"Community left adrift as coal county newspaper folds, leaving residents disconnected"

The closure of The Welch News, a 100-year-old newspaper in McDowell County, West Virginia, has left residents feeling isolated and uninformed. The loss of the local news outlet means that public meetings go unreported, local crises are overlooked, and disinformation spreads unchecked. The closure disproportionately affects rural Americans, who rely on newspapers for crucial information. The county, once a symbol of American progress, now faces poverty, low graduation rates, and a lack of infrastructure. The disappearance of the newspaper has left a void that is being filled by cable news and social media, leading to the circulation of unverified information.