KC McGinnis

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Richard Rosenbury reads The Bur...d. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Richard Rosenbury reads The Burlington Hawk Eye at Jerry's Main Lunch in Burlington, Iowa on Sunday, August 15, 2021. Rosenbury had several complaints about the paper's delivery and customer service since it was purchased by the hedge fund GateHouse. "They've just really gone downhill," he said. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Since 2019, three separate publications have commissioned me to help tell stories on the same theme: the decline of local news. The stories include that of Iowa's oldest newspaper, The Burlington Hawk-Eye (photographed for The Atlantic) and of Iowa's largest newspaper, The Des Moines Register (photographed for POLITICO), both of which are owned by a hedge fund that is dismantling newsrooms across the country.

The third is the story of a smaller chain of newspapers that has proved more resilient. While Iowa's larger media entities depend heavily on the revenue generated during caucus season and may shutter at the prospect of Iowa losing its first-in-the-nation designation, the smallest papers may be most well-positioned to endure a post-caucus future, as they provide an important social glue that is effective, and even profitable, in smaller, rural communities, regardless of politics.

Mike Sweet poses for a photogra...r. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Mike Sweet poses for a photograph in his home in Burlington, Iowa on Sunday, August 15, 2021. After 44 years at The Burlington Hawk Eye, Sweet retired shortly after the hedge fund GateHouse bought the paper. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Chairs and desks line the offic... 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

Chairs and desks line the office of The Des Moines Register in Des Moines, Iowa on Tuesday, April 2, 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

A coffee pot sits on a counter ...is for La Croix L'Hebdo

A coffee pot sits on a counter in the office of the Creston News Advertiser in Creston, Iowa on Friday, December 13, 2019. KC McGinnis for La Croix L'Hebdo

Papers line a desk in the offic...is for La Croix L'Hebdo

Papers line a desk in the office of the Creston News Advertiser in Creston, Iowa on Friday, December 13, 2019. KC McGinnis for La Croix L'Hebdo

Des Moines Register reporters B... 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

Des Moines Register reporters Brianne Pfannenstiel, Kim Norvell and Kevin Hardy cover the Heartland Forum at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa on Saturday, March 30, 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

A press worker looks over paper...is for La Croix L'Hebdo

A press worker looks over papers in the printing room of the Creston News Advertiser in Creston, Iowa on Friday, December 13, 2019. KC McGinnis for La Croix L'Hebdo

Adam Baker, Steve Bergren, Paul...is for La Croix L'Hebdo

Adam Baker, Steve Bergren, Paul Baker and John Weeks eat lunch in the cafe attached to the Creston Livestock Market in Creston, Iowa on Friday, December 13, 2019. KC McGinnis for La Croix L'Hebdo

Managing Editor Sarah Scull sit...is for La Croix L'Hebdo

Managing Editor Sarah Scull sits in the office of the Creston News Advertiser in Creston, Iowa on Friday, December 13, 2019. KC McGinnis for La Croix L'Hebdo

Des Moines Register politics ed... 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

Des Moines Register politics editor Rachel Stassen-Berger talks with chief politics reporter Brianne Pfannestiel at the Register office in Des Moines, Iowa on Tuesday, April 2, 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

Des Moines Register online prod... 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

Des Moines Register online producers Kelly McGowan and Nicole Derong work in the hug at the Register office in Des Moines, Iowa on Tuesday, April 2, 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

A balloon floats toward the cei... 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

A balloon floats toward the ceiling at The Des Moines Register's office in Des Moines, Iowa on Tuesday, April 2, 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

Des Moines Register executive e... 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

Des Moines Register executive editor Carol Hunter sits near a window with a view of the Iowa State Capitol building at the Register's office in Des Moines, Iowa on Tuesday, April 2, 2019. KC McGinnis for Politico

Jeff Abell, founder of the Burl...e. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Jeff Abell, founder of the Burlington Beacon, works in his office in Burlington, Iowa on Monday, August 16, 2021. Abell, who was a staffer at The Burlington Hawk Eye, hopes to fill in the gaps in his former paper's coverage formed due to budget cuts since its acquisition by the hedge fund GateHouse. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

A mural depicts a historic scen...is for La Croix L'Hebdo

A mural depicts a historic scene in Creston, Iowa on Friday, December 13, 2019. KC McGinnis for La Croix L'Hebdo

A light pole stands through an ...is for La Croix L'Hebdo

A light pole stands through an awning in Creston, Iowa on Friday, December 13, 2019. KC McGinnis for La Croix L'Hebdo

Danny White and Destiny Payne s...1. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Danny White and Destiny Payne smoke cigarettes outside a window in Burlington, Iowa on Sunday, August 15, 2021. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Birds fly overhead in Burlingto...1. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Birds fly overhead in Burlington, Iowa on Sunday, August 15, 2021. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Dale Alison stands near a deliv...r. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Dale Alison stands near a delivery station at the office of the Burlington Hawk Eye in Burlington, Iowa on Saturday, August 14, 2021. Alison was a veteran staffer and editor at the Hawk Eye, Iowa's oldest newspaper, until he was let go shortly after the hedge fund GateHouse bought the paper. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Dale Alison stands near the rai...r. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic

Dale Alison stands near the railyard behind the office of the Burlington Hawk Eye in Burlington, Iowa on Saturday, August 14, 2021. Alison was a veteran staffer and editor at the Hawk Eye, Iowa's oldest newspaper, until he was let go shortly after the hedge fund GateHouse bought the paper. KC McGinnis for The Atlantic