MPR News' regional reporters on the importance of living where they report

From shrinking newsrooms to less news coverage, local journalism faces many challenges.

Since 2005, more than 3,200 print newspapers have vanished, according to Northwestern University’s 2024 report on the state of local news.

But one thing that still makes local journalism powerful is when reporters live in the places they cover. 

MPR News guest host Catharine Richert talks with reporters who do just that. They’ll talk about what it means to report on their own communities and why that connection matters. 

Guests: 

• Tadeo Ruiz Sandoval is an MPR News reporter based in the Fargo-Moorhead area. He covers the region with a focus on agriculture. Tadeo started his journalism career as an intern at KMUW, the NPR Station in Wichita, Kan. In 2024, he interned at The Wall Street Journal where he produced and hosted a miniseries on Gen Z’s debt.

• Molly Castle Work is an MPR News reporter based in Rochester. She covers health care in southeast Minnesota. Prior to joining MPR News, Molly worked as an investigative reporter at the Rochester Post Bulletin and later as a correspondent for KFF Health News in California. 

• Dan Kraker is an MPR News correspondent based in Duluth where he covers the people, economy and environment of northeast Minnesota. Before joining MPR News, Dan worked at KNAU Arizona Public Radio for 11 years. He covered northern Arizona’s Native nations and then served as news director. He also contributes regularly to National Public Radio programs and Marketplace.

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Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.