John Volk

Research Associate, Database Manager

Volk is a data scientist, researcher and journalist who co-authors the annual State of Local News report. He serves as the Local News Initiative's database administrator and developer, leading the collection, analysis and maintenance of Medill's nationwide local news data across all media types. Before joining the project in 2024, he held journalism, research and communications roles with the Minnesota Star Tribune, the Local News Accelerator and Northwestern Athletics. He is a two-time Northwestern graduate.

Articles

Articles by or about John Volk

  • news |

    A Cross Section of Illinois News Entities Get $4.3 Million from State

    by John Volk

    Fifty-five Illinois local news organizations operating 130 outlets have received $4.3 million in state tax credits so far this year under a law designed to encourage the retention and hiring of journalists, according to records obtained through a Freedom of Information request by the Medill Local News Initiative. It matches the total disbursed in all of 2025, the first year of the program. Just under $700,000 budgeted for this year remains available to local news...

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  • research |

    Lack of Local News Tied to Government Secrecy, New Report Says

    by John Volk

    The loss of local news is linked with increased government secrecy, according to a new study conducted by the Brechner Center for the Advancement of the First Amendment at the University of Florida. The findings lend the first empirical evidence to the connection long intuited between the declining health of local news ecosystems and decreased government transparency. They add to the growing body of research that demonstrates the impact of news deserts on democracy, including...

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  • news policy data |

    Illinois Newsrooms Receive $4 Million from State

    by John Volk

    Forty Illinois local news entities operating 120 outlets are receiving $4 million in state tax credits under a new law designed to encourage the retention and hiring of journalists, according to documents released this week. The organizations that have received credits represent a cross section of Illinois’ local news ecosystem, according to records obtained through a Freedom of Information request by the Medill Local News Initiative. They span major legacy organizations, small community newspapers, digital...

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  • research |

    In news deserts, Trump won in a landslide But what does this election-result correlation mean?

    Donald Trump won the 2024 election with one of the smallest popular-vote margins in U.S. history, but in news deserts – counties lacking a professional source of local news – it was an avalanche. Trump won 91% percent of these counties over his Democratic rival, Kamala Harris, according to an analysis of voting data by Medill Journalism School’s State of Local News project. While Trump’s national popular-vote margin was just under 1.5%, his margin in news...

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Projects

Projects John Volk has worked on.