“Local journalism – the lifeblood of American democracy – is in crisis, and nowhere is that crisis more punctuated than in California’s Inland Empire.”

That was what CSUSB communication and media professor Thomas Corrigan told between 80 to 100 attendees at KVCR public media’s Sept. 4 fundraiser, “The Fight For Public Media.”

The Inland Empire’s sole PBS and NPR affiliate, KVCR is projected to lose $550,000 in federal funding as a result of Congress's recent cuts to public media, which were carried out at President Trump’s request.

Corrigan argued that those federal cuts are part of a broader commercial and political assault on independent media and the democratic process. In response, Corrigan urged attendees to “support KVCR with a one-time or – even better – a sustaining donation.”

To make his case that Inland Empire journalism is in crisis, Corrigan pointed to a recent study by Muck Rack and Rebuild Local News that called the Inland Empire “dramatically undercovered.”

“Among U.S. counties with 2-plus million residents, Riverside and San Bernardino counties have the fewest journalists per capita in the country,” explained Corrigan. “And extensive research shows that where local news disappears, corruption and polarization rise, voter participation falls, people feel less connected, and communities find themselves unprepared for crises.”

Specifically, Corrigan argued that Inland Empire journalism is under assault on three fronts: a broken advertising-based business model, predatory media owners, and what he characterized as an authoritarian attack on press freedom and public media.

Corrigan pointed out that the Inland Empire’s four daily newspapers — The Sun in San Bernardino, The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, Redlands Daily Facts and the Ontario-based Inland Valley Daily Bulletin – are all owned by the “vulture” hedge fund, Alden Global Capital.

“Alden is notorious for buying up papers, laying off staff, and squeezing the remaining profits from the industry,” Corrigan explained. 

However, Corrigan argued that, in the Inland Empire, Alden Global Capital is doing something he “hasn’t seen anywhere else in the country.” To illustrate, he held up the Sept. 4 front pages of The Sun and The Press-Enterprise for attendees to see. Other than the names of the papers, the front pages were identical.

“Every day, Alden’s four Inland Empire papers publish the exact same content from cover to cover: the same stories, photos, advertisements and obituaries,” Corrigan said. “They just change the masthead. As a result, some issues of the San Bernardino Sun don’t include any coverage of San Bernardino or surrounding communities. This is one reason I call the Inland Empire a ‘news mirage.’”

The front pages of The Press-Enterprise of Riverside and The Sun of San Bernardino, showing that, aside from the masthead, they are identical. 

Cost-cutting owners and evaporating ad dollars have plagued local news for at least two decades. However, Corrigan underscored a new threat: “Like other would-be authoritarian regimes, the Trump administration seeks to defund, attack, and cow all spheres of independent authority and expertise, including the law, higher education, and – of course – the press and public media.”

Corrigan argued that such attacks aren’t surprising.

“Public media outlets like KVCR sort fact from fiction, hold powerful people and groups accountable, and give voice to a diversity of perspectives,” he said. “In this, public media challenge the authoritarian’s efforts to make his bastardized version of reality — including the outcomes of elections — the only acceptable one.”

Corrigan pointed out that KVCR plays a particularly important role in the Inland Empire.

“I tune in every day to KVCR for fair and accurate coverage of the most pressing issues facing our communities — from warehouse projects to book bans and from ICE raids to wildfires,” said Corrigan. “But I’ve also seen how KVCR collaborates with and amplifies the best coverage of other local, independent news outlets like Inland Empire Community News, Black Voice News, The Frontline Observer, Community Forward Redlands, and The Riverside Record.”

Corrigan also highlighted KVCR’s educational, public affairs and cultural programming, including:

Corrigan was invited to speak at the fundraiser by KVCR Program Coordinator Rick Dulock and Executive Director Connie Leyva, who emceed the event. In addition to Corrigan’s speech, the event featured video highlights from “First Nations Experience” and PBS Kids-themed drinks.

"As someone who studies the news and media landscape here in the Inland Empire, we thought Dr. Corrigan was perfectly suited to speak to KVCR viewers and listeners following the defunding of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting,” said Connie Leyva, executive director of KVCR. “His approach matched the way we do news, with a calm thoughtful delivery."

A professor in CSUSB’s Department of Communication and Media, Corrigan coordinates the CSUSB’s Local Journalism Partnerships Initiative and publishes the Inland Empire MediaWatch newsletter. The University of Vermont’s Center for Community News named him one of their 2025 "Champions” for his work building local news-academic partnerships.

Started through a grant from CSUSB’s Catalytic Investment on Research and Innovation Seed (CiRIS) program, CSUSB’s Local Journalism Partnerships Initiative cultivates relationships with local media and civic institutions to support high-quality journalism in California’s Inland Empire.

Since 2024, the Initiative’s team of faculty and students have worked with local media and civic partners like the Inland Empire Journalism Innovation Hub+Fund to organize community listening sessions and news literacy programming, arrange impactful student reporting internships, and conduct ongoing research on the local news ecosystem.

Two of the Initiative’s team members, Mariam Betlemidze and Ece Algan, are also working to develop a bachelor of arts in journalism at CSUSB. The BA has received approval from the CSU Chancellor’s Office, and when it makes its planned launch in fall 2026, it will be the first and only journalism degree at a four-year public university in the two counties of San Bernardino and Riverside.