{"id":515719,"date":"2026-01-14T14:54:13","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T14:54:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/515719\/"},"modified":"2026-01-14T14:54:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T14:54:13","slug":"l-a-journalism-features-a-new-year-of-many-startups","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/515719\/","title":{"rendered":"L.A. journalism features a new year of many startups"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The new year has barely begun but it\u2019s already clear 2026 will be a time of new beginnings on the local journalism scene. At least five news and information sites are coming to Los Angeles, intent on building audiences at a time when the news industry continues to struggle to find sustainable sources of revenue.<\/p>\n

You’re reading the Essential California newsletter <\/p>\n

They run the gamut in terms of business models, funding and audience. Some aspire to be niche players, others are looking for mass audience. And each comes at the task in different ways.<\/p>\n

Los Angeles is far from alone in seeing startup newsrooms launch. They typically are a fraction of the size of a big-city newsroom and often attempt to supplement coverage of specific topics or focus on underserved markets. Nationally, some have stood the test of time<\/a> and others have quickly failed<\/a>. Locally, they\u2019ve gained footholds in places like Long Beach<\/a>, San Diego <\/a>and Orange County.<\/a> <\/p>\n

The track record in Los Angeles has been mixed. With much fanfare, the owner of the Orange County Register launched the \u201cLos Angeles Register\u201d <\/a>as a general-interest print publication about a decade ago but it did not last long.<\/a> <\/p>\n

Nationwide, advertising on most news sites has collapsed and subscriptions and donations haven\u2019t always proved lucrative enough to fill the gap in order to keep journalists employed.<\/p>\n

But this new crop of startups has more specific (and more refined) missions and mandates. Here\u2019s what to expect:<\/p>\n

\u2022 The L.A. Local <\/a>is focusing most intently on three geographic areas: Boyle Heights and East LA; Koreatown, Pico Union and Westlake (west of downtown); and Inglewood and South L.A.<\/p>\n

The organization will also partner with existing newsrooms, including LAist (previously KPCC), CalMatters, L.A. Taco, and L.A. Public Press to provide more regional sweep to its coverage. The L.A. Local plans to offer access to news free on its website, while relying heavily on $19.3 million in philanthropic investments. <\/p>\n

The site\u2019s home page recently offered stories on a teacher\u2019s contract dispute, protests over an ICE raid and a look at why Koreatown and Pico Union have so few parks. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re building newsrooms inside neighborhoods so residents have the information infrastructure they need to participate fully in democracy,\u201d said Kristen Muller, the site\u2019s executive editor and the former top editor at LAist. \u201cIt\u2019s not just coverage, it\u2019s connection.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022 The California Post, a West Coast version of the New York Post, promises a daily digital and print publication<\/a> starting this month. Like its cousins in the Murdoch media empire, it\u2019s expected to take a conservative, MAGA-adjacent view of L.A. and California. <\/p>\n

Nick Papps, the California Post editor-in-chief, said in an announcement that the paper will be \u201cfighting for hard-working Californians.\u201d <\/p>\n

The Post news crew will operate out of a newsroom on the Fox Studio lot in Century City.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Golden State<\/a> is another nonprofit outlet founded by two former L.A. Times journalists \u2014 Mariel Garza and Paul Thornton \u2014 and later joined by another former Times editor, Susan Brenneman. The site plans to fund itself with a \u201cNPR style\u201d membership model and to primarily focus on \u201canalysis, commentary, think pieces, reviews, criticism and accountability journalism\u201d \u2014 as the journalists did when they were at The Times.<\/p>\n

Garza left in 2024 after The Times did not publish an editorial<\/a> endorsing Kamala Harris for president.<\/p>\n

\u2022 L.A. Reported<\/a> comes from another former Times opinion staffer, Karin Klein, and a Forbes journalist Scott Woolley. Starting this weekend, the founders intend to initially offer about one article per week. They will be \u201cinvestigative pieces that are written as fun-to-read narratives,\u201d Woolley said via email.<\/p>\n

The founders eventually hope to attract enough paying subscribers to remain in business. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe believe we can publish stories that both inform and entertain readers,\u201d Woolley said.<\/p>\n

\u2022 LA Material <\/a>plans to offer a magazine-style mix of news, culture and muckraking journalism in a digital format. <\/p>\n

Two more former L.A. Times journalists are the founders of the site. Julia Turner was the top editor at Slate before becoming a masthead editor at The Times. Julia Wick once wrote this newsletter and helped cover L.A. City Hall and state politics. She is also the former editor-in-chief of LAist.<\/a> <\/p>\n

L.A. Material plans a daily newsletter and a handful of other stories each week.<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s top stories \"A <\/a> <\/p>\n

A man carries a single-use plastic bag in San Francisco.<\/p>\n

(Kimberly White \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Very little plastic is being recycled in California as state efforts falter<\/p>\n