keep it going. I don't really know the answer, but I think part of it is going to involve returning to the tenets of *actual* free-market capitalism while maintaining journalistic integrity and focusing on the real customer, the reader.
Apr 28, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
Something that seems like a detail, but it matters: the online interface for local newspapers is just atrocious. The websites are so loaded up with ads that I can't open more than one article at a time without my laptop sounding like it's preparing for takeoff. Even if I'm a subscriber, opening up a subscriber-only article often takes 5 minutes or more - the site doesn't know I'm logged in, I have to re-enter a password I've forgotten, it takes forever for the password reset email to arrive, then I have to juggle seven tabs to get back where I was....it's easier to just open Twitter.
Give discounts or free subscriptions to students and teachers.
ASU gives free subscriptions to the NY Times or Wall Street Journal. This helps teachers assign articles without worrying about a paywall blocking access. Getting young adults in the habit of reading local news early encourages them to check local legacy media first. This is a "give up money to make money" approach.
I also think "The Paywall is Too Darn High" is part of the problem. The AZ Republic is terrible for any article more than a few days old, and it seems to miscount the number of free articles. There might be an issue of free articles across Gannett news sites, which is partially a paywall problem but mostly a media consolidation problem.
That last point is huge. Media consolidation trends, starting in the 1990's, shrank the overall quality of local media considerably. Somewhere between 80-90 percent of all radio in the Phoenix area is owned by a few companies, print media is no better, and Sinclair's near takeover of local TV news hasn't spared Phoenix.
I've done a little journalism as part of a community radio station. Volunteer organizations have the potential to do good journalism, but they often lack the resources and support necessary to reach a large audience. They also struggle with large investigative pieces (which mainstream journalism doesn't do much as well). That said, better Federal, state-, and local-level support for community outlets rather than professional outlets would do a lot of good.
Right now, a lot of online-only outlets are collapsing because...well, I don't know. Part of it is the demand of large companies and shareholders for massive profits, which local news is unlikely to produce. Another is just overall unsustainable business models that rely heavily on freelancers. The "pivot to video" was a tremendous flop, and a lot of outlets burned their good journalists in favor of chasing a social media trend that never was.
I will continue to subscribe to Arizona Agenda, even if you raise your rates. My info needs are centered upon local, county, and state politics. I get city info from the Surprise Independent and will be subscribing to that currently free paper. I cancelled my Arizona Republican when it just got too costly for the amount of political news in the paper. But let’s define News. Too many offerings are opinion not facts and context. And too many free offerings, especially on line, are 4 sentences of semi fact and a lot of filler. Real journalism requires time to get the real story, thoughtful discussion among editorial staff and lots of digging by reporters. Does the present state of journalism allow that?
We subscribe to the Arizona Daily Star, the NYT, and the Arizona Agenda. I also support The Appeal and Politifact. I read the Tucson Sentinal, but do not subscribe. First off, I really appreciate the Star and the local news and commentary it provides. It is hard to believe that people do not read local news, as what is provided on the radio and TV is pathetic for its lack of depth. The articles written by Tony Davis, Tim Stellar and Henry Brean are spectacular---well written and informative, although quite different from each other. I enjoy the Solutions reporting as well. The series by Tony Davis on the Colorado stands out as a recent example of relevant, well-researched and written journalism. The series on immigration published in the last year or two is also noteworthy. To save local journalism, we really need to get our local papers to be locally owned, not owned by a national company or private equity firm or hedge fund. The Star made 9 million dollars last year---clearly plenty for a local company, but the sharks at Lee and Gannett aren't satisfied. They will drive this paper into the ground as so many other papers have been destroyed. That said, how do we convince our community to support local journalism and to show support for our paper? BTW, we have a full-service subscription and enjoy having a real newspaper every morning, but I for one would be willing to go only to online if that keeps the paper alive.
There was a time when I had paid subscriptions to AZ Republic and WSJ, to National Review and The New Republic (that goes back a ways!), to Mother Jones and The Nation and The American Spectator and Human Events (even longer!). Today, none of them. Why? Two reasons.
One, I suppose, is like the old saw about sex: why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free. But perhaps if the cow sold ads, the milker (OK the meatphor is breaking down, but presumably yu get the point.) Sure, the cow doesn't enjoy that kind of work; she just wants to eat and make milk. But that's the way the world works. Seems foolish to kick against the goads; it's like an old man shouting at the sky.
The other reason: it became more and more apparent that newspapers curate the stories they cover and that they see them thru a shared/learned lens. (Magazines, of course, always have. I suppose newspapers may have, also, but it was not so apparent, at least not to me.) One of the good things about New Times and ProPublica and yes the AZ Agenda is that they bring out stories I would not otherwise encounter, and that's valuable enough to offset the bias/focus/interpretation of selected facts one must plow thru with a sigh. But is it enough to be worth paying for? I suppose it would be, if your slant was what I wanted to bubble myself in.
Kari Lake probably lost the election because she told the McCain voters to go away. Journalism is losing pretty much for the same reason.
What would it take to get us back? Perhaps being (reasonably) fair and (reasonably) balanced, to steal a phrase. But that might be even more unsettling for the cow than selling ads.
I like the informative content that, while compelling, doesn't seem overly emotional or superlative. That's difficult to find. Thank you for the work you do.
I don't know how to save our journalists, but it is important! Wasn't it Ben Franklin who said something along the lines of, "An uninformed society will not last, and doesn't deserve to" ?
I don't have the time, energy or expertise to chase around downtown Phoenix every day to find out what our legislators are (or are not) doing. I need some healthy, energetic and committed folks to do that and let me know what's up. So that's why I value journalists and columnists who know their stuff.
Is it possible to crowd-fund the Star to re-start it (or any other AZ paper that is worthwhile),? Or do a Go-Fund-Me campaign? Is there a way to offer those laid-off journalists a regular column on whatever subject they are knowledgeable about to help expand the Agenda? Or maybe have a location-specific e-newsletter for Tucson or Flagstaff? Or ask the Virginia G. Piper Trust for some money to keep local journalism alive? Or offer a monthly breakfast or lunch with some of these journalists on a topic they could discuss? Or some kind of contribution request, like our legislators always do?
Hope some of this helps. Good luck. We appreciate all you journalists, writers, stringers, etc., are doing for us. Thanks!
Apr 29, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I love the conversation you’ve generated here. I only make a point to pay personally for you guys because I believe in your mission and trust you both as journalists. I get access to most everything else through work. I’m hopeful for the day people can pay a set rate to a subscription service of some kind and read from the exact numerous sources they want, without breaking the bank. Until then, keep up the good fight, my friends!
Apr 29, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I am a paid subscriber and like the Arizona Agenda and all the articles on I get on Substack. I pay for the AZ Daily Star, the New York Times, the LA Times, the Guardian, and the Border Chronicle. I enjoy a spectrum of news sources. And I am willing to pay for it but very dismayed about the recent layoffs and direction of the Star. Tim Stellar is the best thing they have going. Bernie Sanders new book on capitalism had some good suggestions and examples of how to save local journalism. I love what you do and will keep supporting you. Issues important to me are the border, water policy, homelessness, and environment. Keep it up!
Apr 29, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I like getting ideas from all sides. For instance I subscribe to the Agenda, Robert Robb, Robert Hubble in northern Cali, subscribe to, Republic, NYT. WAPO, Wall St. Journ, Apple News (lots of papers), love Jon Stewart, Wash Week, Chris Wallace, Horizon, Sunday Square Off, so much info so little time. Try to get the facts and hate getting gaslighted by anyone. I do my research. Read the Mueller Report. I am a nerd. But I will not be bullied by the Carlsons or Hannities that campaign for candidates and call themselves journalists. I gravitate towards freedom and kindness.
Get readers interested. Stretch the ideas. Quote differing opinions. Be honest. It’s tough in this political environment. Try your best. Readers can figure it out. You’ll be around a long time. Thank you for your dedication to your readers.
Apr 29, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
For what it's worth, I subscribe to the online versions of The New York Times, The Washington Post & The Guardian. Daily, I peruse the Associated Press, Politico and The Hill. Occasionally, I check out NPR, BBC & Axios. I am a former news producer for network, cable & Internet. I rarely read the local news as my kids are grown and out of school, and, for the most part, developers controlled the local legislatures wherever I've lived and worked. Now, with so much legislative action in towns, cities, municipalities and states across the nation, I feel there is a worrying dearth of necessary local reporting. I don't have the answers. But, I certainly know there is a critical need for vibrant local journalism. Especially with newsrooms being emptied and conglomerates controlling too many outlets and what they report. I wish you well in your noble endeavors to inform your local citizens. And I wish them well, as well. All the best to you and yours. Cheers. David Guilbault.
Apr 29, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I don't think one model will work everywhere. Arizona has one large metro area (Kingman! No, but I made you look), one large city (Tucson), three town/cities (Yuma, Flagstaff, and Prescott), and a whole lot of rural. There are some sub-metro outlets (e.g., East Valley Tribune), and that plus even a shrunken Republic and TV should be okay (not great) for some accountability of local governments. Tucson obviously needs more. I don't know how Arizona Public Radio's reporting staff compares with KJZZ.
For rural areas, a regional umbrella would support coverage of individual communities I think North Country Public Radio is one example of pretty solid coverage (https://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/about.html) -- it's licensed to an older private college (St Lawrence University), and see above about avoiding a single model.
No idea about Flagstaff, Yuma, or Prescott.
Dan Kennedy's been writing about local news challenges for a while, and I think his and Ellen Clegg's book on local news will be out in 2024. (https://dankennedy.net is his blog site and has been covering local news buyouts by public media)
Apr 29, 2023Liked by Rachel Leingang, Hank Stephenson
I support with my dollars The Arizona Republic, Arizona Agenda, and Washington Post. Read often but haven't tipped to paid are Arizona Mirror, Axios Phoenix, Axios Latino, NY Times. Not out of lack of interest, just personal bandwidth to stay on top of news. I appreciate local coverage and miss the days when there were reporters assigned to municipalities. As a former municipal employee, I remember the scrutiny local policies and politics were given. Part of my subscription choice is habit. If I don't hear the newspaper hit the driveway first thing in the a.m. it puts me in a bad mood although the sound isn't as heavy of late. I appreciate your coverage of politics and willingness to call out nonsense on either side of the aisle.
I subscribe to the ADS because I do want to support local journalism but, with the exception of Tony Davis articles I am often disappointed with the Star coverage: in particular the lack of attention to Tucson City Council shenanigans. There is little coverage of lack of affordable housing and gentrification caused by poor city policies and who on the council are immune to these policies because they live in protected HMO’s (hunt: mayor Romero). Where is the in-depth coverage of Rio Nuevo and the use of GPLETs? No acceptance of Section 8 applications? Why are the mentally I’ll left to live and die on our streets? Instead we get to read about new restaurants or luxury developments most of us can’t afford. What about coverage of the conditions of our barrios and working class neighborhoods? Or what the Tohono o’ogham are doing with the parcel of land just gifted to them at the base of A Mountain? Now with all the layoffs coverage will only be worse. Sad.
Saving every journalist is a noble effort. Assuring that your product is not only protected but enhanced in the process is even more noble. My thoughts - which you are always welcome to ignore (or scoff at or laugh at) - you know who the best people are. You know whose work compliments and adds to your effort. I'm certain there is a 2+2=6 opportunity here someplace, but I'm also sure only you, Rachel and Hank, know who those other two are.
Expanding your very successful platform is more than just a matter of improving your own financial condition or protecting the careers of others. It's a superb service to the Arizona community.
My one caveat - which you can ignore - but I hope not - maintain political balance. I love the Tucson publication. I'm a recovering Republican with a blazing wild ass radical hippy past. So I can talk GOP trash one moment and Malcolm X the next. I'm not a normal reader, however. You've already got my $7/month and you'll keep it no matter how hard right or left any column you publish might tilt.
Your greatest service will be pulling far more people to your platform, making the rest of the Recovering Republicans in this State feel cautiously safe as they tiptoe into your reporting world, and helping us all find a new purpose for our political efforts in the process. The world is always a better place when a few Grant Woods type characters sneak into the sanctuary of the political right. Republicans don't want to be evil. We just tend to do so sometimes unless someone jerks on our choke collar and stops us from biting our own friends.
I am a recent transplant from Phoenix to Flagstaff. I am considering unsubscribing to AZ Central and may add your paid service instead. I have subscribed to the online Flagstaff paper, but it is not very comprehensive. I love that you cover the AZ legislature so in depth, but I am a political nerd.
I wonder why outside overlords determine everything about a local newspaper when it is turning a profit. What about a community-owned newspaper that buys some national stories, but maintains a robust local news team?
I'm worried also about the Arizona Republic -- it seems as if more and more of the paper is about national sports. Is this a sign of financial deterioration? I hope not.
I subscribed for a month but cancelled. Your articles were far too opinionated and clearly left leaning. I want facts, NOT opinions. I am a 40 year resident of Phoenix originally from Chicago, had a 30 year career in Public Relations and Jounalism and am a resistered Independent voter since 2006.
I don’t subscribe to any publications, on line or in print any longer, because I can get most of the news I need for free MINUS opinions; liberal, conservative or other.
The world is gray not black or white and I can make up my own mind based on factual reporting, not articles that purposely leave out important information to create a certain narrative, thank you. I don’t need to be “influenced” by writers but that seems to be the agenda these days. You know what they say about opinions…that’s why I won’t pay for your “service” ie opinions, nor do I appreciate hypocrisy
Best of luck. Sadly, the days of real, factual journalism, in my opinion, are over!
Thank you!
Dear Dedicated Journalists -- Your work is essential to giving us the information we need to help preserve democracy and protect/improve the quality of life in our state and local community. Just saying "thank you" doesn't come close to expressing our gratitude for what you do.
We subscribe to Axios, Agenda, Mirror and the Republic as well as Heather Cox Richardson's blog.
Suggestion: Include a link at the bottom of each issue to purchase a gift subscription for a friend. Perhaps a second such link elsewhere. Also consider including links to Axios and Az Mirror. Hopefully, they will reciprocate.
Bob Sommer & Gayle Shanks
Hi, so I also subscribe to the Capitol Times and read Axios Phoenix w/o a subscription. We also have an Arizona Republic subscription. I have loved the Axios stories about the death penalty cases in AZ. I would pay something for a local online pub covering Tempe. I would like to support local news more, but limited resources (money) and time are the limiting factors.
My daughter, Susan Marie with the Arizona Commerce Authority, specifically asked that I throw some support your way when you were starting out. You have lived up to your mission so far and so it’s easy for me to continue to pay for the Agenda. I don’t read every word every day, but I do scan through and usually read a bit. Lately I’ve noticed myself thinking, “wonder what the Agenda will have to say about that.” So keep up the great work! Thanks.
The best way to help journalism is to subscribe to your local newspaper, no matter how bad it gets. I appreciate the Agenda for its original reporting and for how it creates a sense of how all the stories fit together. Context is so important. But the Agenda is also an aggregator. It gathers stories from news sources around the state and gives us the links if we want to read more. If we lose AZ Central, the Daily Star, the Daily Sun, or any of the smaller outlets in Arizona, it means less content on the Agenda. I’m a retired journalist. My last news job was for a regional news network in the Pacific Northwest. It was similar to the Agenda in how we did original reporting but also ran stories from local stations. From experience, nothing, absolutely nothing beats a local news outlet with reporters in the community.
Recently relocated to Tucson and retired after several decades with the Baltimore Sun and Orange County Register. I really think the quality journalism is moving to Substack-style platforms. The Bari Weiss model with Free Press would be great if we could do something similar in AZ. But it would take a critical mass of support from paying members to hire a few more reporters. I am currently unpaid here because I'm paying a lot of Substack subs! :) But I would be willing to join to do something better in AZ. But folks, the Weiss model and others work because they really return to the pursuit of objective, fair, factual journalism. Notice I said 'pursuit.' I came of age in the '80s and worked through the 2000s. Too many journalists today are out to save the world by promoting 'good' narratives. People need quality journalism they can trust. I believe there is still a market for it.
I read and donate monthly to the Az Mirror...really like it's local coverage. I do not read or subscribe to the Az Republic. Too much blah, blah, blah and advertising. I like your local coverage...sometimes I read you carefully, other times skim. I do support you for that local coverage. I subscribe to NYT & WaPo for national news. I do want political analysis and coverage. Thanks for all you do.
Sadly, journalism as I knew it during the Johnson, Nixon, Carter and Reagan administrations is dead. Its death was assured when the Fairness Doctrine was killed during the Reagan administration. Free content on the internet for additional advertising revenue was the crucifragum.
In my opinion, we need a new Fairness Doctrine that also encompasses the internet to resurrect journalism.
I am an Arizona voter who also spends time during the year in upstate New York. I read, and pay for, The AZ Agenda and the AZ Republic daily whether I am in NY or AZ. I was a 40+ year subscriber to The Middletown Times-Herald Record - supposedly my local daily newspaper (owned by Gannett as is the Republic) - until they decided that they would cover very little that happens in my county - Sullivan County NY. Since they no longer cover my area, I dropped that subscription. I do read, and pay for two local papers in Sullivan County - The Sullivan County Democrat (publishes 2x weekly) and the River Reporter ( a weekly).
My first job out of college was as a district sales manager in the circulation department of the Newburgh (NY) Evening News. Very little is more important to maintaining a democracy than a free press. Anything that inhibits legitimate, professional journalists from doing their job is anti-democratic. And those reporters - from either side - who print falacious stories do not deserve the title journalist.
I've tried several times to subscribe to the Star and their website is a mess., refusing to complete the transaction. Called twice, several months apart and the customer service reps were unable to help. Really?
Please, for the love of journalism, stop accepting and promoting "culture war" narratives.
The tamale bill is a perfect example: tamales are trendy and popular, and a source of pride for the people who make them. It's easy to adopt a "tamales are great, duh, stoopid legislators" attitude. It's way more boring (and probably less popular) to address the obvious food safety implications of allowing foods that contain meat and require refrigeration to be legally classified as cottage foods—a category that contains non-perishable food items like cookies and breads.
I reluctantly subscribe to the Star online but their app is so atrocious that it’s a challenge to read it. It’s already stuffed with articles from other sources (not just AP but the Mirror, Capitol Times, etc.) that there’s barely any local news. Still I want to support folks like Patty Machelor (who sadly left when she saw mene, mene, tekel, upharsin) and Tim Steller. I’m upset that Curt Predergast is gone as I appreciated the editorial pages, which focused on local issues. I’ll miss David Fitzsimmons but follow him on FB.
I subscribe to the Agenda, the Star, the Sentinel, and read and support the Mirror and Capitol Times. But I get most of my news from the NYT and WaPo. They both cover Arizona politics well.
I live in Flagstaff and subscribe to our local Daily Sun, the White Mountain Independent, Arizona Central (Republic online), this blog and several other Substack blogs (Cox Richardson, Joyce Vance, Simon Rosenberg), WAPO, the NYTimes, and the Los Angeles Times. I also read Axios and Arizona Mirror sometimes. Of course, I don't have time to read all of these thoroughly, but I hit the headlines daily and read a lot. I like different slants on the same story and now that I know Hank is a Republican, it explains why his take irritates me sometimes. But that's good - I need different perspectives so long as they are grounded in fact as this one is.
The Flagstaff paper has gone downhill since the loss of its decades-long editor a few years back. Lee promoted the sports editor to managing editor and I'm sure we get the best coverage of high school sports of any paper in the nation. So far, they haven't cancelled the AP news subscription, so that's valuable. But they have stopped regular coverage of city council and school board meetings and many local events -- sometimes they send a photographer without a reporter. They dropped regular publication of Capitol Media so thank goodness for you guys. The editorial page is all syndicated. Luckily, we have a group of engaged citizens writing letters to the editor. Democracy has been dying on the vine for a long time because our citizens are dumbing down - defunding education is a bigger part of that than starving good journalism but the latter is truly important.
I donate and listen to KJZZ on morning dog walks as 1st daily dose of AZ news. Subscribe AZ Central since arrival in '99 but stopped hard copy long time ago, columnists predictable in slant. Have supported Mirror but far amount overlap with Agenda. iLke Mike Norton as have known him but have always been a registered Democrat though 50 years ago while in college worked for highly regarded consultant who handled PA republicans like Spector and Heinz and converted Mayor Lindsay besides many Dems. Moderation needs to be covered and encouraged.
I subscribe to the Republic/AZ Central. I don't feel great about giving money to Gannett, but I've met several reporters there who do great work, and I want to read and support them.
Also, not exactly news, but I subscribe to The Defector. I was a fan of the old Deadspin site, and when that all blew up, I remember thinking that it would be great if all of those affected writers got together and created an outlet that they owned themselves, and that I would definitely pay for something like that. And lo and behold, they did it, and it seems to be sustainable and working well. I don't know how universal that model is, and if it would work for local news, but I thought it was worth mentioning.
I could write a thousand essays on how journalism does it right and how it, as an industry, frequently gets it wrong. On the wrong side, everything from pandering to false narratives (looking at you, NYT) to ominous paywalls that discourage readership (WSJ). On the right side? Limited free content, great story curation/summarization, deep dive explainers, and fact checkers (WaPo and, of course, our very own Agenda).
As for great local reporting (other than the Agenda), there's none better than Howie Fischer (AZ Capitol Times), Jeremy Duda (Arizona Mirror), and Jen Fifield (VoteBeat). If you want to save local journalism in Arizona, give me a way to read these three on the daily in a single subscription. I'd gladly give over my Gannet $$ to a publication that promotes the best in objective journalism and adds a little local color here and there.
But here's where I think journalism as an industry has completely gone off the rails: they, like most other industries, have mistaken market domination for free-market capitalism. In a system based on free-market capitalism, you have a supplier and a consumer engaged in a private transaction where the consumer receives a specific product of value for an agreed upon price. Both supplier and consumer benefit equally. In the market domination model, however, the goal is to turn a profit and pay shareholders; the product is irrelevant. In fact, in many industries, the need to actually provide a product or service that is of value to a consumer is seen at best as a necessary evil and at worst as a gross inconvenience that should be avoided at all costs.
For some examples, take a look at the airline industry. You'd think they are in the business of transporting people safely across long distances in a short amount of time. But their real business model seems to be selling airline miles to credit card companies and the fact that they are required to actually fly planes around the world and deal with passengers is the undesirable cost of doing business.
Or think about the medical industry. In a true capitalist system, supplier consumer relationship would be between the doctor and patient. But it really isn't. It's between the doctor and the health insurance provider. The patient, who should be the customer, is treated by the insurance provider as an unnecessary evil that should be denied coverage whenever possible even as the patient's employer forks out huge premiums every year to keep the insurance companies in business.
There are reasons these things are the way they are, but the point is that we've gotten away from the capitalistic model of providing something of value for an agreed upon price. Instead, the consumer pays premium prices for low quality, bad information, and even worse treatment. The news industry has fallen into this same pattern. Free news is almost guaranteed to be fake news and usually toxic misinformation. But paid news injects its fair share of garbage into the mix as well. The problem with all of these business models is that they've lost sight of who the customer is. The product suffers even as profits increase. Low value for high costs is not market capitalism; it's market domination. When the consumer doesn't have a choice (or the choice is muddled by misinformation or the need to be an expert in the field from which you're trying to make a purchase) it's no longer a free market.
But back to saving local journalism. If you really want to save it, you need to change up the business model. Prioritize product over profit and customer service over self-service (value over villainy, if you will). Create a business model that allows you to make a decent living while preserving journalistic integrity. The Agenda does this well, but it's an uphill battle because the balance between an affordable subscription fee and keeping the lights on is tenuous at best. Substack is currently the only platform that seems to come close to allowing you to maintain that balance but in a local market, it might not be enough to keep it going. I don't really know the answer, but I think part of it is going to involve returning to the tenets of *actual* free-market capitalism while maintaining journalistic integrity and focusing on the real customer, the reader.
Something that seems like a detail, but it matters: the online interface for local newspapers is just atrocious. The websites are so loaded up with ads that I can't open more than one article at a time without my laptop sounding like it's preparing for takeoff. Even if I'm a subscriber, opening up a subscriber-only article often takes 5 minutes or more - the site doesn't know I'm logged in, I have to re-enter a password I've forgotten, it takes forever for the password reset email to arrive, then I have to juggle seven tabs to get back where I was....it's easier to just open Twitter.
Give discounts or free subscriptions to students and teachers.
ASU gives free subscriptions to the NY Times or Wall Street Journal. This helps teachers assign articles without worrying about a paywall blocking access. Getting young adults in the habit of reading local news early encourages them to check local legacy media first. This is a "give up money to make money" approach.
I also think "The Paywall is Too Darn High" is part of the problem. The AZ Republic is terrible for any article more than a few days old, and it seems to miscount the number of free articles. There might be an issue of free articles across Gannett news sites, which is partially a paywall problem but mostly a media consolidation problem.
That last point is huge. Media consolidation trends, starting in the 1990's, shrank the overall quality of local media considerably. Somewhere between 80-90 percent of all radio in the Phoenix area is owned by a few companies, print media is no better, and Sinclair's near takeover of local TV news hasn't spared Phoenix.
I've done a little journalism as part of a community radio station. Volunteer organizations have the potential to do good journalism, but they often lack the resources and support necessary to reach a large audience. They also struggle with large investigative pieces (which mainstream journalism doesn't do much as well). That said, better Federal, state-, and local-level support for community outlets rather than professional outlets would do a lot of good.
Right now, a lot of online-only outlets are collapsing because...well, I don't know. Part of it is the demand of large companies and shareholders for massive profits, which local news is unlikely to produce. Another is just overall unsustainable business models that rely heavily on freelancers. The "pivot to video" was a tremendous flop, and a lot of outlets burned their good journalists in favor of chasing a social media trend that never was.
I will continue to subscribe to Arizona Agenda, even if you raise your rates. My info needs are centered upon local, county, and state politics. I get city info from the Surprise Independent and will be subscribing to that currently free paper. I cancelled my Arizona Republican when it just got too costly for the amount of political news in the paper. But let’s define News. Too many offerings are opinion not facts and context. And too many free offerings, especially on line, are 4 sentences of semi fact and a lot of filler. Real journalism requires time to get the real story, thoughtful discussion among editorial staff and lots of digging by reporters. Does the present state of journalism allow that?
We subscribe to the Arizona Daily Star, the NYT, and the Arizona Agenda. I also support The Appeal and Politifact. I read the Tucson Sentinal, but do not subscribe. First off, I really appreciate the Star and the local news and commentary it provides. It is hard to believe that people do not read local news, as what is provided on the radio and TV is pathetic for its lack of depth. The articles written by Tony Davis, Tim Stellar and Henry Brean are spectacular---well written and informative, although quite different from each other. I enjoy the Solutions reporting as well. The series by Tony Davis on the Colorado stands out as a recent example of relevant, well-researched and written journalism. The series on immigration published in the last year or two is also noteworthy. To save local journalism, we really need to get our local papers to be locally owned, not owned by a national company or private equity firm or hedge fund. The Star made 9 million dollars last year---clearly plenty for a local company, but the sharks at Lee and Gannett aren't satisfied. They will drive this paper into the ground as so many other papers have been destroyed. That said, how do we convince our community to support local journalism and to show support for our paper? BTW, we have a full-service subscription and enjoy having a real newspaper every morning, but I for one would be willing to go only to online if that keeps the paper alive.
There was a time when I had paid subscriptions to AZ Republic and WSJ, to National Review and The New Republic (that goes back a ways!), to Mother Jones and The Nation and The American Spectator and Human Events (even longer!). Today, none of them. Why? Two reasons.
One, I suppose, is like the old saw about sex: why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free. But perhaps if the cow sold ads, the milker (OK the meatphor is breaking down, but presumably yu get the point.) Sure, the cow doesn't enjoy that kind of work; she just wants to eat and make milk. But that's the way the world works. Seems foolish to kick against the goads; it's like an old man shouting at the sky.
The other reason: it became more and more apparent that newspapers curate the stories they cover and that they see them thru a shared/learned lens. (Magazines, of course, always have. I suppose newspapers may have, also, but it was not so apparent, at least not to me.) One of the good things about New Times and ProPublica and yes the AZ Agenda is that they bring out stories I would not otherwise encounter, and that's valuable enough to offset the bias/focus/interpretation of selected facts one must plow thru with a sigh. But is it enough to be worth paying for? I suppose it would be, if your slant was what I wanted to bubble myself in.
Kari Lake probably lost the election because she told the McCain voters to go away. Journalism is losing pretty much for the same reason.
What would it take to get us back? Perhaps being (reasonably) fair and (reasonably) balanced, to steal a phrase. But that might be even more unsettling for the cow than selling ads.
I subscribe to NYT, AZ Republic, The Week, The Economist, Substack and Your AZ Agenda. We watch PBS.
I like the informative content that, while compelling, doesn't seem overly emotional or superlative. That's difficult to find. Thank you for the work you do.
I don't know how to save our journalists, but it is important! Wasn't it Ben Franklin who said something along the lines of, "An uninformed society will not last, and doesn't deserve to" ?
I don't have the time, energy or expertise to chase around downtown Phoenix every day to find out what our legislators are (or are not) doing. I need some healthy, energetic and committed folks to do that and let me know what's up. So that's why I value journalists and columnists who know their stuff.
Is it possible to crowd-fund the Star to re-start it (or any other AZ paper that is worthwhile),? Or do a Go-Fund-Me campaign? Is there a way to offer those laid-off journalists a regular column on whatever subject they are knowledgeable about to help expand the Agenda? Or maybe have a location-specific e-newsletter for Tucson or Flagstaff? Or ask the Virginia G. Piper Trust for some money to keep local journalism alive? Or offer a monthly breakfast or lunch with some of these journalists on a topic they could discuss? Or some kind of contribution request, like our legislators always do?
Hope some of this helps. Good luck. We appreciate all you journalists, writers, stringers, etc., are doing for us. Thanks!
I love the conversation you’ve generated here. I only make a point to pay personally for you guys because I believe in your mission and trust you both as journalists. I get access to most everything else through work. I’m hopeful for the day people can pay a set rate to a subscription service of some kind and read from the exact numerous sources they want, without breaking the bank. Until then, keep up the good fight, my friends!
I am a paid subscriber and like the Arizona Agenda and all the articles on I get on Substack. I pay for the AZ Daily Star, the New York Times, the LA Times, the Guardian, and the Border Chronicle. I enjoy a spectrum of news sources. And I am willing to pay for it but very dismayed about the recent layoffs and direction of the Star. Tim Stellar is the best thing they have going. Bernie Sanders new book on capitalism had some good suggestions and examples of how to save local journalism. I love what you do and will keep supporting you. Issues important to me are the border, water policy, homelessness, and environment. Keep it up!
I like getting ideas from all sides. For instance I subscribe to the Agenda, Robert Robb, Robert Hubble in northern Cali, subscribe to, Republic, NYT. WAPO, Wall St. Journ, Apple News (lots of papers), love Jon Stewart, Wash Week, Chris Wallace, Horizon, Sunday Square Off, so much info so little time. Try to get the facts and hate getting gaslighted by anyone. I do my research. Read the Mueller Report. I am a nerd. But I will not be bullied by the Carlsons or Hannities that campaign for candidates and call themselves journalists. I gravitate towards freedom and kindness.
Get readers interested. Stretch the ideas. Quote differing opinions. Be honest. It’s tough in this political environment. Try your best. Readers can figure it out. You’ll be around a long time. Thank you for your dedication to your readers.
For what it's worth, I subscribe to the online versions of The New York Times, The Washington Post & The Guardian. Daily, I peruse the Associated Press, Politico and The Hill. Occasionally, I check out NPR, BBC & Axios. I am a former news producer for network, cable & Internet. I rarely read the local news as my kids are grown and out of school, and, for the most part, developers controlled the local legislatures wherever I've lived and worked. Now, with so much legislative action in towns, cities, municipalities and states across the nation, I feel there is a worrying dearth of necessary local reporting. I don't have the answers. But, I certainly know there is a critical need for vibrant local journalism. Especially with newsrooms being emptied and conglomerates controlling too many outlets and what they report. I wish you well in your noble endeavors to inform your local citizens. And I wish them well, as well. All the best to you and yours. Cheers. David Guilbault.
I don't think one model will work everywhere. Arizona has one large metro area (Kingman! No, but I made you look), one large city (Tucson), three town/cities (Yuma, Flagstaff, and Prescott), and a whole lot of rural. There are some sub-metro outlets (e.g., East Valley Tribune), and that plus even a shrunken Republic and TV should be okay (not great) for some accountability of local governments. Tucson obviously needs more. I don't know how Arizona Public Radio's reporting staff compares with KJZZ.
For rural areas, a regional umbrella would support coverage of individual communities I think North Country Public Radio is one example of pretty solid coverage (https://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/about.html) -- it's licensed to an older private college (St Lawrence University), and see above about avoiding a single model.
No idea about Flagstaff, Yuma, or Prescott.
Dan Kennedy's been writing about local news challenges for a while, and I think his and Ellen Clegg's book on local news will be out in 2024. (https://dankennedy.net is his blog site and has been covering local news buyouts by public media)
I support with my dollars The Arizona Republic, Arizona Agenda, and Washington Post. Read often but haven't tipped to paid are Arizona Mirror, Axios Phoenix, Axios Latino, NY Times. Not out of lack of interest, just personal bandwidth to stay on top of news. I appreciate local coverage and miss the days when there were reporters assigned to municipalities. As a former municipal employee, I remember the scrutiny local policies and politics were given. Part of my subscription choice is habit. If I don't hear the newspaper hit the driveway first thing in the a.m. it puts me in a bad mood although the sound isn't as heavy of late. I appreciate your coverage of politics and willingness to call out nonsense on either side of the aisle.
I subscribe to the ADS because I do want to support local journalism but, with the exception of Tony Davis articles I am often disappointed with the Star coverage: in particular the lack of attention to Tucson City Council shenanigans. There is little coverage of lack of affordable housing and gentrification caused by poor city policies and who on the council are immune to these policies because they live in protected HMO’s (hunt: mayor Romero). Where is the in-depth coverage of Rio Nuevo and the use of GPLETs? No acceptance of Section 8 applications? Why are the mentally I’ll left to live and die on our streets? Instead we get to read about new restaurants or luxury developments most of us can’t afford. What about coverage of the conditions of our barrios and working class neighborhoods? Or what the Tohono o’ogham are doing with the parcel of land just gifted to them at the base of A Mountain? Now with all the layoffs coverage will only be worse. Sad.