{
  "id": 19555802,
  "title": "Local media startup City Cast reshuffles leadership",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/local-media-startup-city-cast-reshuffles-leadership",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-11-11T21:00:12.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Semafor",
    "slug": "semafor",
    "url": "https://www.semafor.com/article/11/11/2026/local-media-startup-city-cast-reshuffles-leadership"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "City Cast, a locally-focused media startup, has recently announced a leadership change, naming Andi McDaniel, the company's Chief Creative Officer, as its new CEO, replacing David Plotz. City Cast was founded in 2021 as a local podcast and newsletter venture, aiming to serve cities where traditional local news outlets were transitioning to digital platforms. Today, the company operates in 13 cities, including Austin, Las Vegas, and Philadelphia.\n\nMcDaniel, a former public radio executive and co-founder of City Cast, discussed the company's new direction in an interview with Semafor. She stated that the focus for the future would be on expanding audiences, adapting to AI advancements, and ensuring the business's success. City Cast gained more visibility in recent months, particularly due to its expansion in Washington, D.C.\n\nThe company's expansion in Washington D.C. came as a response to an opportunity perceived in the turbulence at the Washington Post. As a result, City Cast's newsroom and business grew in the nation's capital. The startup currently employs 20 people in D.C., and has successfully attracted a younger audience to its content, tripling its reach from around 100,000 at the beginning of the year to approximately 300,000.\n\nHowever, not all initiatives have been successful. The company closed two divisions in Boise and Houston. Plotz explained that the large size of Houston made it challenging to cover with the company's resources, while he felt the company did not understand the nuances of Boise when it launched there. Plotz also shared that City Cast's podcasts were not a substitute for radio and that the company's model resonated best in mid-sized cities with a concentrated downtown.\n\nDespite the challenges, City Cast's revenue grew by 40% this year, although the company is still not profitable. In the six years since its launch, Plotz has gained insights into local media habits. He noted that most people under the age of 60 primarily consume information from social media, neighborhood listservs, local newsletters, and Reddit. People seem less interested in local news as a concept and more focused on learning about what's happening in their city.\n\nPlotz also pointed out that local audiences are not driven by national media narratives and big political fights, as local media serves to connect residents with their communities. He emphasized that the need being met in local media has little to do with highly-partisan, emotionally-charged conversations that characterize national media and news outlets.",
  "summary": "High engagement, low cortisol.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}