How abortion coverage changed in the media, according to the data

Fear among potential sources and the decline of local journalists, including health care reporters, help explain why political reporting has been more plentiful.

In early 2022, months before the Dobbs decision, Pew Research conducted

of nearly 12,000 journalists across the country. Among local reporters surveyed, 12 percent covered the health beat. Nearly three times as many covered government and politics — the most common among…