Mizzou study finds ‘volunteer journalism’ filling local news gap
Research from the Missouri School of Journalism suggests volunteer journalists could bridge the gap created by declining news outlets
March 4, 2025
Contact: Sara Diedrich, diedrichs@missouri.edu
A new study from the University of Missouri School of Journalism introduces “volunteer journalism” as a promising solution to bridge the news and information gap in communities.
According to researchers, volunteer journalism involves individuals voluntarily contributing their time and effort to create, curate and share news and information as part of an organization.
“With traditional news organizations struggling or disappearing in many places, volunteer journalism could help fill the gap by keeping communities informed and connected,” Nick Mathews, assistant professor of journalism and lead author of the study, said. “This is particularly crucial in areas where professional journalism is no longer available.”
Mathews said the key distinction between volunteer journalists and citizen journalists lies in their motivation: While citizen journalists may be driven by personal interests or specific agendas, volunteer journalists are primarily focused on serving their communities through consistent and reliable news coverage.
Focusing on community
For their study, researchers interviewed individuals from 16 organizations in the United States, Denmark and India. They used this data to define and clarify the concept of volunteer journalism and to show how it differs from other forms of journalism.
They found that volunteer journalism is distinct from other forms of unpaid journalism, such as citizen journalism, in three main ways. It focuses on long-term commitment to an organization, not just singular or sporadic contributions. It prioritizes sharing information, not persuading people or promoting opinions. And it emphasizes serving the broader community, not just specific issues or groups.
Mathews noted that there is currently no formal record of the number of volunteer journalists operating worldwide.
Filling a void
Researchers found that many of the volunteers were responding to a void of news and information in their communities. Mathews, whose research areas are rural and local news and information ecosystems, said several of the volunteer journalists interviewed for the study were responding to a loss of professional news coverage in their areas.
“Many of these volunteers see this as a service to their communities,” he said. “It’s encouraging to see people realize how valuable journalism is to their community, and they are willing to do this for free for their communities.”
More than 2,000 news organizations have shut down in the past two decades. While society is starting to grasp the consequences of this decline, the industry is still grappling to find a clear path forward.
The Missouri School of Journalism is addressing the issue by focusing on entrepreneurialism in the industry, Matthews said. That includes providing courses around news products and business strategies in support of sustainable local journalism.
While declining revenues, consolidation of media companies and the rise of digital platforms have placed the future of local media in jeopardy,Mathews and his fellow authors say their research offers a glimmer of hope.
“By tapping into the dedication of individuals willing to contribute their time and expertise, organizations can persist in delivering valuable content to their communities,” he said. “Therefore, we contend that volunteer journalism warrants a place within journalism studies, given the growing challenges faced by news ecosystems globally and its potential to address these issues.”
“Volunteer Journalism: Defining a Sub-field of Journalism Studies” was published in Journalism Practice. Co-authors are Pranaav Jadhav and Damilola Oduolowu, doctoral students at the Missouri School of Journalism, and Lene Heiselberg, an associate professor at the Centre for Journalism, University of Southern Denmark.
Updated: March 4, 2025