Democracia, informação e mídia local para superar os desertos de notícias: entrevista com Penny Abernathy

Abstract

Specialist and master in Journalism with an intense editorial and media management background, Penny Abernathy has become a reference among Brazilian researchers of the area after developing the concept of “news deserts.” The reports led by Abernathy between 2016-2020 at the Center for Innovation and Sustainability in Local Media at the University of North Carolina showed that many of the problems and challenges uncovered by her research were similar to the findings of Brazilian research in different regions. In this interview to Comunicação e Educação, the scholar discusses the scarcity of news production, the lack of digital accessibility and of public policies to support local journalism, especially in cities where demographic and economic characteristics impede their residents’ access to news and information.

Keywords

• Penny Abernathy
• Jornalismo
• Democracia
• Mídia local
• Indústria de mídia