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One Meeting Is Not One Story
Charlotte's council met for six hours on a Monday night. We got seven stories out of it, and found out that only one of the night's vote counts could be confirmed anywhere else.
Peter Cellino·Oct 2, 2026
Topic
Journalism Economics
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One person, sixteen publications, six months
In April I said Mercury Local was a platform. Six months on: sixteen publications, a paper launched in a day, and local businesses who wanted it too.
Peter Cellino·Sep 27, 2026
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Independence Requires Readers
Richard Tofel and Dan Kennedy make the best available argument for reader-revenue journalism — and they're right. The logic holds.
Peter Cellino·Apr 9, 2026
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The Paywall Is a Confession
Gannett has 1.45 million digital subscribers across 200 local papers — about 7,000 each, and falling. A paywall on a declining local paper is not a rescue. It's the trade that finishes the decline.
Peter Cellino·Apr 9, 2026
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The Media Business Model Nobody Is Talking About
The Messenger burned $50 million in eight months. The median independent local newsroom makes $130,000 a year. Peter Cellino on the business model nobody in local news is talking about — and why…
Peter Cellino·Apr 3, 2026
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What Big Media Got Wrong About the Local News Crisis
More than a billion dollars has been invested in saving local journalism since 2005. In that same period, 3,300 newspapers have shut down.
Peter Cellino·Apr 3, 2026