David Owens was managing editor of the Wynne Progress when a tornado tore across the city, killing four people and leveling much of the city. The twister also hit the weekly publication’s office, placing it on a hold that remains four months later.

However, 41-year-old Owens, first through the Progress’ Facebook page and now as news director for radio station KWYN-AM 1400, has remained committed to keeping Wynne and Cross County residents informed.

Originally from Memphis, Owens and his wife, Ashlynn, moved from Laurel, Miss., to Wynne 12 years ago. He started at the Progress in August 2011. A Monday, Owens recalled.

The pair worked there until the March 31 tornado struck the city.

In a post on April 1, he wrote, “Like many of you, the Wynne Progress office was impacted by yesterday’s tornado. We don’t know when we will be able to get up and running again, but we will continue to share ways to give any help needed as we work through this together.”

The Progress’ hiatus had a deep effect on Wynne, according to Rev. John Paul Myrick, regional librarian at East Central Arkansas Regional Library System.

“It took away one of a very, very limited number of outlets through which to share news about the library,” Myrick said. “It was like the whole town lost a member of the family.”

In addition to the many concerns that come with cleanup and recovery, Owens said the day after the tornado was “scary.” Suddenly, “neither of us had a job.”

Still, he continued to post to the Progress’ Facebook page.

Before the tornado, he used social media to get out stories that broke between the newspaper’s weekly publication dates. In the storm’s immediate aftermath, though, “there was info that needed to come out daily, if not hourly,” Owens said.

He posted over a dozen updates per day in the storm’s immediate aftermath, sharing everything from how affected residents could access needed supplies to how people could provide support, as well as critical updates about city services and the extent of the tornado damage.

Legal notices that were printed in the Progress are now printed at public sites, such as City Hall and the Cross County Courthouse, and in other publications in the state, according to Owens.

Wynne Mayor Jennifer Hobbs praised the journalist’s creativity in his efforts to keep residents informed.

“David’s news is still vital to our community,” Hobbs said in a text message Friday. She added, though, that, “We have missed having a newspaper.”

Just before June, Owens posted another update: “As of Wednesday, May 31, The Wynne Progress remains temporarily closed. Look for future updates.”

It was the last post the publication made to its Facebook page. Since then, the fate of the Progress has remained uncertain. Even Owens said he doesn’t know what its owners have planned.

However, the journalist continued to post updates to social media.

“I kind of knew it wasn’t coming back and I still wanted to get that information out there,” he said.

Owens took a Facebook group the Progress used for questions of the week and converted it to “Wynne & Cross County News.” There, he kept sharing posts from other pages about the community, such as updates from the Wynne and Cross County school districts, the NEA Youth Football League, and city and county departments.

In late June, he became the news director for radio station KWYN-AM 1400 and started encouraging social media users to listen to the news there.

“I’m still doing pretty much what I was doing at the Progress,” Owens said. “Just communicating over the radio waves rather than in newsprint.”

On Friday, Owens announced that he was shifting his focus away from the Wynne & Cross County News group. Instead, he would prioritize the newly relaunched KWYN AM 1400 Facebook page. The group is remaining active, though, so residents can still publish their events.

Terry King, who lives in Cherry Valley, a community about 10 miles north of Wynne, said his family has been Progress subscribers for as many as eight decades. King is still a subscriber, despite his uncertainty over when the newspaper will resume publication.

“It means a lot,” he said of having access to area news. “I keep up with things going on local in Wynne and Cross County, and even the surrounding areas.”

Despite the newspaper’s absence, he remains a consistent listener to KWYN. He has been listening since childhood. King recounted that he always knew it was time for him to take a break from his work when the news came over the radio.

These days, a news segment comes on in the morning, from 10-10:40 a.m., at noon and again at 5 p.m. There’s also Yawn Patrol, a daily talk show.

“I listen to it every morning,” King said, adding that he also follows updates on the station’s Facebook page now that Owens has brought it back.

NEWS DESERTS

Despite KWYN’s news broadcasts and social media posts, the Progress’ halting of operations means Cross County is at least temporarily without a print news publication, joining a trend seen across the nation.

Between late 2019 and the end of May 2022, the U.S. lost over 360 newspapers, according to a 2022 report published by Northwestern University’s Medill School. Many were in economically struggling or traditionally underserved communities. According to the report, all but 24 of those publications lost were weekly publications, like the Progress.

Though the economic upheaval spurred by the pandemic threatened news organizations across the country, many were already struggling, dying or had already died.

The report expressed deep concerns over the proliferation of “news deserts,” or communities with limited access to news.

Lillie Fears, a professor of journalism at Arkansas State University, said such news deserts are becoming an increasing issue in the state.

A 2020 report by the University of North Carolina Hussman School of Journalism and Media indicates that, between 2004 and 2019, the number of daily and weekly newspapers in Arkansas dropped by 22%.

However, Fears said residents’ ability to find news about their area is essential to the health of those communities.

“When you don’t have access to news, you’re less likely to understand why things are the way they are,” she said.

In addition to helping community members make more informed decisions, having reporters present locally to report on such areas as city government and schools ensure that officials and others who hold power are held accountable. Research indicates that, as news dwindles in some communities, corruption in governing agencies tends to rise, according to Fears.

“The temptation, it just grows,” she said. “That’s what the research says.”

Access to news is also a matter of safety and health, especially in such emergencies as the tornado that struck Wynne.

While news posted to social media and other digital platforms can reach many people very quickly, Fears said elderly people don’t always know how to get on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), or news websites. If information is only posted in those locations, some of them may not get the information at all.

Owens also said he recognized the dangers caused by news deserts. While he understands the promise of digital media and now works at a radio station, he, like Fears, still thinks print media, such as newspapers, have a place in the news ecosystem.

“I think there should be a mix,” he said. “Because definitely the younger people are going to want the digital, being able to pull it up on their phone, but there’s still always going to be that older audience.”

One answer, to Fears, is that more support be given to community newspapers and their advertisers. Another is to encourage more people to become journalists, like Owens and herself.

“There are news organizations out there who, they have openings,” she said. “They need people to help cover news. And we just can’t graduate people fast enough.”

According to the professor, word of the need for reporters should be spread in high schools and community colleges.

“There’s still opportunities in the news business, despite what you hear,” she said. “You need news. Everybody needs news.”