When the local paper folds, who's left to cover the news?

Checking in with the remaining reporters in Val Verde County, Texas, three years after its last daily newspaper folded.

How voters in a Texas news desert get their information

Researchers have labeled 204 counties in America as "news deserts" — places that lack access to credible, reliable news sources. That includes Val Verde County, Texas.

Library e-book checkouts soar during the pandemic

Dec 24, 2020
Publishers may want to turn the page on this moment, though, to get back to more store sales of books after COVID-19.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, library checkouts of electronic books have shot up by more than 50%. And libraries expect the demand to last.
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Libraries have spent years reinventing themselves. Will they have to do it again?

May 14, 2020
Just when libraries had figured out how to be a community space, they might have to change again.
Jennifer Pearson, director of the Marshall County Library in Tennessee, with a bag of books for curbside pickup.
Courtesy of Jennifer Pearson

Why e-books make things complicated for libraries

Dec 4, 2019
Digital books are more expensive than physical books and create logistical challenges for libraries.
A librarian displays a recently-arrived e-book at the Chicago Public Library in 2000.
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In Denmark, long opening hours for unstaffed libraries

Apr 3, 2019
Almost half of Denmark's libraries are open 24 hours a day.
Almost half of Denmark's libraries are open 24 hours a day.
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For public good, not for profit.

How "social infrastructure" can save us all

Sep 11, 2018
An author told us how spaces like parks and libraries can end up being a driving force in the economy and a saving factor in a crisis.
People walk past a mural along the High Line Park trail in New York City January 30, 2018. Opened in June 2009, the High Line meanders at an altitude of about 18-30 feet (5-9 meters) above the streets through blocks of office buildings and private residences on Manhattan's West Side. 
EVA HAMBACH/AFP/Getty Images