More reporters will cover Iowa statehouse next year

Tuesday, Oct 22 2019
Laura Belin

The number of reporters assigned to cover state governments and legislatures has declined sharply over the past two decades, and Iowa has not escaped the trend. But a nonprofit entity focused on statehouse reporting will soon open an Iowa affiliate, with a veteran political journalist at the helm.

Kathie Obradovich announced on October 21 that she will soon leave the Des Moines Register to become editor-in-chief for the Iowa affiliate of States Newsroom. That North Carolina-based nonprofit currently operates twelve other nonprofit state affiliates, with the goal of providing a “relentless stream of quality reporting and commentary” about state-level issues.

Obradovich has been with the Register for sixteen years, moving from political editor to political columnist in 2009 and to opinion editor in 2018. In a public Facebook post, she said leaving was “a hard decision,” adding,

I see this new job as another way to support community journalism, which I’m passionate about. Iowans will benefit from having more experienced journalists keeping an eye on their government.

That’s for sure. The Iowa House and Senate press galleries have regularly had empty seats in recent years. The Des Moines Register has fewer reporters assigned to state government coverage full-time than it did ten or twenty years ago. The Associated Press, which provides content for a large number of Iowa newspapers and broadcast media, also has a smaller staff on this beat. While the AP used to bring on an extra reporter on a temporary contract to cover the Iowa legislative session, the wire service made do with just one journalist at the capitol in 2019.

more...https://www.bleedingheartland.com/2019/10/22/more-reporters-will-cover-iowa-statehouse-next-year/