'It's really a crisis': why small towns are fighting to save their local newspapers

With a stack of fresh newspapers in hand, Ken Stern is making one of his first stops of the day at La Conner's local office supply and business center.

He greets the owners, Christina and Robyn Burdick-Good-Rubenstein – and their dog Clover. Stern knows exactly what they want, as the chanting begins: "Crossword day! Crossword day!"

Stern is publisher and editor of the La Conner Weekly News. He doesn't always deliver papers himself, but today he's playing tour guide while he restocks local shops and newspaper boxes scattered across the two main streets of town. The small fishing community turned tourist destination is home to less than a thousand people – there isn't a traffic light anywhere in La Conner.

At 68 years old, Stern is ready to retire. But first, he has to sell the newspaper to a new publisher. Stern compares it to trying to sell a buggy whip factory.

"It's very hard in 2023 to sell a buggy whip factory, no matter how high quality my buggy whips are, there's not much demand," he said.