The Rural Blog

A digest of events, trends, issues, ideas and journalism from and about rural America, by the Institute for Rural Journalism, based at the University of Kentucky. Links may expire, require subscription or go behind pay walls. Please send news and knowledge you think would be useful to benjy.hamm@uky.edu.

The Rural Blog

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Walmart and Amazon are in a neck-and-neck race over online sales and delivery to rural Americans

Buc-ees debate tears apart a mountain-town community in Colorado, leading to cursing, 'mudslinging' and legal action

What happens to a mill town when the mill closes? Residents may have to accept change or move elsewhere.

Buying only U.S.A.-made goods can be 'next to impossible,' but some Americans find ways to get close to the goal

A made in the USA bicycle is in the works; maker hopes tariffs on Chinese imports will spur American production.

Yelloh, once known as Schwan's Home Delivery, closes due to 'insurmountable business challenges'

Rural Main Street businesses have struggled, but some entrepreneurs have taken on the challenge with success

Modernizing the U.S. Postal Service is a huge undertaking; troubles at new processing center highlights the obstacles

Faced with ballooning grocery bills, many Americans have switched from national to private-label brands

How can the local supermarket be saved? This rural Kansas town of 1,000 has some tips for Chicago.

Quick hits: Learning about guns the rural way; making 'pain-free' horseradish; inspiration from a farm girl; rugged art

Rural challenges show repeated concerns and a glimmer of optimism by residents, a new survey indicates

Opinion: Loss of most mid-sized retail is a loss few mourn, but today's bigger department stores fail to offer real 'deals'

Walmart raising minimum hourly wage to $14 from $12; its pay scale influences those of many other rural employers

Walmart buys into planned meatpacking plant in effort to lower costs; move could presage vertical-integration trend

Self-serve grocery store in rural Minnesota town is a big hit

Practices of insurance companies, pharmacy benefit managers (middlemen) lead to closures of rural pharmacies

Rural America keeps gaining dollar stores, though some residents oppose them

'Sign war,' all in good fun, breaks out in Kentucky town as local businesses try to bring in more customers

Leading advocate of printed weekly newspapers says retailers are no longer their best source of ad revenue