Exclusive Coverage of Butler, Pennsylvania
Butler, Pennsylvania As gunfire echoed through the Trump rally where she worked, Butler Eagle reporter Irina Bucur fell to the ground like others. She was scared.
She was barely frozen, though.
Bukour tried texting her assignment editor over spotty cell phone service to tell him what was going on. She took to heart what the people in front and those behind her said. She filmed the scene on her mobile phone. Until she felt safe to stand up again.
When the world’s biggest story came to the hamlet of Butler in western Pennsylvania a week ago, it attracted more than just media from elsewhere. Eagle reporters have been a resource for the community since 1870, and like thousands of local newspapers across the country struggling to survive, they must make sense of the chaos in their own backyard and the global scrutiny that comes with it.
Challenges Faced by Local Newspapers
Photographer Morgan Phillips stood on a pole in the center of the field with Trump’s audience Saturday night, and she continued to stand and work, documenting history. After Secret Service officers bundled the former president into a waiting car, those around her turned to taunt reporters.
Days later, Phillips’ eyes filled with tears as she recalled the day. “I just felt like I was really disliked,” said Phillips, 25, who like Bukour is 25. “I never thought it would happen.”
Local Journalism as Civic Leadership
Despite the stress of the assassination attempt, covering the incident has been a personal experience for the soft-spoken Bukour. study. Her plans changed when she took a communications class and loved it.
“At this point,” she said, “I told myself I thought journalism was for me.”
“Our community has been through a traumatic experience,” Shuey said. “I was there. We had some healing work to do, and I think newspapers were a key part of helping guide the community through this.
