Small papers don’t generally have the time, money or trained staff to cover court hearings, research by Australia’s Public Interest Journalism suggests.

“Insights from journalists and editors suggest that the financial, time and training requirements of court reporting can act as barriers for smaller publications, even where there is a desire to conduct court reporting, or belief that court coverage is an important pillar of public interest journalism,” a new report says, adding that court reporting in regional Australia is “highly centralised”.

The group’s latest research shows public interest journalism in regional areas is predominantly concentrated within major news organisations and “primarily focusses on coverage at local court level, rather than district or higher courts”.

The new PIJI insight report follows analysis of court reporting in regional New South Wales between October 2023 and April 2024.      

“The results of the quantitative assessments over the two periods are highly consistent,” PIJI says.

The report follows interview-based research with journalists and editors to understand court reporting in regional NSW from a practice perspective.