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Storm Lake | Independent Lens

John and Art Cullen read newspapers in front of the printing press.
Courtesy
/
Gary Fandel
Brothers John and Art Cullen reviewing a copy of The Storm Lake Times hot off the presses.

Mon. Nov. 15 at 10 p.m. on WKAR-HD 23.1 & STREAMING | Inside a family-run newspaper keeping local journalism alive.

Go inside The Storm Lake Times, a family-run newspaper serving an Iowa town that has seen its share of changes in the 40 years since Big Agriculture came to the area.

Pulitzer-winning editor Art Cullen and his team, composed largely of his family members, dedicate themselves to keeping the paper alive as local journalism across the country dies out.

Against tight deadlines and slimmer margins, the Cullens doggedly report on their town, and wonder how the paper will survive as readers—with a preference for their social media feeds—cease to support journalism like they used to.

“Answering the question ‘what do we lose when local journalism is gone?’ is an urgent issue with devastating consequences for communities across the country,” said filmmakers Jerry Risius and Beth Levison. “We wanted to show the high-stakes nature of what’s going on with media, through the prism of the Cullen family.”

Watch the special at video.wkar.org during or after the premiere date.

MORE ABOUT INDEPENDENT LENS:
Independent Lens is America’s home for independent documentary film, airing Monday nights on PBS member stations and available to stream on the PBS Video App.

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