We now live in a world where people are increasingly tied to each other virtually instead of through face-to-face interaction, and where voters are more likely to get their news from an influencer than a broadcaster. The effects will not only make 2028 different from the past but make the early states similar to everywhere else.
The decline of local media has been well documented, and the key early primary states have not been immune. In New Hampshire, the once-influential Union-Leader’s daily circulation is now less than 16,000 and its decline has been more gradual than the Des Moines Register, which has seen its circulation collapse by nearly 50 percent down to 27,446 , just since 2018. At the same time, national cable news and mainstream media outlets have receded in importance alongside local news.
