The MTFP Local project, a seed of an idea in 2022, took root in 2023.

Media corporations throughout the country have for the last several years invested less and less in the news they produce. Many of Montana’s newsrooms, unfortunately, have not been immune. That’s probably not a huge surprise to careful readers, but it does underscore the need for the type of reporting you’re used to reading in Montana Free Press.

Our local project started in 2022 as an ambition to supplement our more established statewide coverage by providing more local-oriented journalism to the communities of Montana. We assembled a talented and dedicated cohort of freelance journalists and published dozens of stories under the “local” banner, and, for the most part, those stories were written by journalists who live in the communities they reported on. We built on that success in 2023 and expect to produce even more local content in the coming year.

We added a full-time editor (that’s me) last spring, and recently hired JoVonne Wagner in Helena as our first full-time reporter assigned to cover a specific community. A recent graduate of the University of Montana School of Journalism who covered the Native American Caucus as our Indigenous Montana Legislative Fellow earlier this year, JoVonne is already producing stories, like this one regarding a proposed women’s shelter, that we think the community of Helena will appreciate.

We are also excited to launch in early 2024 a newsletter, written by JoVonne, that will cover news and events specific to Helena. While the exact form that newsletter will take is still in the works, we anticipate that it will include stories big and small, as well as a smattering of community events and local tips and notices.

We also hope this year to hire even more full-time reporters assigned to report exclusively about their communities. Having journalists write about a city as their “beat” will add consistency to coverage — think city councils, elections and school boards — that’s vital to an informed citizenry.

That said, the local project will continue to include the good work of freelance contributors, whose work in 2023 was among the most-read on the MTFP website, highlighting the demand for local stories that might otherwise go unreported.

Housing and homelessness, perhaps not surprisingly, were regular topics on the local beats in 2023. Matt Standal, a contributor from Bozeman, wrote often about homelessness. Notable were his stories regarding the so-called urban camps prevalent in Bozeman, the city’s proposed response, and a lawsuit filed by local businesses that alleges the changes don’t do enough to limit the swell of people leaving on the city’s streets.

Justin Franz, our frequent contributor in the Flathead, delivered coverage following the death of a homeless man in Kalispell, along with a story about county officials there calling on the community to stop helping unhoused people. Benjamin Rubin, a new journalism student at the University of Montana and a new contributor in Missoula, reported about steps the public library there is taking to help homeless Missolians find resources and shelter. Short-term rentals, their effects on housing availability and how communities are trying to limit those effects also prompted coverage from Standal in Bozeman and Franz in Whitefish.

Other notable local stories included Standal’s report about a woman who died after eating at Dave’s Sushi in Bozeman, veteran political journalist Mike Dennison’s article about the changing politics of Great Falls, and Hayden Blackford’s report about the sale of Marshall Mountain near Missoula.

Franz’s coverage of the environment and tourism were also highlights of the last year, including his stories about the concerning depth of Flathead Lake, the ticketing system at Glacier National Park, and the proposed-then-halted expansion of the Holland Lake Lodge.

We were also thrilled to add Katie Fairbanks as a regular contributor in Missoula. Fairbanks in short order has written several important local government stories from that city, including reports about the revised gun policy on Mountain Line buses and proposed fixes to the ever-malfunctioning intersection at Brooks and Russell streets.

Coverage of the arts continued to be popular with MTFP Local readers in 2023, and contributor Anna Paige offered a slew of fun and important stories. Among other reports, Anna wrote about a Chester native reviving her community’s Hi-Line Harvest Fest and a graffiti artist in Billings. Her stories about the auction of a painting by artist Joseph Henry Sharp chronicled how and why the signature work will remain in Montana for the public to enjoy.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the coverage of the MTFP Local project this past year. It’s been a pleasure to bring you these stories about the places we call home.

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