Episode 53
The Big Bend Sentinel's community approach to local news
In 2016, Max Kabat and Maise Crow moved to Marfa, a small arts town in west Texas, and a couple years later made a bold call. They bought the local newspaper, The Big Bend Sentinel. Ever since, they've been building out their take on a sustainable local news model by pairing the weekly newspaper with a cafe and events space. Max and I discuss the model, the challenges of operating entwined but separate businesses, and whether this could be a blueprint that could work in towns with similar characteristics as Marfa, a tourist town that attracts a flood of visitors every year. After all, most towns in America aren’t featured in Vogue.