The Buzz 06.05.25

FREE SPEECH

Donald Trump may have won the national popular vote by a razor-thin margin of 1.5 percent, but in many counties, he won by an avalanche, averaging 54 percentage points. The one thing these counties all have in common: They are “news deserts,” lacking a professional source of local news. The recent findings by Medill Journalism School analyzed 193 counties it considers as news deserts, mostly in “red” states such as Texas, Kentucky, Arkansas, Montana and others. In the few counties where Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris won, her margin of victory was much smaller, averaging 18 points, according to the study. When people lack a local news source, they instead turn to national outlets, where they will find a candidate who shares their views on national issues, but they won’t find the local issues that affect their everyday lives, political scientist Danny Hayes told the journalism school. “The general argument is that local news encourages people to consider other dimensions of a candidate’s appeal besides whether they share the same partisanship,” Hayes said.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“We could totally frustrate the president’s dirty energy goals.” - Das Williams, senior advisor for Central Coast Community Energy, encouraging customers to take advantage of electrification rebates before they go away under a proposed federal bill (see story, montereycountynow.com)

GOOD WEEK / GREAT WEEK

GOOD:

After two months of closure for renovations, the Monterey Sports Center’s indoor pool – known as a natatorium – has reopened. June 1 marked the 33rd anniversary since the center opened, and to celebrate the pool’s return, staff welcomed dozens of kids and families to enjoy the new pool deck with facepainting, vendors and live music. According to Sports Center staff, the renovations were long needed for the aging building to continue to serve nearly 1 million visitors each year. The pools have been replastered and the natatorium’s deck and coping have been redone; other upgrades include a new large digital clock for lap swimming and a new dehumidifier system for the natatorium building. More upgrades are on the way for the rest of the facility, with new saunas arriving on the pool deck and a new state-of-the-art cycling studio to be delivered and completed in the coming weeks.

GREAT:

The County of Monterey Elections Office recently received a national award for its innovative Books & Ballots program that brought voter registration and information directly to voters inside rural libraries during the 2024 election year. Called the Clearing House Award, it came from the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, awarded for “Innovations or New Practices in Election Administration.” The Books & Ballots program, a partnership between the Elections Office and Monterey County Free Libraries, sought to increase voting access in rural and underserved areas by setting up voter information and registration tables inside South County libraries. They also provided access for candidate and campaign filing. The program demonstrated how leveraging community resources can improve democratic participation while managing costs, according to the Elections Office.