In an increasingly noisy and fragmented media landscape, WLRN 91.3 FM, South Florida's NPR affiliate, has emerged as the most trusted local news source in the region, according to a landmark study released this week by Press Forward South Florida.
The extensive report — "The State of South Florida Local News: Community Needs & Opportunities" — offers a sweeping analysis of how residents across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Monroe counties access and evaluate local information. The three counties are home to about 4.7 million people.
Press Forward South Florida is a philanthropic collaboration of community partners and local news organizations to strengthen the news and information ecosystem in Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe counties.
Conducted by the American Journalism Project, Florida International University, and journalist Ariel Zirulnick, the study highlights a profound gap between the platforms South Floridians use most and the outlets they actually trust.
While social media platforms like Facebook and direct messaging groups dominate daily news habits due to ease of access, South Florida residents acknowledged high levels of skepticism toward them. By contrast, traditional institutions remain the gold standard for accuracy and reliability in the region.
READ MORE: Press Forward South Florida awards $760K to newsrooms, including WLRN, to sustain local journalism
Leading that pack is WLRN.
"WLRN South Florida Public Radio was most cited as the top trusted local news source, and the third most frequently accessed source of news and information for South Floridians in an optional open-ended survey question," the report notes.
WLRN has numerous content partners, including Miami Times, Key Biscayne Independent, and the Coconut Grove Spotlight. Its content on its website, www.wlrn.org, is free with no paywalls.
South Florida residents expressed widespread frustration with media noise, bias, and sensationalism. Sixty-six percent of survey respondents reported relying on social media for local news at least a few times a week — even though focus group participants consistently ranked social channels among their least-trusted sources. Established news brands continue to hold the highest value when residents need verified facts.
Recent immigrants, the survey found, "face an even wider information gap." It said they struggle to access information about immigration policies and government programs and often get information "through trusted nonprofits and churches, or less reliably through word-of-mouth and via WhatsApp."
Nearly three-quarters (74%) of Black survey respondents indicating they turn to the radio for news at least a few times a month.
The report warns of current financial hurdles for public media, including WLRN, because of the elimination of state and federal funding dollars. WLRN saw $2 million in state and federal funding disappear from its $14 million annual budget. The WLRN radio and televisions licenses are owned by the Miami-Dade County Public School Board and independently managed by South Florida Public Media Group.
"The closure of the Corporation of Public Broadcasting will seriously affect WLRN's revenue, and it remains to be seen if and how the station will be able to fill budget gaps through other pathways, such as membership and individual giving among residents," the report said.
Across the board, the study reveals a public eager for practical, community-centered reporting on pressing issues like housing affordability, local government accountability, and regional climate resilience. Overall, 61% of respondents agreed that "local news can be trusted to get things right," and 65% agreed that local news helps them "be a better citizen."
As one community leader summarized in the report: "The South Florida media landscape like any place is fractured, but even more so here: cultural fractures, language fractures, geographic fractures."
