Giving Compass' Take:

• Jessica Mahone and Philip Napoli share a map of the hyperpartisan sites that masquerade as local news, highlighting the concentration of such sites in swing states. 

• What role can funders play in ensuring that the public is prepared to read news critically? 

• Learn about fighting truth decay.

The growth of partisan media masquerading as state and local reporting is a troubling trend we’ve seen emerge amid the financial declines of local news organizations. But what do these outlets mean for journalism in American communities?

Using previous research and news reports as a guide, we’ve mapped the locations of more than 400 partisan media outlets — often funded and operated by government officials, political candidates, PACs, and political party operatives — and found, somewhat unsurprisingly, that these outlets are emerging most often in swing states, raising a concern about the ability of such organizations to fill community information needs while prioritizing the electoral value of an audience.

There are considerably more sites focused on local and hyperlocal communities than on regions or states. Of the 429 sites we’ve mapped, 253 are focused on specific cities or specific neighborhoods. Ninety-five are focused on specific regions, defined here as a group of communities or counties, and 77 are focused on entire states.

We suspect many of the local sites are not based in or actually operating within the communities they serve. Timpone had previously operated “local” news sites using content produced by writers based in the Philippines and using fake bylines. But identifying these locations gives a sense of who the operatives who fund them are targeting with their content.

Read the full article about hyperpartisan sites by Jessica Mahone and Philip Napoli at NiemanLab.