State Senator Steve Stadelman (D-Rockford) spoke with Brian Mackey of Illinois Public Media last week on the importance of access to local journalism in Illinois and how the Journalism Task Force will work to assist local news outlets across Illinois.

“If people don’t get the information they need of what’s going on around their town, they won’t be able to make educated decisions for their area,” Stadelman said. “This task force is here to begin the discussion of how we can strengthen access to local journalism throughout Illinois and provide news and information to underserved communities.”

In the interview, Stadelman talks about how journalism has been impacted throughout the nation in the closure of newspapers across the country. Action is needed to help supply communities with local information. Stadelman believes local journalism is the backbone of this kind of support for communities.

You can listen to the whole conversation here.

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