The animated ‘Schoolhouse Rock!’-inspired video explains value of local news
The nonprofit Oklahoma Media Center is releasing a “Schoolhouse Rock!”-inspired animated video with a song designed to bolster trust and support for local newsrooms.
The nonpartisan 501(c)(3) commissioned the creation of the 60-second “Free Press Isn’t Free” video. The song was written by a well-loved Oklahoma musician with animation designed as an homage to the vintage educational cartoon series.
OMC’s local news literacy campaign provides education on journalism’s role in facilitating an informed citizenry and explains the value of local news. To convey this message, OMC’s Board of Directors Treasurer Angel Ellis suggested creating a “Schoolhouse Rock!”-influenced video.
“Small, impactful segments geared toward educating the audience could be the perfect answer to making the public more aware of news-gathering processes and increasing their confidence in journalism,” said Ellis, the award-winning director of Mvskoke Media, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation’s independent tribal media agency. “Reviving these formats to teach the audience about news gathering is a tried-and-true method that can be fit to our current audience needs. Their success wasn’t just about the short segment, it was also about clear, concise information, paired with great music and pop culture.”
Rob Collins, executive director of Oklahoma Media Center, said the campaign is targeted for Generation X and Baby Boomers not currently paying for news in Oklahoma, where the trust issue is reaching a tipping point. In 2023, the McCurtain Gazette-News made national headlines after releasing audio that recorded four county officials discussing the killing of two journalists and lynching.
“Many citizens do not read, believe or trust the media,” Collins said. “Grievance merchants are ratcheting up the rage with social media, which exacerbates our nation’s shortcomings in civic literacy to the detriment of our democracy.
“At the same, local newsrooms are suffering from revenue shortfalls and staffing issues. They all need more resources and more folks to cover the important issues affecting their communities.”
Collins said OMC’s targeted local news literacy campaign will provide newsrooms stipends to publish and broadcast the “Free Press Isn’t Free” video on their websites and help newsrooms execute paid social media campaigns to reach local audiences in specific geographic areas.
OMC’s statewide polling showed citizens trust news sources closer to home. And a respected ambassador recommending a local news source goes a long way toward building trust.
“For this project, we’re asking newsrooms to end with a call to action with a trustworthy individual urging citizens to donate, subscribe or advertise to support their local news organizations. And we’re looking for partners to broaden our educational outreach and raise more awareness.”
Mike Hosty, a witty guitar guru known for performing in towns throughout Oklahoma, wanted to help the statewide collaborative change the perception of local news. Hosty also happens to be a big fan of Bob Dorough, the Southern musician and vocalist famous for composing and performing the iconic “Schoolhouse Rock!” songs.
Like many Americans in the ’70s and ’80s, Hosty learned about “The Preamble” to the Constitution, multiplication tables and “Conjunction Junction” while watching “Schoolhouse Rock!” cartoons Saturday mornings on ABC.
Hosty said he tried to conjure up inspiration from one of Dorough’s classics, “The Shot Heard ‘Round the World,” when composing his “Free Press Isn’t Free” tune.
“Just adding that style of Southern twang, as well as some jazz phrasing and pauses to sing about ‘Old Ben Franklin had a printing press’ seemed like the perfect fit,” Hosty said.
After Hosty recorded the OMC-commissioned song in June, OMC then contracted with a New York City-based studio, Mechanism Digital, to produce an animated video aimed at promoting and supporting local news. A creative brief provided by Collins tasked the team with designing the “Schoolhouse Rock!”-style video, blending educational content with a unique visual approach.
Mechanism Digital’s team, led by Creative Director Lucien Harriot and Producer Valeriu Iancu, meticulously crafted visuals to match each line of the song. The animation spans from the days of Benjamin Franklin and the first printing press to emphasize the foundational importance of the Fourth Estate to America’s independence.
The “Free Press Isn’t Free” song and video were supported by a Kirkpatrick Foundation grant. That OKC-based foundation previously funded scientific polling by Oklahoma City-based firm Cole Hargrave Snodgrass & Associates and academic research for OMC’s Ecosystem Engagement Project partnership with Trusting News, which coached a recent cohort of a dozen newsrooms executing data-driven engagement projects to enhance trust.
Seventy-seven percent of academic study participants cited Facebook as their main source of local news and information among social media platforms. The study was written by Rosemary Avance, assistant professor at the School of Media and Strategic Communications at Oklahoma State University, and Allyson Shortle, associate professor of political science and co-founder of the University of Oklahoma’s Community Engagement and Experiments Lab. That multiphase project’s research ultimately inspired messaging for Hosty’s “Free Press Isn’t Free” lyrics, which illustrate the patriotic importance of a free press to remain independent from government rule.
OMC includes more than 30 news outlets statewide, ranging from broadcast to nonprofit to Indigenous and Black-owned media outlets to longstanding newspapers and student media. Support OMC collaborators here. For more information about how OMC supports and strengthens local news, email OMC Executive Director Rob Collins at rob@oklahomamediacenter.com.