Local Newspapers Are Yet Another Casualty of COVID-19
The local news industry has been on the decline for years. The pandemic pushed it off a cliff.
At least 60 local newsrooms in the U.S. closed in 2020, and countless others had to lay off or furlough staff as ad revenue and circulation numbers took a hit. As my colleague Tara Law reports, that's not just a sad story for the media industry. During a pandemic, it's also a direct threat to public health and safety.
"The COVID-19 pandemic is a national crisis, but it's really being fought in all of our local communities," Tara says. "Local news informs people about what's happening in the area immediately around them, which is so important when conditions during the pandemic can vary so much from place to place."
One Tennessee newspaper editor quoted in Tara's piece built a digital hub full of practical information people need during a pandemic—things like school closures and where to get donated food. Without a local newspaper, people in the community may not have known where to turn for that kind of information.
People also tend to inherently trust their local newspaper and the reporters who write for it in a way they might not trust big national outlets, Tara points out. And during a pandemic that has been dominated by misinformation and skepticism of science, losing any trusted source of information is a huge blow. Without credible, trustworthy news, people may turn to dubious sources like social media, which has been overrun with conspiracy theories and shaky science since the pandemic started.
Obviously, saving local media is not an easy problem to solve. But if you're looking for a way to give back to your community during these trying times, a subscription to the local paper is a great place to start.
While 28.4 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been shipped to various U.S. states as of this morning, only about 15 million doses have been administered thus far, according to TIME's vaccine tracker—representing 4.5% of the overall U.S. population.
In a strategy document released yesterday, the Biden Administration outlined several possible methods for kickstarting vaccine distribution in the U.S. Some—like using the Defense Production Act to ramp up manufacturing—are fairly straightforward, while others are more controversial. The document says, for example, the Administration is prepared to "explore" experimental approaches such as shrinking the size of vaccine doses or giving some people only one shot to stretch supplies. At this point, though, many of those strategies are only possibilities, not plans.
New Washington Postreporting also suggests the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) may open as many as 100 COVID-19 vaccination centers around the country within the next month, fulfilling another of President Biden's pandemic-related promises. While FEMA's sites would reportedly draw on states' existing vaccine allocations, rather than a separate pool of shots, the plan signals that the federal government will play a more central role in vaccine distribution under the Biden Administration.
In the commercial sphere, Walmart will soon begin offering COVID-19 vaccines in seven states (on top of Arkansas and New Mexico, where it was already doing so), plus Puerto Rico and the city of Chicago, Reuters reports. That's good news, since many experts believe involving major retailers and pharmacies in vaccination efforts could help rejuvenate the U.S.' slow start. Walmart also announced today that it would neither require employees to get the shot, nor incentivize them for doing so, as some other retailers are doing.
TODAY'S CORONAVIRUS OUTLOOK
The Global Situation
More than 97.4 million people around the world had been diagnosed with COVID-19 as of 1 p.m. E.T. today, and more than 2 million people have died. On Jan. 21, there were 630,016 new cases and 14,691 new deaths confirmed globally.
Here's how the world as a whole is currently trending:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
And here is every country with over 1.5 million confirmed cases:
Israel has already vaccinated an impressive share of its population—about 2 million of its 6 million adult residents. Even still, the Financial Timesreports, infections continue to spread quickly among people who have not yet gotten their shots, highlighting the difficulty of vaccinating people fast enough to overtake a highly contagious virus. Israel's national percent positivity rate is currently about 9%, per the Jerusalem Post.
France, which remains under strict curfew, will offer college students two meals per day for €1, in an effort to ease some of the financial burdens associated with lockdown measures. The country will also offer students subsidies for counseling and other mental health services, President Emmaneul Macron announced yesterday.
The Situation in the U.S.
The U.S. had recorded more than 24.6 million coronavirus cases as of 1 p.m. E.T. today. More than 410,000 people have died. On Jan. 21, there were 188,952 new cases and 3,955 new deaths confirmed in the U.S.
Here's how the country as a whole is currently trending:
And here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents: Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, confirmed many people's fears yesterday by saying existing COVID-19 vaccines may be less effective against some new coronavirus variants—specifically, one that originated in South Africa. But if anything, Fauci said, that underscores the need for everyone to get vaccinated as quickly as they can to help build herd immunity, since mutations occur when the virus spreads widely. Fauci also added that it's likely possible to tweak existing vaccines to address new viral strains, if needed.
The National Guard is having trouble testing the thousands of troops sent to the U.S. Capitol to provide security during President Joe Biden's inauguration, Politico reports. Hundreds of Guardsmen have reportedly tested positive since arriving in Washington, D.C., raising concerns that the garrison could become a superspreader event, seeding cases both in the nation's capital and elsewhere when they're sent home.
This year's Super Bowl will take place in front of 22,000 fans, including 7,500 Florida-based vaccinated health care workers who will be able to attend for free, the NFL announced today. The game will be held at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, and fans will have to follow protocols including mandatory masking and social distancing.
All numbers unless otherwise specified are from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering, and are accurate as of Jan. 22, 1 a.m. E.T. To see larger, interactive versions of these maps and charts, click here.
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW
Wuhan, One Year Later
One year after Wuhan's dramatic COVID-19 lockdown shocked the world, TIME's Charlie Campbell reports on what we can learn from the city where the pandemic began. Read more here.
Could a COVID-19 Treatment Also Prevent Infections?
Eli Lilly, the company that makes a monoclonal antibody used to treat COVID-19, says its drug also prevented infections among nursing home residents and staff. The data, while not yet peer-reviewed, could be an unexpected source of optimism during the pandemic. Read more here.
Black Americans May Have a Harder Time Getting Vaccinated
The pandemic has already exposed numerous racial inequalities in the U.S. Among them, according to Axios: there tend to be fewer pharmacies in communities with many residents of color, which could make it harder for people in these areas to get vaccinated. Read more here.
What's Your Pandemic Fantasy Vacation?
We've all found ways to cope with the pandemic. For the people profiled in this Debugger story, it's booking luxurious vacations that may never come to pass. Read more here.
Thanks for reading. We hope you find the Coronavirus Brief newsletter to be a helpful tool to navigate this very complex situation, and welcome feedback at coronavirus.brief@time.com. If you have specific questions you'd like us to answer, please send them to covidquestions@time.com.
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Today's newsletter was written by Jamie Ducharme and edited by Alex Fitzpatrick.
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