Support independent, local news

Who would attend a county commission meeting in Libby if no one is there to report it? Who would sit through a late-night school board work session in Hot Springs?

Who would dig through courthouse records in Kalispell or follow a complex environmental proposal affecting our communities?

Someone has to be there.

Across Northwest Montana, that responsibility belongs to local journalists.

This week marks Sunshine Week, a national reminder of the public’s right to know and the role journalism plays in keeping government transparent and accountable. It is also a reminder of something we believe deeply in our newsroom: Strong communities depend on strong local journalism.

Every day, reporters from Hagadone Media Montana newspapers are covering city halls, county commissions, courts, schools and communities across the region. They are asking questions, reviewing public records and helping residents understand the decisions shaping life in their communities.

That work matters, and today I’m asking for your help. We are launching a community campaign to sustain and strengthen the local journalism our newspapers deliver. Over the coming months, you will see this effort unfold in print, online, through email newsletters and on our social channels. You will meet the reporters doing this work and hear directly from the people their reporting serves.

You will also see examples of the kind of journalism your support makes possible.

Report for America reporter Hannah Shields covers rural government across Northwest Montana. In Hot Springs, her reporting followed allegations that a school district employee had used district funds for personal purchases. Shields’ coverage followed the issue for months, documenting how school officials responded and how the investigation progressed after it was turned over to county authorities.

In smaller communities where oversight can be limited, reporting like this helps ensure transparency and accountability.

Reporter Jack Underhill covers Kalispell news. When the longtime groundskeeper of Conrad Cemetery left town with the cemetery burial records, families were left without documentation for loved ones buried there. After Underhill reported on the situation, community members began contacting the cemetery board with receipts and records to help reconstruct the missing information. The reporting ultimately helped locate the records and restore order for families who had been left without answers.

Reporter Hailey Smalley covers environmental and natural resource issues that shape the future of Northwest Montana. Her work often tackles complex topics where science, public policy and community concerns intersect. In one recent story, she examined the potential of selenium pollution tied to development near Lake Koocanusa, helping residents understand the environmental and policy questions surrounding the proposal.

Stories like these happen because local reporters are present in the communities they serve. They attend meetings others cannot. They investigate issues that might otherwise go unnoticed. They take the time to explain complicated decisions that affect everyday life across our region.

For generations, newspapers have supported this work through advertising and subscriptions. Those remain essential to sustaining our newsrooms. But across the country, those traditional revenue sources no longer fully support the level of local reporting communities deserve.

That is why community support has become an important part of sustaining strong local journalism.

This campaign invites readers and community members to help strengthen the reporting that serves Northwest Montana.

Thanks to a partnership with Report for America, the first $25,000 raised will be matched. That means early contributions will double their impact, helping expand reporting capacity and sustain coverage across the five counties we serve.

In the weeks ahead, you will hear more directly from the journalists doing this work. You will see their reporting, their investigations and the impact of their work. You will hear from community members who rely on this coverage to help them better understand their communities. You will be asked to help bolster that type of coverage.

On April 9, Local News Day, we will join news organizations across the country in celebrating the role local journalism plays in keeping communities informed and connected.

Our goal is simple: ensure that strong, independent local journalism continues serving Northwest Montana for decades to come.

Local journalism works best when it is rooted in the community it serves.

If our reporting has helped you better understand your community, hold our leaders accountable or stay connected to the place we all call home, I hope you will consider supporting this effort.

With your help, we can ask more questions and tell more stories that matter.

Thank you for reading, and thank you for supporting local journalism.

If you’d like to support our local journalism, please visit www.hungryhorsenews.com/support

Anton Kaufer is regional publisher for Hagadone Media Montana.