Extra Extra: When the Watchdogs Disappear, Government Secrecy Grows

https://youtu.be/LlSYwHePOmc?is=juVFXm4YWrHEw0S5

A new national study should concern every Hoosier who believes government works best in the sunlight.

The countdown to the launch of the Hoosier Enquirer App is on, only a please or a few donations will make it happen. Help HE!

Researchers affiliated with Northwestern University’s Medill Local News Initiative highlighted findings from the University of Florida’s Brechner Center showing what many journalists, citizens, and open-government advocates have suspected for years: when local news organizations decline, government secrecy tends to increase.

For Indiana, the findings should serve as both a warning and a call to action.

The study found that states with fewer newspapers per capita were more likely to ignore or deny public records requests. Researchers submitted identical requests to 44 state governments and discovered that only about one-quarter were fully honored, while another quarter were either denied outright or simply ignored. States with stronger press associations generally performed better.

That should matter to every taxpayer.

Whether the issue involves property taxes, school spending, economic development incentives, public-private partnerships, judicial administration, or state contracting,

transparency depends upon someone asking difficult questions.

If fewer reporters ask those questions, fewer answers are demanded.

The Medill Local News Initiative reports that America has lost more than 3,300 local newspapers and roughly 45,000 newspaper journalists since 2005. Entire counties have become “news deserts,” communities where little or no original local reporting remains.

The consequences extend far beyond the newspaper business.

Government agencies may face fewer public-records requests. Public meetings receive less scrutiny. Citizens have fewer independent sources verifying official claims. Elected and appointed officials increasingly operate without the expectation that their decisions will receive sustained examination.

The Northwestern report also noted that small digital-only news organizations often struggle to replace the investigative work once performed by larger newspaper staffs. While many online publications produce valuable reporting, they frequently lack the personnel, legal resources, and budgets needed to pursue lengthy public-records battles or litigation.

That observation deserves attention.

Filing a public-records request is often only the beginning. Agencies may delay responses, charge substantial fees, claim exemptions, or require court action before releasing documents. Smaller news organizations frequently must choose between pursuing an expensive transparency fight or covering tomorrow’s news.

For Indiana, this discussion is particularly timely.

Major questions continue to arise regarding state economic development projects, public-private partnerships, nondisclosure agreements involving taxpayer-funded initiatives, judicial administration, higher education spending, and local government decision-making. Public confidence depends not simply upon officials asserting transparency, but upon independent verification through accessible public records.

Government should not fear legitimate scrutiny.

Indeed, honest public servants benefit from it. Transparency strengthens public confidence by allowing citizens to evaluate decisions based upon facts rather than speculation.

The researchers offered several recommendations, including stronger public-records laws, meaningful penalties when agencies unlawfully withhold records, independent information commissions, stronger local journalism, and increased legal support for journalists seeking public documents.

Regardless of political affiliation, these principles should find broad agreement.

Open government is neither conservative nor liberal.

It is constitutional.

It is accountable.

And it remains one of the strongest protections taxpayers possess.

As legacy newspapers continue to shrink and local television stations reduce original reporting in many communities, nonprofit digital news organization Hoosier Enquirer is pursuing an uncommon strategy: expansion.

The Indianapolis-based nonprofit news network, founded by journalist Gabe Whitley, is building a multi-state operation across Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky and Ohio, seeking to capitalize on growing concerns over what media researchers describe as “news deserts”—communities with little or no locally produced journalism.

Rather than relying on traditional advertising revenue, the organization says its expansion will be driven by tax-deductible community donations and grassroots demand, with new regional bureaus opening only after sufficient local financial support has been secured.

The strategy places Hoosier Enquirer among a growing number of nonprofit news organizations attempting to fill reporting gaps created by years of consolidation in the newspaper industry.

Veteran Broadcaster Takes the Helm

Leading the expansion is Chief Executive Officer Donna Kavanagh, a veteran broadcaster and producer whose career spans more than five decades in entertainment, public broadcasting and local journalism.

Kavanagh joined Hoosier Enquirer in early 2026 following the interim presidency of Bob Kern and now oversees the organization’s regional growth strategy.

A native of Michigan City, Indiana, Kavanagh began her career with the Canterbury Summer Theatre before moving to Hollywood, where she worked as an actress on productions including The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Airport ’75 and Every Which Way But Loose.

She later returned to the Midwest, transitioning into public broadcasting and regional journalism as host of Kavanagh Live on Radio Harbor Country and What Gives? on Michiana Access Television.

Her appointment reflects Hoosier Enquirer’s effort to combine traditional broadcast experience with an expanding digital-first news operation.

Expansion Beyond Indiana

The organization’s next phase centers on three regional bureaus designed to provide locally focused reporting in neighboring states.

The Gander Bureau will concentrate on southwest and western Michigan, with coverage expected to emphasize Great Lakes environmental issues, state government in Lansing and rural community development.

In Kentucky, the Bluegrass Bureau is intended to serve central and eastern portions of the state with reporting on economic transition, education policy and state government.

The Buckeye Bureau will focus on Ohio, where reporting plans include state taxation, economic redevelopment, local government accountability and agricultural issues affecting mid-sized communities.

Executives say bureau locations will be determined by community support rather than corporate expansion targets.

Nonprofit Model Seeking Donations

Unlike commercial media companies that depend primarily on advertising or subscription revenue, Hoosier Enquirer says it will continue operating under a nonprofit, donation-supported model. If foundations and donors help HE will grow and grow, hoping to open in Chicago, New York, Boston, Atlanta, Miami, Denver, Houston/Dallas, and onto the west coast.

Under that framework, local residents effectively determine where new reporting resources are deployed by financially supporting bureau development.

The organization also plans to expand its regional podcast network and continue accepting vetted reporting from college journalism students across Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky and Ohio, providing publication opportunities for emerging journalists while increasing coverage in underserved communities.

A Changing Media Landscape

The expansion comes as local journalism continues to face financial pressure nationwide. Numerous daily newspapers have reduced publication schedules, consolidated operations or eliminated local beats over the past decade, while many television stations have increased reliance on syndicated and regional programming.

That shift has prompted the growth of nonprofit and community-supported news organizations seeking alternative business models for local reporting.

For Hoosier Enquirer, the strategy represents a long-term investment in regional journalism at a time when many competitors are reducing their local footprint.

“Our mission has always been to provide independent reporting that holds public institutions accountable and serves communities that too often have been overlooked,” said Gabe Whitley, founder of Hoosier Enquirer. “As traditional local news continues to contract, we see an opportunity—and a responsibility—to expand where citizens are asking for independent journalism. Strong local reporting remains essential to informed communities, and we’re committed to building that one bureau at a time.”

Whether the nonprofit model proves scalable across multiple states remains to be seen. But as established media organizations continue to retrench, Hoosier Enquirer is making a contrary wager: that community-supported local journalism can grow where traditional business models have struggled.

For now, the future of Indiana’s democracy will not depend solely upon who holds office. It will also depend upon whether independent journalists—and informed citizens—continue asking difficult questions and insisting that government records belong to the public that paid for them.

As the new research suggests, when the watchdogs disappear, secrecy often fills the void. The challenge for Indiana is ensuring that never becomes the norm. Nearly every government has grown too big and too powerful for the FBI and DOJ to police an so we the people must at donate and take take part in grassroots objective journalism. Donate today.