Unexpected Hope - Wallace House Center for Journalists

Christopher Baxter is CEO/president and founding editor of Spotlight PA, a nonpartisan, nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. He received the 2014 Livingston Award for local reporting.

As I crisscross Pennsylvania, from the steel towns of the Mon Valley to the farm fields of Lancaster County, I encounter the same refrain: “We don’t know who to trust anymore.”

The collapse of local news has left entire communities in information deserts. National media feels increasingly disconnected from their daily realities, and the volume of social media is dialed so high that it’s easier to tune out the news than to find your way through.

Yet in these conversations — honest, sometimes uncomfortable exchanges about news, trust, the Constitution and our free society — I find unexpected hope.

When Spotlight PA launched in 2019, we made a radical bet: that rigorous, independent, nonprofit journalism could break through the noise. That in our communities, readers of varying political stripes hungered for reporting grounded in facts, not ideology. That transparency and accountability still mattered, even in an era of declining trust in institutions.

I’ve spoken to an entire room of Republicans cheering President Donald Trump’s second election, groups of Democrats looking for meaningful ways to raise alarm, and countless folks across this state who care less about politics and more about what’s best for their community.

But when we moved the conversation to his local community, the partisanship faded.

And at every turn, Spotlight PA’s mission to produce truly independent, unbiased journalism is met with cheers. Why? Because the beauty of truly nonpartisan reporting is that it’s both nonpartisan and bipartisan — working in service to all people, wherever the truth leads.

But we are at a precarious moment. One of the greatest antidotes to our partisan times — independent local reporting — is in severe financial distress and requires greater investment from all of us.

This moment is not about Spotlight PA or any single news organization or journalist. It’s not even about journalism or the news industry itself. It’s about a free society, which depends on the free flow of information grounded in truth and reality.

If we lose that, we lose everything.

I recently had lunch with a staunch, pro-Trump Republican and highly successful business leader. We started with national politics, and it was sharply partisan. He criticized recent national media reporting as “psyops” and he made clear he supports the president and his policies.

But when we moved the conversation to his local community, the partisanship faded. He talked about working together for the good of all, seeking bipartisan input and creating forums for discussion. And we agreed that trusted, unbiased local news was essential.

This article is part of Rising to Meet the Moment, a series from the Fall 2025 issue of the Wallace House Journal, featuring reflections from Knight-Wallace alumni, Wallace House board members and the Livingston Awards community on meeting today’s challenges with focus, resilience and resolve. Read more stories from our series:

Christopher Baxter, “Unexpected hope“

Lynette Clemetson, “Stepping up with focus and resolve“

Hayes Ferguson, “Nurturing innovation, adaptability and purpose“

Stephen Henderson, “Choosing civility“

Samantha Henry, “The future of our profession: student journalism“

Tracy Jan, “News deserts and fewer watchdogs“

Margaret Low, “Game Over? Not a chance.“

Peggy Lowe, “Defunded, but not defeated“

Amy Maestas, “Building trust through community collaborations“

Kunal Majumder, “Defending the right to report“

Seema Mehta, “Why we keep reporting“

Rachel Rohr, “Swift action for the hardest hit“