Opinion: Will B.C. still have local newspapers to cover the next election? 

British Columbians went to the polls twice in October, electing local councils and school boards just one week before choosing a new provincial government.

For local newspapers, that meant covering two elections at once. Their journalists reported on hundreds of candidates, examined promises and helped voters understand the choices before them.

Across Black Press community newspapers and eight Glacier Media publications alone, more than 7,000 election stories and columns were published. Nearly 2,800 of those covered municipal elections.

That is an extraordinary amount of work by newsrooms that have already endured years of cuts.

It was particularly important at the municipal level. Unlike provincial political parties, local candidates have fewer resources to reach voters. They rely heavily on community newspapers to introduce themselves, explain their positions and have their ideas examined.

But the coverage we saw this fall raises a troubling question: When British Columbians next go to the polls, how many of those newspapers will still be around to cover the election?

Community newspapers have struggled for years as advertising revenue has shifted to large American digital platforms such as Facebook and Google. Newsrooms have become smaller, budgets have tightened, and publishers have had to make difficult decisions about what they can continue to cover.

This summer, an already struggling industry was dealt another serious financial blow.

TC Transcontinental, one of Canada’s largest producers of retail advertising flyers, began moving major flyer distribution away from local newspapers and into a new delivery system using Canada Post.

For most community newspapers, that change could eliminate 25 per cent or more of their total revenue.

The loss goes well beyond the money newspapers earned delivering flyers.

That revenue helped pay for the delivery networks that bring free newspapers to homes across B.C. Without it, publishers may have to reduce circulation or stop home delivery altogether. That makes the papers less valuable to other advertisers, putting even more revenue and newsroom jobs at risk.

For some communities, the result could be losing their local newspaper entirely.

Once a community loses its newspaper, the chances of getting it back are slim.

There is an important lesson in what happened during the elections.

Political candidates and parties understand the value of local newspapers. They know these publications reach the people whose votes they are seeking.

During the October elections, Black Press community newspapers alone carried 1,289 election advertisements.

Publishers reported a welcome increase in advertising revenue during September and October.

But that temporary increase does not solve the financial problems facing local newsrooms.