In 2025, Colorado’s local news ecosystem is defined by resilience, ingenuity — and strain. The latest Colorado News Survey, reflecting 2024 data collected in 2025, reached 156 news outlets, an 18% increase over the prior year. These outlets span every region and medium: from small-town weeklies and public radio to ethnic media serving multilingual communities.
The data show an industry caught in what COLab calls the “Fried and Frozen Dilemma.” Many outlets are overextended, with too few staff covering too many roles (“fried”) and unable to grow or adapt because they lack the resources to make necessary changes (“frozen”). This dual condition stifles innovation, limits revenue potential and slows the adoption of strategies that could stabilize operations.
Key findings:
- Revenue instability is growing: 43% of respondents reported decreased revenue over the prior year, up from 33% in the 2023 data.
- Staffing is critically low: Median editorial staffing – journalists producing the news – has dropped to 1.35 FTE (full time equivalent); half the news outlets have one or fewer people to do everything else a news business requires.
- Free access dominates: Nine of ten outlets are partly or fully free to access, with 63% fully free and another 28% mostly or partly free — a consistent three-year trend.
- Audience reach is expanding: Median annual online unique reach grew to 117,000, alongside gains in newsletter subscribers and even print circulation.
The picture is clear: Colorado’s news outlets are working harder than ever to serve their communities, but systemic barriers threaten their future. Addressing the Fried and Frozen Dilemma will require targeted investment, shared resources and collaborative solutions.
Index
Colorado's News Landscape
The 2024 dataset reveals a media ecosystem that is adaptive yet stretched thin, balancing multiple formats, platforms and audience needs with limited resources.
Participation
- 156 outlets participated in the survey, up from 132 last year.
- The respondent pool spans legacy newspapers, broadcast stations, digital-native outlets and ethnic media serving Colorado’s linguistic and cultural diversity.
- Half of respondents said print was their primary distribution channel. Here’s how distribution broke down:
Ownership & Business Models
Access Models
Three years of data show remarkable stability, with the vast majority of outlets committed to keeping their content free or mostly free:
Audience Reach (Median)
These figures demonstrate that, despite financial and staffing constraints, outlets are finding ways to reach and retain audiences. Free access has helped maintain and expand readership, but sustaining that access without undermining revenue remains a core challenge.
Financial Health & Revenue Trends
Overall, most Colorado news outlets saw little to no revenue growth in 2024, with declines outpacing gains. The 2024 data show deepening revenue instability, with two-thirds reporting shrinking or stagnant revenue year over year:
- Revenue down: 53 outlets — 34% of all surveyed, or 43% of those who answered.
- Revenue up: 43 outlets — 28% of surveyed, or 35% of respondents.
- No change: 24 outlets — 15% of surveyed, or 20% of respondents.
- Prefer not to answer: 2 outlets — 1% of surveyed, or 2% of respondents.
- No answer: 34 outlets — 22% of surveyed.
Compared to 2023, those experiencing decreased revenue rose from 33% to 43% (among respondents), while revenue increases fell from 41% to 35%.
These trends, coupled with survey comments, reveal the core of the Fried and Frozen Dilemma: Without stable and diversified revenue, outlets lack the capacity to plan, innovate or invest. Over-reliance on single streams (advertising, grants, subscriptions) leaves them vulnerable to market shifts.
Staffing & Capacity
Staffing data from 2022 to 2024 show a clear downward trend in editorial capacity and no sustained gains in non-editorial roles:
The typical Colorado newsroom has seen a 23% drop in editorial FTEs (Full Time Equivalent employees, who might be on staff or contracted). For many outlets, these numbers represent a handful of people doing the work of entire departments. Limited business or revenue staff means editors, reporters and even publishers are often also responsible for ad sales, fundraising, community engagement and technical operations. Most of the time, multiple of these responsibilities fall to just one person. The result is a sector where burnout is pervasive, and strategic projects are delayed or abandoned.
The staffing picture reinforces the Fried and Frozen Dilemma: newsrooms are overextended in their daily operations yet immobilized when it comes to planning and growth. Without investment in both editorial and revenue-generating roles, this cycle will continue.
Persistent & Emerging Challenges
This year’s findings reveal an ecosystem caught in the “Fried and Frozen Dilemma.” News outlets are running flat out with too few people doing too many jobs. At the same time, they’re unable to make the moves that would grow audiences or revenue because they simply don’t have the resources or capacity. It’s a cycle that keeps them from adapting to audience changes, pursuing new revenue and investing in staff.
The nine categories of challenges identified in the 2024–25 analyses all connect back to this dilemma:
- Funding & Revenue Generation limits every other area of development. This was the most-cited concern. It includes declining revenue, difficulty replacing lost advertising or classified income and sustainability of income sources. Also, many outlets noted they lack the time, expertise or staff to pursue philanthropic grants or donor support.
- Staffing, Capacity & Burnout reduces time for business development or innovation. Many comments reflect the burden on a few individuals juggling too many roles.
- Print Costs & Infrastructure Decline forces hard choices about format and reach. Includes rising print and postage costs, USPS delays and loss of local printing options after facility closures.
- Audience Growth & Engagement efforts are constrained by the need to maintain basic operations. Many struggle to connect with or reflect local communities, especially younger and Latino audiences.
- Advertising & Sponsorship suffers from both market shifts and lack of sales capacity. Outlets have difficulty attracting and managing advertising and sponsorship clients, especially with limited sales staff and shifting ad markets.
- Digital Tools & Platform Challenges hinder meeting audiences online. Outlets are trying to grow digital audiences but face hurdles such as low adoption, limited expertise or lack of monetization.
- Training & Workforce Pipeline gaps mean fewer skilled people entering local journalism.
- Equity, Representation & Visibility issues leave some communities underserved.
- Strategic & Organizational Transitions require capacity many outlets lack.
Without targeted investment to address both “fried” and “frozen” conditions, many outlets will remain in survival mode rather than moving toward stability and growth.
Considerations for the Future
Survey responses about “considerations for next year” give a window into where outlets want to focus their energy if they can find the capacity. The top priorities for 2025 include:
- Community listening or engagement efforts (43%)
- Hosting internships (41%)
- Fundraising campaigns (39%)
- Growing staff (37%)
- Content strategy changes such as shifting publication frequency or expanding digital offerings (36%)
These considerations point to an industry that wants to invest in both audience relationships and internal capacity. Outlets are looking to deepen community trust, bring new talent into the profession and diversify how they deliver news. But without parallel increases in funding, staffing and technical support, these ambitions risk remaining plans on paper — or in an overworked news professional’s head.
The data suggest that moving outlets out of the “Fried and Frozen” state will require aligning support with these stated priorities. We must find ways to pair financial resources with mentorship, collaboration and shared infrastructure so that outlets can act on their plans rather than deferring them.
Conclusion & Call to Action
Colorado’s local news sector is at a crossroads. The data show small but meaningful gains in reach, modest shifts in distribution models and an eagerness to engage audiences more deeply. At the same time, they reveal deep vulnerabilities: shrinking or stagnant revenue for most outlets, persistently low staffing levels, and structural challenges that limit adaptation.
Breaking the “Fried and Frozen” cycle will require coordinated investment and collaboration. Funders, policymakers, universities, and community members can play critical roles by:
- Building shared resources — from technology to training — that reduce duplication and costs.
- Supporting multi-year funding commitments that enable strategic planning, not just survival.
- Partnering with outlets to strengthen audience trust and engagement.
- Advocating for policies that protect press freedom and bolster local news sustainability.
A vibrant, sustainable news ecosystem benefits all Coloradans. The opportunity — and responsibility — to secure that future is shared across sectors and communities.
ABOUT COLAB
Within the journalism ecosystem in Colorado, the Colorado News Collaborative (COLab) is the direct services arm, working with 183 media partners to accomplish our mission: Stronger communities through stronger local news. COLab tests and develops shared services for Colorado news media, supporting news outlets in what we call the “Four Rs”: Reporting, Reach, Revenue and Resources.
ABOUT CPA
Founded in 1878, the Colorado Press Association is the non-profit trade association representing 130+ community newspapers and online news sites. Membership accesses expertise in state legislative issues, press credentials, education and training, job opportunities, internships and industry news.
ABOUT CMP
Colorado Media Project is a community-informed, multi-funder coalition dedicated to supporting innovations that make the state’s local media ecosystem more sustainable, collaborative, inclusive and accountable to the public it serves. It’s home to Press Forward Colorado, a local affiliate of the nationwide Press Forward initiative to raise $1 billion to catalyze a local news renaissance.