Yolo Local maps sector, outlines challenges and opportunities
Sept. 29, 2025—Davis Media Access (DMA) announces the release of its “Yolo County News & Information Ecosystem” report, which presents ideas for addressing the reduced availability of local information and news in Yolo County.
The 70-page report follows months of research, conversations and contact with people throughout Yolo County to understand how the decline of traditional local media outlets affects both information providers and Yolo residents. DMA calls its effort to address this decline Yolo Local.
DMA worked with Impact Architects, nationally known consultants; jesikah maria ross of Davis, a community-engaged journalist, and the 11-member Yolo Local Working Group. The community engagement, which primarily ran from April to August 2025, included a bilingual survey, direct engagement at events, one-to-one interviews, and roundtable discussions.
The report is rooted in Impact Architects’ framework and methodology for large-scale ecosystem reports, and includes key comparative data about Yolo County, such as race and ethnicity, income, and civic wellness data. It describes the community engagement approach and strategies that Yolo Local used, and includes a list of organizations and individuals involved.
Key findings in the report include:
● The need for expanded Spanish-language and bilingual media: While 36 percent of residents identify as Hispanic or Latino/a and nearly 20 percent speak Spanish at home, no news sources are specifically dedicated to serving Hispanic and Latino/a communities in the county
● The need for a backbone institution for the news and information sector: News outlets expressed interest in coordinating with other outlets, but lack a structure to do so. A backbone could act as an “assignment editor,” manage shared resources, and foster collaboration across platforms
● The call to cover critical topics, inclusively: Residents want deeper reporting on local governance, agriculture (including farmworkers’ voices), education, and perspectives and experiences of immigrants and people of color, which are often missing or misrepresented
● An opportunity exists to create a central resource hub to connect local residents with community, government and nonprofit resources and services. Models in other U.S. cities show that news outlets can connect communities to vital resources
The working group—stewarded by ross and DMA Executive Director Autumn Labbé-Renault—relied on many community partners to share the survey and amplify the outreach. The working group took care to engage with the people most underserved by local news and information sources, and thanks the many community organizations, elected officials and DMA supporters who helped this effort.
This project began when Labbé-Renault, a noted community media leader, wondered how DMA’s technical infrastructure and expertise—paired with its strategic partnerships countywide—might address the shrinking traditional media landscape. She had often worked previously with ross, who connected her to Impact Architects and other national resources, and the project moved forward.
“Yolo Local is grounded in the belief that our civic health, democratic traditions and capacity to address community issues are directly related to our ability to access local, accurate, trusted information in Yolo County,” Labbé-Renault said. “We recognized serious gaps and fragmentation, and intentionally emphasized outreach to sectors of our community that have often been overlooked or even harmed by traditional reporting.”
The effort was a first-of-its kind pilot for both Impact Architects and DMA.
“After conducting more than 20 ecosystem assessments nationwide, this work in Yolo County stands apart,” said Lindsay Green-Barber, PhD, founder and principal of Impact Architects. “Partnering with DMA—an organization deeply rooted in the community and fluent in the media landscape—let us dig deeper and produce insights that reflect the realities, priorities, and voices of local residents.”
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Davis Media Access was incorporated as public access channel Davis Community Television (DCTV) in 1988. Its mission is to enrich and strengthen the community by providing alternatives to commercial media for local voices, opinions and creative endeavors. DMA is committed to strengthening localism through media and is proud to support platforms for local expression. DMA was the first U.S. community media organization to launch a low-power FM radio station, KDRT 95.7 FM, in 2004. Its main projects include DCTV, DJUSD TV, KDRT, and Yolo Local. While based in Davis, DMA’s partners stretch countywide and beyond.
Yolo Local is a civic information project that DMA, addressing the void left by reduced news coverage in Yolo County, is creating for Yolo. Shrinking local newsrooms, and the loss of vital news and information, affect every aspect of community life. When information is scarce or inequitable, civic engagement falters and communities suffer.
Impact Architects works at the nexus of research, philanthropy, and news and information. They support partners in developing high-impact strategies, clarifying purpose and goals, and measuring success.
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 Yolo_County_News_and_Information_Ecosystem_Report-1-2.pdf | 10.36 MB |