Media and Communica ion (ISSN: 2183–2439)
2023, Volume 11, Issue 3, Pages 293–303
h ps://doi.o g/10.17645/mac. 11i3.6727
A icle
No People, No News: News Dese s and A eas a Risk in Spain
Ma ía‐C uz Neg ei a‐Rey *, Jo ge Vázquez‐He e o, and Xosé López‐Ga cía
Depa men o Communica ion Sciences, Uni e si y o San iago de Compos ela, Spain
* Co esponding au ho (c uz.neg ei [email p o ec ed])
Submi ed: 29 Janua y 2023 | Accep ed: 4 Ap il 2023 | Published: 28 Sep embe 2023
Abs ac
In ecen decades Spain has su e ed a g adual p ocess o depopula ion and exodus om u al a eas o la ge capi als.
The España Vaciada poli ical and social mo emen denounces he coun y’s e i o ial inequali y, while he go e nmen
is wo king on a s a egic plan o add ess he demog aphic challenge. A he media le el, he e is conce n abou ci izens’
access o a local and quali y jou nalis ic se ice, key o he s eng hening o communi ies and hei democ a ic unc ioning.
The main objec i e o his esea ch is o explo e he phenomenon o news dese s in Spain, iden i ying he a eas ha
can be conside ed news dese s and hose ha a e a isk o becoming so, based on he mapping o digi al media in
he coun y. The cha ac e is ics o he digi al media o he au onomous communi ies wi h he highes p esence o news
dese s a e s udied o asce ain whe he he isk ac o s o popula ion o ichness index a e connec ed o hei appea ance.
The esul s e eal ha 6,304 (77.53%) Spanish municipali ies can be conside ed news dese s, inhabi ed by 11.6 million
people, 24.51% o he coun y’s o al popula ion. In addi ion, ano he 523 municipali ies a e a isk o becoming news
dese s. In he egions wi h he la ges numbe o news dese s, he e is a clea concen a ion o media in he main capi als
and a weak ecosys em o local and hype local media. Depopula ion is he main isk ac o in he loss o media and news
co e age in local communi ies.
Keywo ds
c i ical in o ma ion needs; depopula ion; digi al media; local jou nalism; news dese s; Spain
Issue
This a icle is pa o he issue “News Dese s: Places and Spaces Wi hou News” edi ed by Agnes Gulyas (Can e bu y Ch is
Chu ch Uni e si y), Joy Jenkins (Uni e si y o Missou i), and Annika Be gs öm (Uni e si y o Go henbu g).
© 2023 by he au ho (s); licensee Cogi a io P ess (Lisbon, Po ugal). This a icle is licensed unde a C ea i e Commons
A ibu ion 4.0 In e na ional License (CC BY).
1. In oduc ion
The c isis su e ed in ecen decades by he local p ess
and legacy media (Wadb ing & Be gs öm, 2017) has
been uelled by he consequences o he lack o in o m‐
a ion se ices in local communi ies. The disappea ance
o daily local p ess i les endange s he sa is ac ion o
c i ical in o ma ion needs (Fe ie e al., 2016; F iedland
e al., 2012) and has mo i a ed esea ch in o he eme ‐
gence o so‐called news dese s and hei e ec s. This
phenomenon has been s udied in di e en coun ies and
con ex s in ecen yea s, helping o highligh he issues
su e ed especially by u al, depopula ed, and less eco‐
nomically de eloped a eas.
Since he 1950s and 1960s, Spain has unde gone a
g adual p ocess o depopula ion and exodus om u al
a eas o la ge capi als—which is cu en ly also a ec ‐
ing he u ban con ex o small and medium‐sized ci ies
(Galle e o‐Campos & Saiz Echeza e a, 2022). In ecen
yea s, he poli ical and social mo emen o España
Vaciada (Emp ied Spain) has eme ged, which seeks o
make depopula ed egions isible, denounce inequali y
in he p o ision o se ices, and demand a be e qual‐
i y o li e in u al a eas as well as measu es agains ageing
and low bi h a es, which a e a consequence o cen alis
policies and which cause economic and social p oblems
beyond depopula ion (Rod íguez‐Rejas & Díez‐Gu ié ez,
2021). The mo emen has been o ganized in o a ious
poli ical pa ies, which in 2022 o med he Fede a ion
o Pa ies o Emp ied Spain o s and in u u e elec ions.
In he 2019 gene al elec ions, Te uel Exis e achie ed ep‐
esen a ion in he Cong ess o Depu ies and he Sena e.
Media and Communica ion, 2023, Volume 11, Issue 3, Pages 293–303 293
Since 2017, he demog aphic issue has been on
he poli ical and media agenda (Sáez Pé ez, 2021).
The Spanish go e nmen ecognises he p oblem and
wa ns ha 63% o municipali ies los popula ion be ween
2001–2018, a igu e ha ises o 80.2% i we look a
he pe iod o 2011–2018—90% o hem being e i o ‐
ies wi h less han 1,000 inhabi an s (Minis e io de Polí ica
Te i o ial y Función Pública, 2019). In esponse, in 2019
he go e nmen app o ed a package o 130 measu es in
he na ional s a egy o he demog aphic challenge.
When he demog aphic issue is ans e ed o he
communica ion and media sphe e, access o a local and
quali y jou nalis ic se ice is a clea conce n (Jenkins &
Kleis Nielsen, 2020). Municipali ies wi hou news media
can see hei communi y awa eness de e io a e, as “ hey
a e nei he p o agonis s o local news no do hey
ecei e in o ma ion ha di ec ly a ec s hei en i on‐
men ” (Galle e o‐Campos & Saiz Echeza e a, 2022, p. 49).
Some p e ious wo ks ha e add essed his issue, s udy‐
ing he loss o he p o incial p ess in Cas illa La Mancha
(Galle e o‐Campos, 2021), he c isis o he adi ional
media in Cas illa y León (Sanz He nando, 2017), he
in o ma i e ea men o depopula ion (de Sola Pueyo,
2021), he eme gence o new local digi al na i e media in
A agón (Segu a Anaya e al., 2020), and he applica ion o
a i icial in elligence o news co e age in municipali ies
in emp y Spain (A ambu ú Moncada e al., 2023).
Gi en he demog aphic p oblems and he e iden
e i o ial inequali y ha Spain su e s, i is necessa y
o add ess whe he his social eali y is e lec ed in i s
media ecosys em and in he p o ision o in o ma ion se ‐
ices o ci izens, which is key o he p ope unc ioning
o democ acy. The gene al objec i e o his esea ch is
o explo e he phenomenon o news dese s in Spain,
an issue ha has no been add essed p e iously in
he academic ield. Speci ically, he ollowing objec i es
a e pu sued:
O1: To explo e he media map in Spain and o iden i y
he geog aphical a eas ha can be conside ed o a e
a isk o becoming news dese s.
O2: To ind ou wha he digi al media is like in he
au onomous communi ies whe e he incidence o
news dese s is g ea es , obse ing he cha ac e is ‐
ics o hei jou nalis ic media—digi al na i e o legacy
na u e, local scope.
O3: To de e mine whe he ce ain con ex ual ac o s
can be ela ed o he exis ence o news dese s, such
as popula ion o he economic le el o hese a eas.
2. Theo e ical Backg ound
2.1. Spanish Media and Social Con ex
Unde s anding he dis ibu ion and geog aphical scope
o he news media in Spain equi es con ex ualisa ion.
The cu en e i o ial and adminis a i e o ganisa ion o
he s a e was shaped a e he democ a ic ansi ion ha
began in 1975, he poin om which he cu en media
ecosys em was also de eloped.
Spain is a na ion‐s a e wi h cen al o gans o powe ,
which is in u n di ided in o 17 au onomous communi ‐
ies and wo au onomous ci ies—Ceu a and Melilla—
loca ed in No h A ica. These a e e i o ial spaces
equi alen o egions, wi h hei own au onomous
go e nmen s and dis inc cul u al iden i ies. In ac ,
six o hem ha e co‐o icial languages o he han
Spanish. The au onomous communi ies a e di ided in o
p o inces—a o al o 50 in he coun y, plus he wo
au onomous ci ies—which ha e hei go e ning bodies,
he p o incial councils. The p o inces a e di ided in o
municipali ies, a o al o 8,131 in Spain, which also ha e
hei own local go e nmen s. Smalle han he p o ince
and wi hou an adminis a i e body o hei own a e he
coma cas, which a e g oupings o municipali ies o med
on he basis o his o ical alliances o a geog aphical and
human na u e. In social e ms, Spain has a o al popula‐
ion o 47.38 million inhabi an s. Al hough he popula‐
ion has been g owing o e he las ew decades, he e
a e signi ican in e nal p oblems o depopula ion, an
inequali y ha is also e lec ed in he economic sphe e.
In he cu en Spanish media ecosys em, he e a e
public b oadcas ing media—a he na ional le el, in
some au onomous communi ies, and municipali ies—as
well as p i a e media p o ided by la ge media g oups and
small companies, and also al e na i e, communi y, o ci ‐
izen media. The sys em has unde gone majo ans o ma‐
ions in ecen decades, going om a scena io domina ed
by la ge publishing and media g oups in he 1980s and
1990s o he c isis o he adi ional model, he adap ‐
a ion o he digi al scena io, and he consequences o
he economic c isis o 2008. The i s na ional map o
local media was made by Macià Me cadé (1993) in 1990,
iden i ying 95 newspape s, 410 adio s a ions, and 113
local ele ision channels. The i s digi al media da abase
in 2005 iden i ied a o al o 1,075 ou le s, o which 22.3%
we e digi al na i es (Sala e ía Aliaga, 2005). In 2018, he
upda ed map loca ed up o 3,065 ac i e digi al media—
50.9% o hem digi al na i es (Sala e ía Aliaga e al.,
2018). The la es e ision o he map, which is used as
he basis o his esea ch, iden i ied in Ap il 2021 a
o al o 2,874 ac i e digi al media, o which 1,361 a e
digi al na i es (Neg edo B una & Ma ínez‐Cos a, 2021).
In ecen yea s, mappings ha e shown a media concen‐
a ion associa ed wi h popula ion and economic ac o s
(Neg ei a‐Rey, 2021), a signi ican g ow h o digi al na ‐
i es (Neg edo B una e al., 2020), and o local and hype ‐
local media (Neg ei a‐Rey e al., 2020).
2.2. P e ious Resea ch on News Dese s
In ecen yea s, a ious p ojec s and esea ch ha e iden i‐
ied he eme gence and cha ac e is ics o news dese s in
di e en con ex s. So a , media mapping and loca ion o
Media and Communica ion, 2023, Volume 11, Issue 3, Pages 293–303 294
news dese s ha e bo h been ca ied ou a he na ional
le el in he US (Abe na hy, 2020; Bucay e al., 2017;
Fe ie e al., 2016), he UK (Gulyas, 2020), B azil (Lins
da Sil a & Pimen a, 2020), and Po ugal (Je ónimo e al.,
2022). These s udies delimi geog aphical a eas o di ‐
e en dimensions o he iden i ica ion o news dese s:
pos al codes, coun ies, o s a es in he US; pos code
dis ic a eas in he UK; o municipali ies in B azil and
Po ugal. Resea che s ha e measu ed he numbe o daily
and weekly newspape s, he exis ence o digi al media,
hype local media, adio and ele ision, e hnic media ou ‐
le s, and public media. They ha e analysed hei ci cula‐
ion and digi al audience, as well as hei owne ship, and
ha e ela ed he da ase s o popula ion and weal h indic‐
a o s, o he p esence o local o gans o powe .
Gene ally speaking, he e has been a signi ican dis‐
appea ance o adi ional daily p ess i les. Added o
his is he eme gence o “ghos newspape s,” hose
ha a e aken o e by la ge companies and do no
egula ly co e in o ma ion om he local communi y
(Abe na hy, 2020). Co po a e concen a ion is inc easing
and is subsequen ly educing he di e si y and quali y o
news se ices, as well as he p oximi y o news co e age
(Abe na hy, 2020; Mille , 2018).
While local media ha e disappea ed, up o hal o
local jou nalis s ha e also been los in some con ex s
(Abe na hy, 2020) and digi al media and hei audiences
ha e inc eased (Gulyas, 2020). Al hough i is no ed ha
hype local digi al media end o be in e i o ies wi h
ewe local newspape s (Gulyas, 2020), hese new media
ou le s do no always g ow o occupy unde se ed a eas.
In ac , digi al media and p in newspape s end o be
equally nume ous in he same egions (Gulyas, 2020), as
hey also need a ma ke wi h an audience, subsc ibe s,
ad e ise s, o o he inancial suppo (Abe na hy, 2020).
Se e al s udies show ha he loss o newspape s
ends o occu mo e equen ly in u al communi ies, as
hei news ecosys ems a e weake , ha e highe a es o
po e y, ha e a iche acial and e hnic di e si y, a e isol‐
a ed om o he popula ion cen es, o ha e di icul ies in
accessing a good In e ne connec ion (Abe na hy, 2020;
Damanhou y e al., 2022; Ma hews & Ali, 2022).
Ci izens li ing in news dese s pe cei e a lack o
in o ma ion abou local e en s and hei sense o com‐
muni y and isibili y o hei locali y is h ea ened, as hey
only make headlines in mains eam media o nega i e
e en s (Ma hews, 2022). In hese a eas, i is mo e di i‐
cul o ob ain in o ma ion abou he communi y and main‐
ain social bonds (Ma hews & Ali, 2022), powe may eel
less policed (Ma he ly & G eenwood, 2021), and ci izens
eso o elying on pla o ms such as Facebook o Twi e
o keep hem in o med, al hough such news may be un eli‐
able and subjec o agmen a ion (Sme he s e al., 2021).
2.3. News Dese s Concep ualisa ion
The concep ualisa ion o news dese s has sough o
e lec he eali y o e i o ies ha ha e su e ed he
closu e o media ou le s, he educ ion o a ailable local
in o ma ion o he lack o news co e age o hei com‐
muni ies. In hese con ex s, ci izens do no see hei
c i ical in o ma ion needs co e ed because hey can‐
no access quali y news abou wha is happening in
hei local e i o y (Sme he s e al., 2021), which is
i al o making decisions ha a ec hei quali y o li e
(Abe na hy, 2020).
When de ining news dese s, esea che s ag ee ha
hey e e o he lack o media and news in a small e ‐
i o y whe e a local communi y esides. One o he e ‐
e ence de ini ions is ha p oposed by Abe na hy (2018,
p. 16), who cha ac e ises news dese s as a “communi y
wi hou a local newspape ,” whose inhabi an s “ha e
e y limi ed access o he so o c edible and comp e‐
hensi e news and in o ma ion ha eed democ acy a a
g ass oo s le el” (Abe na hy, 2020, p. 18). O he au ho s
such as Mille (2018, p. 60) also desc ibe news dese s as
“communi ies wi h no ou le o locally epo ed news.”
Howe e , he main p oblem is no he absence o
media in local e i o ies, bu he exis ence o communi ‐
ies ha a e wi hou news o mee hei speci ic in o m‐
a ion needs (Napoli e al., 2018). Fe ie e al. (2016,
p. 221) de ine media dese s as “a geog aphic locale ha
lacks access o esh, local news and in o ma ion,” while
Diah As u i and I wansyah (2022, p. 382) desc ibe news
dese s as a “communi y o a ea ha is no co e ed
by newspape s due o he declining popula ion o local
newspape s in a ious egions.”
Je ónimo e al. (2022, p. 8) also add ess he lack o
media and local news co e age, de ining news dese s
as “municipali ies whe e he e a e no local media o
whe e he e a e no media co e ing local news on a egu‐
la basis.” The au ho s dis inguish be ween news dese s
(municipali ies wi h no local news), semi‐dese s (wi h
less equen o unsa is ac o y news co e age), municip‐
ali ies a isk (wi h one media ou le c ea ing local news),
and ou ‐o ‐ he‐dese (wi h wo o mo e media ou le s
c ea ing local news).
In his esea ch, de eloped in he Spanish con ex ,
we apply he concep o news dese s based on he
absence o local in o ma ion co e age in a communi y.
Relying on he abo e de ini ions, we conside news
dese s o be hose small and delimi ed communi ies o
geog aphical a eas ha a e no co e ed by any media
so ha hei ci izens canno sa is y hei c i ical in o ma‐
ion needs in he local en i onmen . We unde s and ha
access o local news con en is he e o e key. We con‐
side ha he e a e con ex ual isk ac o s ha may
a ou a geog aphical a ea becoming a news dese , such
as popula ion, weal h, u al o u ban en i onmen , eco‐
nomic de elopmen o he a ea, news media densi y, o
access o echnologies.
The geog aphical uni used o iden i y news dese s is
he municipali y. In Spain, he e a e a o al o 8,131 muni‐
cipali ies, all wi h de ined geog aphical bounda ies and
hei own local go e nmen , al hough hey can be e y
di e en in e ms o size o popula ion. The municipali y
Media and Communica ion, 2023, Volume 11, Issue 3, Pages 293–303 295
is he smalles local e i o ial a ea wi h an adminis a ‐
i e and go e nmen al s uc u e, and i is also he e e ‐
ence space o de ining jou nalism and local media in
Spain (Neg ei a‐Rey e al., 2020).
In he esul s o his esea ch, we classi y as news
dese s hose municipali ies whe e he e is no in o m‐
a i e co e age. As in p e ious esea ch (Je ónimo e al.,
2022), we also iden i ied he a eas a isk o becoming
news dese s, classi ying as such hose municipali ies in
which only one media ou le —legacy o digi al na i e—
p o ides news co e age.
3. Me hodology
This s udy ini ia es esea ch in o he phenomenon o
news dese s in Spain, which implies an explo a o y and
desc ip i e na u e o he esea ch and i s objec i es.
To answe O1, we ake as a s a ing poin he map o
digi al media in Spain, upda ed in Ap il 2021 (Neg edo
B una & Ma ínez‐Cos a, 2021). The di ec o y lis s a
o al o 2,874 ac i e digi al ou le s. I includes na i e
and legacy media, which ha e published con en in
he h ee mon hs p io o he e iew, wi h a jou nal‐
is ic cha ac e , and which a e based in Spain o ha e
a speci ic edi ion o he coun y. F om his da abase,
we e iewed he loca ion— aking as a e e ence he
egis e ed o ice—and he a eas o co e age—based on
he desc ip ion o he p ojec and he in o ma i e sec‐
ions o i s websi es—o each media ou le , iden i ying
he municipali ies co e ed by each o hem. In his way,
we ob ained hei geog aphic dis ibu ion and he num‐
be o news media wi h co e age in each municipal‐
i y o he s a e, loca ing hose we conside o be news
dese s o a isk o becoming so. To ela e he news
dese s o he popula ion densi y o he municipali ies,
we used he o icial da a o municipali y size (km2) om
he Regis y o Local En i ies and he municipal popula‐
ion da a o 2021, a ailable om he Na ional Ins i u e
o S a is ics.
Using desc ip i e s a is ical ea men o he da a,
we de ec ed he au onomous communi ies wi h he
highes p esence o news dese s. We used hem as
cases o in e es o he s udy o hei digi al media,
explo ing he cha ac e is ics o hei news ou le s o
iden i y possible common ends o isk ac o s (O2).
We analyse he na i e o legacy cha ac e is ics o he
ou le s, based on da a om he p e iously e e enced
map (Neg edo B una & Ma ínez‐Cos a, 2021). To del e
deepe in o he local dimension o he news media, we
used da a om he map o digi al media o p oximi y
in Spain (Neg ei a‐Rey, 2020), in which he local scope
was de ined in g ea e de ail— egional, p o incial, in e ‐
coma cal (se e al coma cas), coma cal (one coma ca),
in e ‐municipal (se e al municipali ies), municipal (one
municipali y), and hype local (smalle a eas han he
municipali y, such as he neighbou hood, he dis ic , o
he pa ish)—which is necessa y o assess mo e p ecisely
he deg ee o p oximi y o he news o e .
Finally, we conside whe he some con ex ual ac o s
can be ela ed o he eme gence o news dese s (O3),
aking in o accoun he popula ion and he a e age
income pe pe son as an indica o o weal h. Fo his
pu pose, we use popula ion da a o each municipali y
o he yea s 2001 and 2021 and income pe pe son
and municipali y o 2019, ob ained om he Na ional
Ins i u e o S a is ics. Using SPSS s a is ical so wa e,
we applied in e en ial s a is ics o s udy he ela ion‐
ship be ween he numbe o news media ou le s pe
municipali y and he con ex ual a iables desc ibed, spe‐
ci ically wi h he bi a ia e co ela ion analysis. Wi h
Pea son’s coe icien ( ) we measu ed he s eng h wi h
which wo a iables a e associa ed, al hough i should
be emembe ed ha co ela ion does no imply causal‐
i y. In he a iables wi h signi ican co ela ion, we wen
deepe in o he desc ip i e s a is ical analysis by seg‐
men ing he cases acco ding o he e olu ion o he pop‐
ula ion in he las wo decades and he classi ica ion o
he in o ma i e dese s.
The me hodological design o he esea ch assumes
se e al limi a ions. Al hough he digi al media map om
which we s a ed is he mos comple e and up‐ o‐da e
da abase o ac i e news media in Spain, we assume
ha i does no include all he ou le s in he coun y—
i lea es ou p ess, adio, and ele ision media wi hou
digi al edi ions—and ha i may lose alidi y o e ime.
We also ecognize ha he map o digi al news media
p esen s limi a ions when i comes o exhaus i ely iden i‐
ying he o al uni e se o ac i e digi al media in Spain—
i is di icul o ack down all ini ia i es when explo ing
he local and hype local media ecosys em a he muni‐
cipal le el o he whole coun y, especially when he e
a e no o icial egis e s and many p ojec s ha e a sho
li e span. Due o he g ea di e si y o media ou le s
included in he map, he e a e cases in which nei he he
loca ion no he a ea o co e age can be clea ly iden i‐
ied, so a ce ain ma gin o e o is assumed in he iden‐
i ica ion o news dese s. The esea ch does no include
digi al audience da a o each media ou le , which would
help o ob ain a mo e accu a e pic u e o he se e i y o
he isk in a eas ha a e no ye news dese s. Popula ion
and le el o weal h a e s udied as isk ac o s in he de el‐
opmen o news dese s, al hough i would also be o
in e es o measu e he impac o o he ac o s, such as
echnology access and in e ne connec ion, which can be
add essed in u u e esea ch.
4. Resul s
4.1. Iden i ica ion o News Dese s in Spain
A e e iewing he loca ion and co e age a eas o he
digi al media indexed on he map, we we e able o dis‐
co e he numbe o media ou le s ha o e news co ‐
e age in each municipali y in Spain. O he 8,131 Spanish
municipali ies, 6,304 (77.53%) ha e no media loca ed in
hei e i o y, no do hey ecei e egula news se ice
Media and Communica ion, 2023, Volume 11, Issue 3, Pages 293–303 296
om any media. They can he e o e be conside ed news
dese s, and a e inhabi ed by a o al o 11,611,825 ci ‐
izens, 24.51% o he coun y’s popula ion. We ound
523 (6.43%) municipali ies ha a e only co e ed by one
media ou le and could be conside ed a eas a isk o
becoming news dese s. They a e home o 9.47% o he
Spanish popula ion.
I we look a he dis ibu ion o he numbe o media
ou le s o e ing news co e age pe municipali y, we can
see ha —wi h he excep ion o news dese s— he mos
common si ua ion is ha he e a e be ween 1–5 news
media ou le s wi h egula news co e age pe municip‐
ali y (Table 1). I is uncommon o ind municipali ies
co e ed by 6–10 news media ou le s, and hose wi h
mo e han 10 ou le s a e excep ional.
I we isualise hese da a on he map o Spain
(Figu e 1), we see clea di e ences in he p esence
o news dese s in he di e en egions o he coun‐
y. We ind e y p onounced concen a ions in he
numbe o mapped media and signi ican demog aphic
inequali ies pe au onomous communi y (Table 2). The
municipali ies ha a e co e ed by mo e han 10 media
ou le s a e, in gene al, ci ies ha co espond o he
capi al ci ies o p o inces. The dispe sion o he pop‐
ula ion and he demog aphic densi y o he municip‐
ali ies is also a ac o ha can be ela ed o he
news dese s. I is obse ed ha , while he a e age
popula ion densi y o all municipali ies in Spain is
178.55 inhabi an s/km2, in municipali ies ha a e news
dese s his alls o 83.36 inhabi an s/km2and ises o
506.99 inhabi an s/km2in municipali ies ha a e no
news dese s. The communi ies o Mad id, whose capi al
is also he capi al o he s a e, and Ca aluña, whe e he
ci y o Ba celona is loca ed, a e a ypical cases. Bo h ci ies
s and ou o hei demog aphic densi y, economic ac i ‐
i y, and media concen a ion, as hey a e home o mos
o he na ional media o ganisa ions. The municipali y o
Mad id has 524 media ou le s, and he ci y o Ba celona
has 184.
Da a on he p esence o news dese s pe au onom‐
ous communi y allow us o iden i y hose a eas whe e
his phenomenon is mos p onounced (Table 2). The e
a e i e egions in which mo e han 90% o hei muni‐
cipali ies can be conside ed news dese s: Cas illa y León
(96.89%), La Rioja (95.98%), Comunidad Fo al de Na a a
(93.38%), Cas illa La Mancha (90.86%), and Can ab ia
(90.19%). Taking in o accoun he popula ion o hese
municipali ies, we obse e popula ion pe cen ages o
Table 1. Dis ibu ion o he numbe o news media ou le s wi h co e age pe municipali y.
News media ou le s Municipali ies Popula ion
0 6,304 (77.53%) 11,611,825 (24.51%)
1–5 1,569 (19.30%) 13,971,749 (29.49%)
6–10 207 (2.55%) 7,381,928 (15.58%)
>10 51 (0.63%) 14,419,605 (30.43%)
Figu e 1. Dis ibu ion o media wi h news co e age by municipali y in Spain.
Media and Communica ion, 2023, Volume 11, Issue 3, Pages 293–303 297
Table 2. Dis ibu ion o digi al news media, popula ion, p esence o news dese s, and popula ion a ec ed by news dese s
pe au onomous communi y.
A e age popula ion
Digi al news Municipali ies Popula ion in densi y in news
Au onomous media (% Popula ion news municipali ies dese s
communi y o al Spain) (% o al Spain) dese s (%) news dese s (%) (habi an s/km2)*
Andalucía 295 (10.48%) 8,472,407 (17.88%) 679 (86.50%) 3,085,483 (36.42%) 150.08
A agón 73 (2.59%) 1,326,261 (2.80%) 585 (80.03%) 391,494 (29.52%) 23.75
Cana ias 80 (2.84%) 2,172,944 (4.59%) 67 (76.14%) 879,944 (40.64%) 286.41
Can ab ia 40 (1.42%) 584,507 (10.67%) 92 (90.19%) 249,692 (42.72%) 149.41
Cas illa y León 135 (4.79%) 2,383,139 (5.03%) 2,178 (96.89%) 1,030,824 (43.09%) 14.76
Cas illa La Mancha 124 (4.31%) 2,049,562 (4.33%) 835 (90.86%) 1,122,512 (54.69%) 26.72
Ca aluña 576 (20.45%) 7,763,362 (16.38%) 197 (20.80%) 221,695 (2.86%) 77.13
Comunidad 706 (25.07%) 6,751,251 (14.25%) 95 (53.07%) 643,632 (9.55%) 211.06
de Mad id
Comunidad Fo al 55 (1.95%) 661,537 (1.40%) 254 (93.38%) 280,207 (42.36%) 123.07
de Na a a
Comuni a 200 (7.10%) 5,058,138 (10.67%) 423 (78.04%) 1,579,511 (31.23%) 462.00
Valenciana
Ex emadu a 57 (2.02%) 1,059,501 (2.24%) 343 (88.40%) 473,257 (44.79%) 23.69
Galicia 146 (5.18%) 2,695,645 (5.69%) 114 (36.42%) 335,573 (12.46%) 56.04
Illes Balea s 67 (2.38%) 1,173,008 (2.48%) 52 (77.61%) 419,688 (35.78%) 131.36
La Rioja 27 (0.96%) 319,796 (0.67%) 167 (95.98%) 105,050 (32.85%) 27.96
País Vasco 131 (4.65%) 2,213,993 (4.67%) 148 (58.96%) 298,374 (13.48%) 160.60
P incipado 42 (1.49%) 1,011,792 (2.14%) 57 (73.08%) 312,878 (30.92%) 73.93
de As u ias
Región de Mu cia 56 (1.99%) 1,518,486 (3.20%) 18 (40.00%) 182,011 (11.90%) 354.20
Ceu a 10 (0.36%) 83,517 (0.18%) 0 (0.00%) 0 (0.00%) 0
Melilla 3 (0.11%) 86,261 (0.18%) 0 (0.00%) 0 (0.00%) 0
To al Spain 2,816** 47,385,107 6,304 11,611,825 178.55
No es: * Popula ion densi y a he municipali y le el; ** 58 news media ou le s wi h no au onomous communi y iden i ied.
be ween 30% and 50% o inhabi an s who may no ha e
hei c i ical in o ma ion needs co e ed.
In he opposi e posi ion a e i e au onomous com‐
muni ies wi h a pe cen age o municipali ies conside ed
news dese s o less han 60% and wi h less han 20% o
hei popula ion in hese e i o ies. These a e Ca aluña,
Galicia, Región de Mu cia, Comunidad de Mad id, and
País Vasco. As no ed abo e, Comunidad de Mad id and
Ca aluña a e egions wi h a high media and popula ion
densi y. Fu he mo e, p e ious s udies ha e shown ha
Ca aluña, Galicia, and País Vasco s and ou o hei local
media ecosys ems and also o being au onomous com‐
muni ies wi h hei own co‐o icial languages, in addi ion
o Spanish (Neg ei a‐Rey e al., 2020).
4.2. Regions Wi h Highe News Dese i ica ion
This sec ion s udies he digi al media o he egions
wi h he highes pe cen age o municipali ies conside ed
news dese s. Two main cha ac e is ics o hei media
a e s udied: hei digi al na i e na u e, ela ed o he
age o he p ojec s and hei en ep eneu ial spi i o
deg ee o inno a ion; and hei local scope, impo an
o unde s anding he concen a ion o he media in each
egion and he p esence o local and hype local media in
small e i o ies.
In he au onomous communi ies wi h he highes
news dese i ica ion, some common ends can be
obse ed (Table 3). The e is a balance be ween digi al
na i e and legacy media. Digi al na i e media ep esen
almos 50% o he o al in hese egions, which shows
enewed media ecosys ems. In gene al, digi al na i es
ha e expe ienced a boom in he coun y du ing he las
wo decades, ollowing he c isis o he adi ional media
model and he economic ecession.
Rega ding he local scope o he media ou le s,
almos hal o hem a e egional o p o incial in scope,
excep in Comunidad Fo al de Na a a. They co e la ge
Media and Communica ion, 2023, Volume 11, Issue 3, Pages 293–303 298
Table 3. Cha ac e is ics o he news media ou le s in he au onomous communi ies wi h he highes p esence o news
dese s.
Comunidad Fo al Cas illa
Type o media Cas illa y León La Rioja de Na a a La Mancha Can ab ia
Digi al news media 137 27 55 124 40
Digi al na i e o igin Legacy 51.09% 59.26% 50.91% 45.97% 52.50%
Na i e 48.91% 40.74% 47.27% 54.03% 47.50%
N/A 0.00% 0.00% 1.82% 0.00% 0.00%
Local scope Regional 7.03% 55.00% 38.46% 23.76% 44.74%
P o incial 50.00% 37.62%
In e ‐coma cal 17.19% 0.00% 17.95% 10.89% 2.63%
o coma cal
In e municipal 24.22% 45.00% 33.33% 25.74% 44.74%
o municipal
Hype local 0.00% 0.00% 7.69% 0.00% 0.00%
N/A 0.78% 0.78% 2.56% 1.98% 7.89%
No e: La Rioja, Comunidad Fo al de Na a a, and Can ab ia a e single‐p o ince, so he egional and p o incial scope is equi alen in
hese e i o ies.
e i o ies wi hin he egion, wi h an in o ma i e oca‐
ion ha exceeds he local le el. The loca ion o hei
company headqua e s shows ha hese media end o
be concen a ed in he main capi als o he egion, which
a e also he mos popula ed, wi h he g ea es economic
ac i i y and whe e he go e nmen ins i u ions a e loc‐
a ed. In Cas illa y León, 60.58% o he media a e loc‐
a ed in he capi al municipali ies o he p o inces, while
in La Rioja hey accoun o 48.14%, in he Comunidad
Fo al de Na a a 45.45%, in Cas illa La Mancha 50%,
and in Can ab ia 40%. I should be no ed ha La Rioja,
Comunidad Fo al de Na a a, and Cas illa La Mancha
ha e only one capi al each.
The dis ibu ion o media in each e i o y is clea ly
unequal, wi h li le weigh o local media co e ing muni‐
cipali ies o coma cas beyond he main ci ies. No egion
has mo e han 50% o coma cal o municipal media, and
only he Comunidad Fo al de Na a a has some hype ‐
local media. This is e idence o he lack o news media
in u al and less popula ed a eas ha egula ly co e he
local news o he e i o y and i s people.
4.3. News Dese s and Risk Fac o s
In his sec ion, we de e mine whe he he con ex ual
ac o s o popula ion and weal h co ela e wi h he
appea ance o news dese s. Taking in o accoun he
g owing depopula ion o small municipali ies, hese
ac o s could help o de ec o p e en he isk o hese
a eas becoming news dese s.
The co ela ion, h ough Pea son’s coe icien ,
be ween he a iables o media pe municipali y and
popula ion in 2021 is posi i e and s a is ically signi ican
( =0.906, p<0.001). I shows a e y s ong co ela ion
be ween he numbe o news media and he numbe o
inhabi an s, in such a way ha in he mo e popula ed
municipali ies, he e is a g ea e numbe o ou le s and
ice e sa. The co ela ion is also posi i e and s a is ically
signi ican be ween he numbe o news media pe muni‐
cipali y and he a e age income pe pe son ( =0.103,
p<0.001), al hough a much lowe le els. The a e age
income in he en mos popula ed municipali ies in Spain,
whe e he la ge ci ies a e loca ed, is €13,923 pe pe son.
In municipali ies wi h mo e han 50,000 inhabi an s, a
o al o 149 na ionwide, he a e age income is €12,711
pe pe son, and in municipali ies wi h less han 50,000,
i is €11,648 pe pe son. As we can see, he di e ence
is mo e han €2,200 be ween he mos and leas popu‐
la ed a eas.
I is possible, he e o e, o con i m ha he smalle
he popula ion o a municipali y, he mo e likely i is o be
a news dese , al hough he co ela ion does no imply
causali y and he popula ion ac o does no explain i s
appea ance, o i is no he only eason. This also hap‐
pens wi h he pe sonal weal h index, al hough he ela‐
ionship is no as s ong.
We hen obse ed he co ela ion be ween he num‐
be o news media pe municipali y and he a ia ion in
popula ion in hose losing inhabi an s du ing he pe iod
2001–2021, esul ing in a posi i e and s a is ically signi‐
ican co ela ion ( =0.163, p<0.001), al hough also
a low le els. This ela ionship indica es ha municipal‐
i ies ha los he mos popula ion in hese 20 yea s a e
mo e likely o be news dese s. Beyond his co ela ion,
he a ia ion in popula ion and he numbe o media pe
municipali y e eal o he da a o in e es .
O he municipali ies ha in he pe iod 2001–2021
los mo e han 1% o hei popula ion, a o al o 4,929,
ha e an a e age o 0.35 news media ou le s pe muni‐
cipali y. O hese, 88% (4,338 municipali ies) a e news
Media and Communica ion, 2023, Volume 11, Issue 3, Pages 293–303 299
dese s, 4% (197 municipali ies) a e a eas a isk o
becoming news dese s, and 591 municipali ies ha e
mo e han one media ou le . The loss o popula ion o e
he las 20 yea s has been signi ican in hese e i o ‐
ies, wi h an a e age 25% dec ease in he numbe o
inhabi an s. In 2001, hese municipali ies had an a e ‐
age popula ion o 1,791 inhabi an s and ep esen ed
21.71% (8,829,938 inhabi an s) o he na ional popula‐
ion. In 2021, hei a e age popula ion was 1,563 inhab‐
i an s, bu hei weigh in he s a e dec eased o 16.26%
(7,702,725 inhabi an s). The a e age income, as a ac o
ha co ela es posi i ely wi h he appea ance o news
dese s, is €11,264 pe pe son in hese a eas.
In he opposi e si ua ion a e he municipali ies ha
gained popula ion. O he en mos popula ed municipal‐
i ies in Spain, eigh ha e expe ienced popula ion g ow h
and in ou o hem, he popula ion has g own by mo e
han 1% in he pe iod indica ed. A o al o 2,916 muni‐
cipali ies gained mo e han 1% o popula ion be ween
2001–2021 and ha e 1.71 news media pe municipal‐
i y on a e age. Six y poin wo pe cen (1,754 municip‐
ali ies) a e news dese s, 10.5% (305 municipali ies) a e
a eas a isk o being news dese s, and 1,162 municipal‐
i ies ha e mo e han one media ou le . In hese 20 yea s,
hese municipali ies ha e expe ienced signi ican popu‐
la ion g ow h, wi h an a e age inc ease o 45%. In 2001
hey had 10,475 inhabi an s on a e age and ep esen‐
ed 75.12% (30,543,710 inhabi an s) o he o al na ional
popula ion. In 2021 hey had 12,995 inhabi an s on a e ‐
age and hei weigh in he coun y’s popula ion had
isen o 79.97% (37,893,260 inhabi an s). The a e age
income, as a ac o ha co ela es posi i ely wi h he
appea ance o news dese s, is €12,278 pe pe son.
As singula cases, we saw wha happened in muni‐
cipali ies ha los a leas 50% o hei popula ion in he
20 yea s s udied. The e i o ies ha su e ed his c i ‐
ical le el o depopula ion numbe 253, wi h 97.6% being
news dese s and wi h an a e age o 0.04 news media
pe municipali y. On he o he hand, we see ha o he
municipali ies wi h mo e han 50,000 inhabi an s, a o al
o 149 in he coun y, 130 g ew in popula ion and 98 did
so by mo e han 1% o e he 2001–2021 pe iod. O hem,
only 6.0% (nine municipali ies) a e news dese s, wi h an
a e age o 12.85 media ou le s pe municipali y.
5. Conclusions
Mo e han 11.6 million inhabi an s in Spain li e in muni‐
cipali ies wi hou any media ha p o ides hem wi h
local in o ma ion abou he a ea in which hey li e. They
ep esen 24.51% o he Spanish popula ion and eside
in he 6,304 municipali ies we iden i ied as news dese s.
The igu e is ala ming, conside ing ha hese communi ‐
ies may no ha e hei c i ical in o ma ion needs co e ed.
The si ua ion is agg a a ed conside ing ha ano he
9.47% o he popula ion li es in one o he 523 municip‐
ali ies a isk o becoming news dese s, i.e., which a e
only co e ed by one media ou le .
Al hough p e ious s udies o he phenomenon o
news dese s ha e add essed di e en in e na ional con‐
ex s using di e en me hodologies (Gulyas, 2021), hey
ha e eached common conclusions abou hei ad e se
e ec s, which we can also apply o he Spanish case.
Residen s o news dese s do no ecei e cu en p o‐
essional in o ma ion o in o ma ion published in a‐
di ional media—al hough hey migh ecei e in o ma‐
ion h ough o he channels, such as Facebook (Collie
& G aham, 2022)—abou wha is happening in hei
communi y on a daily basis, and his damages hei
democ a ic unc ioning, social cohesion, o sense o com‐
muni y (Ma hews, 2022). Neighbou s and local o gan‐
isa ions a e no ep esen ed in he media, do no
ob ain eal isibili y o hei communi ies (Ma hews
& Ali, 2022), and lack a undamen al public se ice
o making decisions ha a ec hei quali y o li e
(Abe na hy, 2020).
In he case o Spain, e i o ial inequali y in access
o local in o ma ion goes hand in hand wi h popula‐
ion inequali y. We ha e ound ha he municipali ies
wi h he ewes inhabi an s and hose ha ha e su e ed
depopula ion p ocesses in ecen yea s a e hose ha
ha e he ewes media and a e mos equen ly news
dese s. Al hough he high numbe o municipali ies in
Spain (8,131) and hei small size may a ec hese da a,
i is clea ha depopula ion is a de e mining isk ac o
in he appea ance o news dese s, as is he weal h
index, al hough o a lowe deg ee. O he 4,929 muni‐
cipali ies ha los mo e han 1% o hei popula ion in
he pe iod 2001–2021, 88% a e news dese s, which
should aise conce ns abou he p o ec ion o he media
ecosys em and access o local in o ma ion in depopu‐
la ed e i o ies.
Global numbe s o he news media in Spain show
a ich and g owing ecosys em, wi h 2,874 ac i e digi al
media in 2021 and an impo an weigh o digi al na ‐
i es and local and hype local media (Neg edo B una &
Ma ínez‐Cos a, 2021; Neg ei a‐Rey e al., 2020). So, why
a e he e so many a eas in a news dese in Spain? I we
look a he cha ac e is ics o digi al media in au onom‐
ous communi ies wi h he highes pe cen age o news
dese s, we see ha hey end o be concen a ed in
he mos popula ed ci ies and capi als o he p o inces.
Fu he mo e, mos o hem ha e a egional o p o incial
scope, wi h a lowe weigh o local media co e ing smal‐
le and mo e emo e municipal o coun y a eas, and wi h
an excep ional p esence o hype local media. We can say
ha hey ha e a poo e ne wo k o local and hype local
digi al media han o he e i o ies.
I we con as his image wi h ha o he com‐
muni ies wi h a lowe pe cen age o news dese s, we
obse e egions wi h a high popula ion and digi al media
densi y—such as Mad id and Ca aluña—and wi h a
s ong ecosys em o local and hype local media, oge he
wi h cul u al singula i ies such as he exis ence o hei
own co‐o icial languages—such as Galicia, País Vasco,
and Ca aluña. We, he e o e, conclude ha local and
Media and Communica ion, 2023, Volume 11, Issue 3, Pages 293–303 300
hype local digi al media do no necessa ily appea in e ‐
i o ies wi h ew media o ganisa ions o ha a e a isk o
becoming news dese s, as has al eady been obse ed in
o he coun ies (Gulyas, 2020), bu hey end o be mo e
nume ous in e i o ies whe e he e is a media, popula‐
ion and economic densi y ha makes i easie o hem
o main ain hei ac i i y.
The phenomenon o news dese s needs o be
add essed in Spain. The e is a la ge e i o y, and mo e
han 11 million inhabi an s ha do no ha e hei local
media o ell hei eali y and sa is y he ci izens’ igh o
in o ma ion, as ecognized by he Spanish Cons i u ion.
The poli ical and social mo emen o España Vaciada can
con ibu e o making his p oblem isible, demanding
equali y in he p o ision o se ices o he poo es and
mos depopula ed u al a eas. Access o local in o ma‐
ion and he p o ec ion o local media should be con‐
empla ed as pa o he go e nmen ’s s a egy agains
he so‐called demog aphic challenge, as o he esea ch‐
e s ha e p e iously poin ed ou (Galle e o‐Campos &
Saiz Echeza e a, 2022). Knowing he isk ac o s o he
de elopmen o news dese s—such as popula ion o
weal h index—and hei e olu ion in he e i o ies, as
well as he s a e o he media ecosys em, can uel wo k
o e e se he si ua ion o ci izens li ing in news dese s
o a eas a isk.
This esea ch is a i s app oach o he phenomenon
o news dese s in Spain. I a emp s o o e a na ional
pic u e o he p oblem while ecognizing impo an limi ‐
a ions. In u u e wo ks i will be necessa y o s udy wha
happens in speci ic a eas and communi ies, o unde ‐
s and in g ea e dep h hei news media, he quali y
and equency o he news, he in o ma ion sou ces
used by ci izens, as well as he possible isk ac o s and
hei e olu ion.
Acknowledgmen s
This a icle is pa o he R&D p ojec Digi al‐Na i e
Media in Spain: S a egies, Compe encies, Social In ol e‐
men and (Re)De ini ion o P ac ices in Jou nalis ic P o‐
duc ion and Di usion (PID2021–122534OB‐C21), unded
by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/and by “ERDF
A way o making Eu ope.”
Con lic o In e es s
The au ho s decla e no con lic o in e es s.
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