Meeting the Information Needs of Mainers
Each year in the United States, more communities find themselves with no functioning news outlet. Maine lost 73% of its newspaper jobs between 2000 and 2024, according to the Maine Department of Labor. Of Maine’s 16 counties, two are news deserts and three hang on with just one newspaper. In the last two years, five local newspapers ceased publication, while Maine’s daily newspapers cut staff and reduced publication schedules.
The consequences extend well beyond the media industry. Studies consistently show that without local journalism, citizens are less engaged, voter participation declines and local government corruption increases. Annual town meetings — a cornerstone of democratic governance in rural Maine — go uncovered. School board decisions, zoning debates, budget deliberations and county financial crises unfold without the scrutiny that keeps officials accountable and residents informed.
Delivering Independent, Local, Trusted Journalism
The Maine Monitor provides reporting that empowers people in Maine with the information they need to be engaged citizens and to hold our leaders and institutions accountable. Our journalism is a catalyst for Mainers to participate in local and state government and advocate for their communities by providing reporting that gives them confidence in their understanding of the issues, from severe housing shortages and shrinking health care services to contracting investment in local education.
We publish The Maine Monitor to provide critical statewide investigative and in-depth reporting on a broad range of issues — everything from artificial intelligence in education to fair treatment by state police — and Monitor Local to provide rural Maine communities with essential civic news about local government.
Journalism that Strengthens Community and Maine
We hear from readers that they use our reporting to engage and demand accountability from their representatives, and advocates and legislators cite our reporting to drive forward needed changes. For example, because of our reporting, Maine has funded a public defender program, implemented new mining regulations and required accountability for opioid settlement funding. Our reporting has been recognized with awards locally and nationally and is republished, for free, by every news organization in Maine, as well as regionally and nationally, including by the Associated Press and the Boston Globe.
Our commitment to providing high-quality, unbiased journalism that is factual and rigorously reported provides a vital public service to Maine’s citizens, public interests and welfare. We rely on the community we serve to help inform our public interest journalism. We follow tips from our readers, who call and write in. We also create opportunities for community dialogue around our reporting, hosting informal gatherings in towns across Maine and participating in community talks, conferences and fairs. We host Monitor Talks, our live journalism events, where our journalists convene panels of experts on timely issues for discussion with the audience.
For more than 16 years, we have published insightful and impactful reporting that contributes to a better Maine, and we’ve kept that reporting free because we believe all Mainers deserve access to high-quality, unbiased information about their home. The support of individual donors, foundations and generous businesses has made this possible since the very beginning.
