Three community journalists are revitalizing local coverage in Medford with a new digital newspaper: Gotta Know Medford. This effort to produce more Medford news comes years after Gannett, the Medford Transcript’s parent company, forced the paper to merge with the Somerville Journal in 2022, leaving the city without a devoted paper of its own.
In an effort to address Medford’s “news desert,” three local journalists decided to form Gotta Know Media to bring local journalism back to the city. The team is comprised of several local reporters: President Nell Coakley, who worked for the Medford Transcript, Vice President Chris Stevens and treasurer and secretary Wendall Waters. Coakley said the group is pursuing this project for the people of Medford.
“The important thing is to have Medford residents have a place to show their voice, to have their voices heard,” Coakley said. “I think that’s the goal, to provide Medford news for Medford residents.”
The paper will start out as a digital-only source of news.
“As much as I love the newsprint and people of my generation love the newsprint … [online] is where most people get their information…” Stevens said. “You can also be more responsive and way more timely.”
With an intended launch date at the end of the month, the three journalists say that excitement is bubbling in the community.
“Word of mouth has really spread,” Coakley said. “People say, ‘Tell me when you’re up and running so that I can tell everybody that I know.’”
As with most current newspapers, Waters said that Gotta Know Media will have an active presence on social media.
“We’ll probably use a lot of the tools that many organizations use, like newsletters and emails and social media,” Waters said.
However, the group also plans to engage more actively with the community. Currently, they are working to host an evening at the Medford library with other local journalists to discuss news deserts, introducing Gotta Know Medford in tandem. Coakley was quick to state that the paper will be accessible to the community.
“People will definitely see us in town; that’s the important thing,” Coakley said. “They will see us in their community. They will get to know us.”
Gotta Know Medford is extending that mentality to coverage of local government, which they believe must be held accountable by local press.
“In terms of working with local government, what you start to do is you just start covering their meetings and letting them know that you’re there,” Stevens said. “It’s about being there and about getting to know the people.”
Citing a lack of local coverage, Coakley acknowledged the absence of accessibility or forum for political dialogue.
“Unless you’re watching the city council meeting, unless you’re attending the city council meeting, most people have no idea what’s happening,” Coakley said. “That’s what we’re hoping to provide, is to tell them, ‘This is what’s happening in your community. This is how you can get involved.’”
The goal for Gotta Know Media is to amplify the voices of local Medford residents and hold the city accountable.
“The city needs to explain itself,” Coakley said, offering hypothetical examples. “We want to know why there’s a lawsuit on this … and nobody’s addressed it. Or we want to know why the potholes on your street aren’t being addressed. Why are your trees being torn down? It’s not just about the government. It’s about the quality of living, the things that affect people every single day.”
Following the guidance of local journalists, they have decided to launch Gotta Know Medford as a for-profit paper.
“If you go non-profit, you spend 90% of your time chasing money, trying to raise up money,” Stevens said. “That’s not really what I wanted to get into it for. I want to write. The community news is what’s important to me.”
While Gotta Know Media is focused on Medford for the foreseeable future, Stevens expressed the group’s desire to eventually provide local coverage for news deserts across the Boston area.
“We would like to reach out to other communities, because there are other communities that have also said, ‘Please come here. We need a newspaper here.’”
Gotta Know Media placed an emphasis on the Medford community, mentioning their excitement at working with local website designer Amanda Stone in addition to collaborating with local journalists and community members.
“We are three very busy women who want to do this, and we’re throwing everything — our commitment, our hearts and souls — into it. That’s what we’re going to bring to the community,” Coakley said.
