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Delonghi multifry 1363 review this countertop air fryer letsview delonghi multifry 1363 review this countertop air fryer letsenhance delonghi multifry 1363 review this countertop edge delonghi multifry 1363 review this countertop epoxy delonghi multifry 1363 review this in spanish delonghi multifry 1363 review this one summer delonghi multifry 1363 review of related delonghi multifry 1363 review journal delonghi multifry 1363 review wave delonghi multifry air fryer and multi cooker delonghi multifry classic fh1163 review delonghi multifry grill grate accessory
DeLonghi MultiFry 1363 review: This countertop air fryer lets you cook with less guilt
DeLonghi MultiFry 1363 review: This countertop air fryer lets you cook with less guilt
Air fryers, I'll bet that's a type of kitchen cooker you've probably overlooked. They're not in vogue like the Instant Pot, but air fryers such as the $230 (converts to £163, $284 AU) DeLonghi MultiFry 1363 have compelling features all their own. Thanks to powerful convection fans and dual heating elements, the MultiFry doesn't use much oil, if any.
Despite DeLonghi's claims, the MultiFry is not a true multicooker. It can't steam or use pressure to shorten cooking times of tough proteins and grains. Nor is it designed to run all day long as slow cookers do. It's not a rice cooker either, something both Instant Pots and the Crockpot Express can tackle. If you love fried dishes but not tons of grease, then the MultiFry is worth checking out. The same goes for people who entertain often and would appreciate a steady supply of party snacks.
A different kind of cooker
The MultiFry 1363 is not what I'd call a compact countertop appliance. It's about the size of a motorcycle helmet and roughly the same shape. Squat and round, the cooker splits in two like a clam shell to open and close. Inside its mouth you'll find a large bowl that's coated with ceramic. This surfacing helps keep food from sticking but is prone to scratches. Both the Crockpot Express' more traditional nonstick bowl and Instant Pot's steel chamber have greater durability.
With a 6-quart (192 fluid ounces) capacity, those multicookers can hold more as well. That's not to say the MultiFry can't cook a lot at once. DeLonghi says its basket can process 3.7 pounds (1.7 kg) of fresh potatoes or a little less if they are frozen (3.3 pounds, 1.5 kg).
The MultiFry's bowl comes with a paddle arm that stirs food while cooking.
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
At the center of the MultiFry's bowl is its paddle stirrer. It spins slowly while the MultiFry is cooking and acts as a mixing arm for contents inside the bowl. The paddle is specifically designed to churn chunks of potatoes and other large objects. You can remove the paddle if you'd like, and that comes in handy when you need extra space for searing bigger items or when you're cooking delicate ingredients.
There aren't many controls on the MutiFry's panel. Shown here are buttons for power, bottom heater, and lid release.
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
The front face of the MultiFry houses most of its few controls. There's an on/off button to fire up the appliance. Next to it is a key to activate (or deactivate) the bottom heating element. The primary heater above the bowl is always active unless you open the lid or switch off main power.
One big problem I have with the MultiFry is that it doesn't turn off automatically. You can't set it to operate by a timer either. That seems like a serious hazard in a high-temperature cooker like this. DeLonghi does equip the fryer with a tiny, removable timer module nestled inside a receptacle on the front panel. You can set It to display a countdown (in minutes). The timer also sounds an alarm when it hits zero.
There's an included portable timer to track cook times.
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
I do like the design for the fryer's bowl handle. The handle grip flips up from the front panel so you can both lift and lower the bowl easily. When you're ready to cook, the handle folds back down into the panel and out of the way.
Fry with air power
The DeLonghi MultiFry is at heart an air fryer. It operates by pumping heat into its cooking chamber while circulating the hot air within at a high rate. It's the same way the convection mode on a regular kitchen oven works. The major difference with the MultiFry is its chamber is a lot smaller. That means it has to heat less air. Its heating elements are also much closer to the food inside. All this adds up to an efficient cooker with plenty of relative thermal power.
Under the MultiFry's lid is a powerful heating element and convection fan.
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
Performance and taste
All that heat and airflow helped the MultiFry to convincingly "fry" standard deep-fryer fare. Items like frozen french fries and chicken nuggets came out of the machine golden brown, crispy and delicious. The paddle in the cooker kept everything inside moving and heated evenly. Larger pieces of food were pushed around better by the paddle, though. Waffle fries clumped together at times, while the paddle mixed longer cut fries just fine.
Frozen items like these waffle fries came out crisp without adding any extra oil.
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
I didn't have to add any oil to the bowl either. Of course these snacks are pre-cooked at the factory so they already have a coating of grease in the bag. I cooked the same fries in a fancy Jenn-air oven (on convection) and the results were not as enjoyable. Their texture was drier and tasted, well, baked.
The MultiFry handled fresh chicken wings well, too. I didn't add any extra oil (as the manual advises). Even so, the skin was crispy and caramelized, while the meat inside remained juicy and tender.
There are definitely some aspects to the MultiFry that weren't as impressive. Despite what DeLonghi claims, the air fryer didn't cook anything noticably faster than the conventional method. French fries needed about 16 minutes in the MultiFry. It took about 17 minutes to finish in the oven.
Fresh chicken wings came out of the MultiFry nicely seared, with crispy skin and a juicy interior.
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
Neither is the MultiFry a true multicooker, as DeLonghi describes. When it comes to dishes like stews, soups and rice, it's no Instant Pot. I tried to whip up some risotto just for kicks since the official product page says it's possible. The results were awful. Continuous stirring when cooking risotto is essential. Unfortunately, the MultiFry's paddle failed to grab a swath of rice grains around the bowl's outer edge. That caused them to sit on the sideline and then burn -- unacceptable.
The MultiFry didn't mix risotto well. As a result rice on the edges were burnt.
Brian Bennett/CNET
It's no Instant Pot
The $230 DeLonghi MultiFry 1363 is a worthy purchase for those who enjoy fried dishes often but would like a healthier way to prepare them. The same is true if you entertain often and need a dedicated party snack machine. This cooker's ability to use less oil and its relatively easy clean up have you covered there.
That said, it's not a true multicooker that's able to function as multiple kitchen products. The MultiFry can't speed up cooking times of tough meats, steam, cook rice or make soups. Neither does it have any fancy cooking modes or preset programs to match your ingredients. So steer clear of the MultiFry if you crave lots of cooking flexibility and choose an instant Pot-style appliance instead. With these gadgets like the Instant Pot Lux 6-in-1 V3 and CrockPot Express (both $80) you'll save a bundle, too.
Are you curious about all the other air fryers we tested out? Check out our air fryer roundup here.
For each coffee drinker, a "good" cup of coffee means something different. Coffee lovers may enjoy anything ranging from a lighter-bodied pour over made with meticulous timing and measurements to a cup of dark, almost chewy truckstop coffee. Even if you feel satisfied by your usual go-to cup of joe, the best coffee accessories can elevate your coffee to new heights.
If you're willing to step (or even tiptoe) outside the comfort zone around your tried-and-true favorite brewing process, you may find that a perfect cup of coffee, or espresso, or iced coffee, or even instant coffee is within reach if you have just the right coffee accessory.
Read more:The Best Coffee Grinder You Can Buy Right Now
Amazon
The simplest and most effective change you can make to your coffee routine, regardless of how you brew, is to grind your own coffee beans. Conical burr grinders allow for more control over the grain size of your ground coffee than more common metal blade grinders. Something like this electric burr coffee grinder lets you easily switch between coarsely ground coffee and finely ground coffee, unleashing the flavor inside of whole beans for whichever brew method you choose. If you're feeling particularly adventurous, you could even try roasting your own beans for a freshly roasted cuppa.
Amazon
If you're traveling, this manual travel coffee grinder is small enough to bring to work or on vacation. Since it's completely hand-powered, there's no need to worry about having an outlet nearby. And this hand burr grinder goes well with other man-powered gadgets like your mortar and pestle, your hand-crank egg beater or your old-timey butter churn.
Amazon
A French press might be familiar to you, and you may already own one (or three -- seems like it's an easy gift!). But, if you regularly brew with an auto-drip coffee machine, you might want to bust out or buy a French press and enjoy an extra-flavorful beverage on the mornings when you've got a few more minutes to yourself. Grind your coffee extra coarse and bring out the French press to add a little romance to your usual coffee routine. Fun fact: You can also brew loose-leaf tea in your French press. Coffee and tea drinkers rejoice!
Pour-over coffee
If you've never tried pour-over coffee, either at a local coffee shop or at home, prepare for a completely different world of great coffee. Pour over methods release layers of flavor you never knew coffee could have: fruity, chocolatey, earthy, floral, juicy -- coffee drinks can taste like all of these and more without going to the coffee shop. At home, try brewing with one of these, which each require their own type of paper filter. You'll add a little extra time to your coffee ritual, but you will be rewarded with a cup of piping hot coffee that will have you savoring every precious drop of flavor. Pour-over coffee makers can also double as portable coffee makers. All you need is the accompanying hot water.
Amazon
This Japanese pour over dripper can be used with your mug for a single serving or placed above a large carafe for a big batch of several mugs of delicious coffee if you've got company (or it's just one of those mornings).
Amazon
With an eight-cup capacity, this classic pour-over maker has a chemical lab feel and is still a fine choice both aesthetically and functionally.
Amazon
For pour-over coffee methods, you'll want a good gooseneck kettle. Heat up cold water in something like this kettle, and the narrow spout will give you the control you need to distribute hot water over your coffee grounds (or tea), first to help "bloom" the coffee grounds, and then to evenly "pour over" the rest of the water.
Amazon
Take it a step further with this digital kettle, which allows you to select the appropriate temperature you need for your favorite coffee brewing method or loose leaf tea. The water will get hot quickly and precisely, setting you up for a superbly flavored cup of coffee or tea.
Amazon
If you've got the pour over and the kettle, and you're committed to seeing this brew process through to the end, then take the red pill and get yourself a kitchen scale, too. This digital kitchen scale will help you achieve the ideal ratio of beans to hot water, so that you don't end up with a coffee that is too bitter or too weak. Precision is essential to great coffee (And tea. And hot chocolate.).
Amazon
There are still other methods for brewing coffee -- and one of these is done via the wonderful AeroPress. Using these circular coffee filters, the AeroPress is small and lightweight, making it perfect for packing in your carry-on. It's kind of like the next step after the French press, creating a smoother cup of coffee by way of pushing the coffee through a paper filter. And, cleanup is even easier -- you're left with a puck-shaped cake of coffee grounds that you simply push into the trash (or into your compost bin) and then a quick rinse of the AeroPress sets you up for the next cup.
Amazon
Turn up the whimsy with this Bialetti stovetop espresso maker, preferably in a bright color. There is something very satisfying about watching coffee bubble up the spout and into the pour section of one of these portable espresso makers (also called a Moka Pot). As pretty as they are functional, these items are great to leave out as conversation pieces. Make coffee while camping by placing this coffee maker over your portable burner.
Amazon
This cold brew coffee kit with a Mason jar and stainless steel fine-mesh filter can take you there. The slower process unlocks milder, smoother coffee flavors, leaving you to add milk or sugar to your drink only if you're looking for some extra indulgence.
Amazon
If you're really in the mood to treat yourself, this automatic pour-over coffee maker will do the trick. Take all the guesswork out of a perfectly crafted hot cup of delicious coffee -- this machine heats, times and pours the water for you so that you get the pour over flavor complexity without risking a case of barista elbow.
PS: The beans
All these gadgets will help you make a better cup of coffee, certainly, but to achieve a truly great brew, you have to start with a strong foundation: the coffee beans! When purchasing a bag of beans, look for a roast date within the last few weeks or sooner. Freshly roasted beans will get you the most flavor and keep your coffee fresh. A local coffee roaster will be your best bet but there are online options, too. Bags of Intelligentsia coffee smell amazing and give you a preview of the flavors you'll get in your brewed coffee, and some brands of coffee will even benefit a charity, as with Grounds & Hounds ("Every pound saves a hound!").
Whether you prefer specialty coffee, iced coffee, dark roast coffee or even anything a step above instant coffee, any of the above will help you explore new ways to enjoy great coffee. And for coffee enthusiasts, that's really what life is all about. As Johann Sebastian Bach said, "Without my morning coffee I'm just like a dried up piece of roast goat." Don't be a dried up piece of roast goat -- make a good cup of coffee.
More coffee recommendations
Originally published in 2020 and updated periodically.
Europe's Space Agency Prepares to Solve 5 Mysteries of Jupiter
Europe's Space Agency Prepares to Solve 5 Mysteries of Jupiter
Home to a tangerine storm larger than Earth, owner of peachy winds so frigid you'd probably freeze on impact, and collector of 79 separate moons, Jupiter is something of a spectacle. Even its enormity is barely comprehensible. Take every planet in our solar system, slap their masses together, multiply that by two and you get a chunk about the size of it.
Who knows what could be going on over there. I mean, really.
Which is why, in April 2023, the European Space Agency plans on sending a space probe to join NASA's Juno orbiter in studying the Jovian lifestyle. It's called Juice, or the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer. "Juice will make detailed observations of the giant gas planet and its three large ocean-bearing moons -- Ganymede, Callisto and Europa -- with a suite of remote sensing, geophysical and in situ instruments," ESA said in the mission's overview.
And on Monday, the agency also laid out five specific mysteries it wants to tackle once Juice gets to its destination at this mammoth of a planet in, hopefully, 2031.
ESA's first major question is the obvious one you might've guessed from Juice's full name: What's going on with Ganymede, Callisto and Europa?
In short, these three moons are at the forefront of the agency's endeavor because they're all suspected to have some sort of water on, or under, their surfaces. Europa, in particular, is projected by astrobiologists to have a hefty amount of H2O and, well, water equals the potential for alien life, which leads us to another of Juice's queries.
Has there ever been life on any of Jupiter's moons -- or, I guess, on Jupiter? In truth, probably not on the latter, because there's neither land nor water on this planet. There's only gas and atmospheric water vapor. Basically, if you tried to stand on Jupiter, you'd just fall in until you were crushed by the planet's immense gravity concentrated toward the center. That's if you could make it that far.
But returning to Europa, an icy world very much with solid ground, scientists currently have this region at the top of their lists of places we might find evidence of extraterrestrial life. In fact, NASA is building a spacecraft dedicated to scanning Europa for such remnants. It's called the Clipper, and it's quite impressive.
Jupiter, center, and its moon Europa, left, are seen through the James Webb Space Telescope's NIRCam instrument 2.12 micron filter.
NASA, ESA, CSA, and B. Holler and J. Stansberry (STScI)
Next, turning to Ganymede, another of ESA's wonders is: Why is Ganymede the only moon in our solar system with its own magnetic field? This one's pretty odd. Ganymede's magnetic field is so strong, in fact, that it even gives rise to auroras in its atmosphere, similar to the way Earth's magnetic field produces the northern lights when electrons get caught within.
Ganymede in the shadow of Jupiter, with its aurorae glowing.
NASA, ESA
But for some unknown reason, the rest of its moon community can't relate to its magnetic ventures. It's an outsider that way. "Juice's tour of Jupiter will include multiple flybys of these ocean-bearing moons, before culminating in orbit insertion around Ganymede -- the first time a spacecraft will have orbited a moon in the outer Solar System," ESA said.
Further, getting a little more general, ESA also wants to know if, and how, Jupiter's complex space environment shaped the trajectory or conditions of its moons. With 79 individual satellites orbiting it, this Jovian world basically holds its own solar system -- if Jupiter were the sun, that is.
And finally, the fifth and final box ESA hopes to tick while dissecting Jupiter is how such colossal balls of gas come into existence in the first place. Though colored with hues on the cooler end of the spectrum, Uranus, Neptune and Saturn are also wispy cradles of zippy molecules floating around our solar system. What would give rise to these extreme mini-universes?
If all goes well, by the 2030s, we may have some answers.
When Local Newspapers Fold, Polarization Rises. Here's What You Can Do
When Local Newspapers Fold, Polarization Rises. Here's What You Can Do
Russia's invasion of Ukraine, rising energy costs and our ongoing struggles with the coronavirus pandemic take up a lot of our attention these days. But there's more going on a lot closer to home -- you just might not know it, because your local newspaper is gone.
More than a quarter of hometown newspapers have disappeared in the last century, leaving about 70 million Americans with little or no way to stay informed about their city and county governments, schools or businesses. As the country heads toward the 2022 midterm elections, Americans are increasingly turning to friends and social media to stay informed -- which isn't always trustworthy, as we learned during the 2016 election when around 44% of Americans were exposed to disinformation and misinformation through untrustworthy websites.
"The state of local news in America is dire," said Tim Franklin, senior associate dean of Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism and head of the Medill Local News Initiative.
Local journalism isn't just a nice idea. Community newspapers report some of the most important stories in our country. That includes the Boston Globe's 2002 series exposing the Catholic Archdiocese of Boston's sex abuse of minors, Sara Ganim and The Patriot-News' coverage revealing Penn State sex abuse scandal involving Jerry Sandusky and the Charleston Gazette-Mail's 2017 expose on opioids flooding into West Virginia.
This is part of Citizen Now, a package that aims to empower readers with information about our changing world.
CNET
But for every Pulitzer Prize-winning local journalism story, there are countless more that have served as chroniclers of their communities and watchdogs of the people in power. And when they aren't there, research from the Brookings Institute found there's generally more government waste and fraud.
"When you have less local news, there's various effects, some of which you'd find predictable: lower voting turnout, more corruption, more waste," said Steven Walden, president and co-founder of Report For America, a nonprofit that funds young reporters to work in understaffed newsrooms throughout the US. "There's also evidence that you have more polarization and misinformation."
The journalism industry has been struggling to adapt. Advertising, once a vital part of the newspaper world, has shifted to online. Meanwhile, profit-hungry newspaper owners have chosen to lay off staff and reduce the quality of their products.
Nonprofit organizations have stepped up to support newsrooms in several ways, but ultimately, they live or die by their communities. Many local papers and radio stations depend on individual donations to fund reporting that would never be done by larger publications, covering civic meetings and investigating local issues that lead to exposés which fix injustices. Even simply signing up for and reading local news draws people closer to issues that affect them -- and reinforces what publications do.
"Most of these stories weren't big but they mattered immensely to the residents in a community larger outlets didn't regularly cover," said Greg Yee, now a reporter at the Los Angeles Times, speaking about his year writing for the Farmington Daily Times in Farmington, New Mexico. (Full disclosure: Yee is a former colleague of this article's author.) Stories that stick out from that time include a mobile home park cut off from natural gas in winter and a new gas station opening in a Navajo Nation community, the only fuel access in 30 miles, that significantly improved locals' quality of life.
"A good local news organization is a problem solver: it identifies problems and helps a community come together to solve it," said Penelope Abernathy, visiting professor at Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism, who heads a site dedicated to mapping news deserts, areas with one or zero local papers. "And a good news organization shows you how you are related to people you may not know you're related to in another part of the county, region or state."
The Washington Post / Getty Images
Long, withering decline
Journalism jobs have been shrinking for decades, driven by declining newspaper circulation and the rise in digital advertising. The news industry's advertising and subscription businesses have roughly halved over the past decade. Much of that money's shifted to Google, Facebook and Amazon, which together now hold 64% of the US online advertising market.
For newspapers, that shift in spending is catastrophic. In the decade after the great recession in 2009, the Pew Research Center found newspaper newsroom employment in the US had dropped by more than half, to about 35,000 workers.
Ironically, the news industry has more readers than ever before – upwards of 10 times as many, according to Danielle Coffey, vice president and general council of the News Media Alliance.
"We don't have a broken product. It's being consumed at exponential rates," she said. "The source of the problem is the revenue problem."
It wasn't always this way.
The founding fathers believed so strongly in newspapers as a public good that they set up government subsidies for postal rates, reducing the cost of distributing the news – which at the time, was delivered on horseback.
In the 1960s and '70s, though, publicly traded paper owners began fixating on profits. To impress shareholders, news organizations conglomerated into big chains that gobbled up local papers into regional networks, said Amanda Lotz, professor of the Digital Media Research Centre at Queensland University.
"The financialization pressure really moves [newspapers] away from the balance between a commercial and public service enterprise of providing news to a community," Lotz said.
Rounds of acquisitions resulted in the gutting of editorial budgets and staff. With fewer reporters, newspapers started relying on national stories published by wire services, a trend that created "ghost papers" that had little or no local content. Meanwhile, the internet became an easy substitution for things online that had until then been exclusive to the paper, like weather, sports scores, classifieds and even news.
Venture capitalists and other financial firms began buying up newspapers in the 1980s but rapidly accelerated in the last two decades, growing to own over 23% of US newsrooms today while wringing out profits with more layoffs.
"Those losses put more strain on already stretched newsrooms and the publications ended up churning through staff," said Yee, who worked for four years at a pair of newspapers owned by hedge fund Alden Global Capital. "All of that translates into worse, inconsistent coverage of the communities they're trying to serve."
As a result, from 2004 until the start of the pandemic in 2020, the US lost a quarter (around 2100) of its newspapers, according to a report from the University of North Carolina's Hussman School of Journalism and Media. By the end of last year, another hundred were gone, Poynter reported, expanding news deserts that are mostly located in financially-impacted rural areas in the country's interior.
Some papers have tried to rely more heavily on subscriptions, while transitioning to mainly digital publishing. Some success stories include the Chattanooga Times Free Press, which has been operating since 1869. Last September, it switched to a daily digital edition and a single print edition on Sunday from a daily print edition. The publication spent $6.1 million to give all its monthly subscribers iPads and train them one-on-one how to use them to access their daily paper, and it's retained subscribers through the transition.
"There are some real success stories in this transition. If you can lower your paper costs and your distribution costs and if you can attract enough digital subscribers, you can support a local newsroom on that. But many local news organizations are still getting a significant chunk of their revenue from print advertising," Medill's Franklin said.
Bloomberg / Getty News
Legislative fix, maybe
One way the news industry could regain revenue and profit is to seek compensation from big tech platforms. After all, advocates say, Facebook, Google, Twitter make money selling ads next to links, videos and photos published and shared freely to their networks.
Legislators in Australia were the first to pass a law in February 2021 requiring Google and Facebook to negotiate with publishers for compensation to use their work, while France followed with its own legislation shortly thereafter. The latter locked horns with Google before finally securing legal assurance that the search giant would pay local media outlets when they appear in search results. Critics like the Electronic Frontier Foundation lament that the Australian and French laws ensured deals for big media publishers at the expense of smaller ones, but that hasn't stopped Canada and the UK from gearing up to pass their own versions.
A version of that idea in the US, called the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act, was proposed in March, 2021 by Senators Amy Klobuchar, Rand Paul, Cory Booker, and Lindsey Graham -- a rare bipartisan effort. The bill would allow news organizations to collectively bargain with tech companies for compensation, but hasn't moved out of committee yet.
Another idea to fund journalism Is the Local Journalism Sustainability Act introduced a year ago in the House by Representatives Ann Kirkpatrick and Dan Newhouse. That bill, if it were to become law, would give newsrooms around $50,000 annually in tax breaks to hire reporters. Small businesses, meanwhile, would receive $5,000 for the first year to advertise in local papers, and Americans would get a $250 stipend to pay for news subscriptions. It's unlikely to pass, though, in part because of partisan bickering over other spending plans on Capitol Hill.
"We need to make sure these publications can sustain themselves through this crisis and beyond, and I believe the credits in this bill make significant progress in providing a pathway to that sustainability," Rep. Kirkpatrick said when announcing the bill.
Nonprofit newsrooms
Some news organizations are finding funding beyond ads and subscriptions. Nonprofit foundations and philanthropic organizations are funneling grants and other aid money to newsrooms, including a new wave of nonprofit publications, like ProPublica, which run mostly on foundation and individual donations.
The American Journalism Project is a self-described venture philanthropy firm that to date has raised $90 million to back 32 local nonprofit newsrooms. Founded in 2019, it's also helped launch four more, taking the startup incubation model and applying it to digital newsrooms.
The organization focuses on both funding newsrooms and guiding them toward self-sustainability by diversifying their revenue streams, said Sarabeth Berman, CEO of the American Journalism Project. Newsrooms they've helped grow by around 67% in their first year and are projected to double their revenue in three years.
"Will local news only be nonprofit? No. Is nonprofit news vital for the future of an informed citizenry? We think so," Berman said.
Report For America, founded in 2017, describes itself as a service organization, which helps pair young reporters fresh out of college with legacy newsrooms. The organization financially supports the reporter by paying half their salary (up to $25,000) the first year, then a third (up to $20,000) the following year. After that, it's up to the publication to decide whether to hire them permanently.
"If you're not in New York or Boston or Washington, some of these news organizations have trouble getting people to go out to smaller towns," said Report For America's Waldman. "We have a very significant recruiting operation and are able to create a sort of self-selected group of people who are really passionate about local."
Report For America has grown its graduating class to 130 reporters this year, up from its first class of 13 in 2018 -- to date, over 560 reporters have gone through the program and partnered with local newsrooms. They include Laura Roche of the Charlotte News & Observer writing about the fraught debate over museums returning the unethically sourced remains of Black people, Sierra Clark of the Traverse City Record-Eagle writing about Melissa Isaac and many others in her Anishinaabek Neighbors series, and Brandon Drenon of the Indianapolis Star writing about the NAACP and others criticizing Indiana schools for failing Black students.
Report for America also connects newsrooms with donors in their area in an effort to get the community more involved in funding its local news again.
"Our goal is to actually help change the local business models in a way that they can sustain that," Waldman said.
The nonprofit Knight Foundation pledged to give $300 million to news organizations in 2019, some of which will go to both the American Journalism Project and Report For America, among other nonprofits that in turn support local newsrooms -- efforts that can be seen city by city on this interactive map. The flow of financial support is important for local newsrooms that operate on nonprofit and for-profit models, which are both valuable to their communities, said Jim Brady, vice president of the Knight Foundation's journalism program.
"Nonprofits tend to be more investigative or enterprise in nature, and the for-profits tend to provide more information on how consumers can live their daily lives. So we think both must be part of the answer to how local news can thrive," Brady said.
An infographic from the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media's project website, The Expanding News Desert, headed by Penelope Abernathy.
UNC Hussman
What to do if you don't have local journalism
News experts have advice for what to do if you live in a news desert, with little or no coverage. First on the list: Stop thinking that social media posts are an informative replacement for reporting. Social media can help people know what's going on, but it's rife with bias and misinformation.
"There's a proliferation of misinformation and disinformation that goes unchecked because there's no local journalist checking on the facts. [Social media is] a place where unvetted gossip can get spread," Franklin said.
People need to learn to spot misinformation that's spread on social media by publications that look like they're trustworthy but aren't. Both the World Health Organization and the Poynter Institute have their own free online courses to learn how to fact-check posts yourself -- not just to spot fake news, but also to understand the agenda behind why they're spreading in the first place.
In the voids left by local papers, citizen journalists and bloggers have stepped up to provide their communities with informative coverage, but they lack the oversight and vetting a newsroom provides. For lack of better options, a citizen reporter could start a site on Substack and write about local events, Franklin suggested.
The best thing to do is to reach out to regional papers the next town over and request coverage. You can find your nearest local or regional paper on Newspapers.com or NewspaperMap.com. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting has a station finder site too, and if you're a fan of National Public Radio, you can sign up to become a member of your local station in order to help support it. It isn't a perfect solution for an existing newsroom to stretch to cover another area, but is far better than starting a new local publication from scratch.
But if your community decides to launch a new publication, organizing it as a nonprofit newsroom is a successful way to go. They rely on donations -- foundation support and individual giving account for a combined 83% of nonprofit revenue, according to the Institute of Nonprofit Newsrooms' 2021 Index. And that model is working: 83 of the over 400 nonprofit newsrooms affiliated with INN are less than five years old.
Then there's nonprofit newsroom Berkeleyside, which hosted the so-called first 'direct public offering' where it solicited a combined $1 million in funding from 355 of its readers (an average of $2,816 per person) in 2018 to get started. These are technically securities, but sold directly to its readers, and the publication continues to publish today. It's one of many ways newsrooms are innovating new ownership structures to stay solvent.
"We need to get more support from communities, from local community foundations, from national media foundations and from high net-worth individuals to help make local news sustainable in all areas of the country," Brady said.
Correction, June 28: The original version of this story incorrectly stated how many reporters were in Report For America's first graduating class. Its first graduating class of reporters was in 2018 and had 13 members.
Ukraine Invasion: What to Know Today About Inflation, Stocks, Gas Prices and More
Ukraine Invasion: What to Know Today About Inflation, Stocks, Gas Prices and More
Russia continued its assault on Ukraine on Monday, with heavy shelling in Kharkiv, the country's second-largest city, killing dozens of people and sending hundreds more to the hospital, according to Ukrainian officials.
Also on Monday, Russia and Ukraine sent delegates to neighboring Belarus for their first talks since the invasion began last week.
Russia's attacks have shut down shipping in Ukraine, a country with a massive agricultural industry, particularly corn and wheat. And economic sanctions against Russia have rattled stock markets, gas prices and more around the world.
Here's how the Ukraine crisis is affecting the US and global economies. For more, get the latest updates on the crisis, learn how to help those impacted by the conflict and find out where to get reliable updates online.
Gas and oil prices
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has caused global energy prices to spike, with crude oil rising Thursday above $105 a barrel for the first time since 2014. The price cooled down briefly but, by Monday morning, was back up to $105.07 a barrel in early trading.
At that time, the national average for a gallon of gas had reached $3.61, according to AAA, compared to $3.35 a gallon just a month ago and $2.71 one year ago. Many analysts believe the average could easily tick past $4 a gallon in March.
Russia is one of the world's largest producers of crude oil and natural gas, providing roughly 40% of the European Union's gas. Sanctions from the West could affect access to that supply, especially with Germany putting a halt to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline that was intended to bring natural gas from Russia to the EU via the Baltic Sea.
Analysts predict that the price of gas in the US could soar because of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
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The White House said President Joe Biden will work to offset gas prices by releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, a deep underground storage complex along the Gulf Coast holding an estimated 600 million gallons of crude.
However, some experts believe that won't have much effect on prices.
"We're already at the lowest level of reserves in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve since 2002, so we're already bumping up against constraints there," Isaac Boltansky, director of policy research for BTIG, told Yahoo Finance. "And, frankly, it hasn't had that much of an impact."
Continued inflation
"We could see a new burst of inflation," the American Enterprise Institute's Christopher Miller told The New York Times about the possibility of a sustained war in Ukraine.
Russia is the largest exporter of platinum and palladium, a metal used in mobile phones, automotive exhaust systems and fuel cells, and on Thursday prices for palladium hit a six-month high. Rising prices for essential metals could lead to increases for manufacturers and, ultimately, consumers.
In January, the Consumer Price Index, which measures consumer costs for goods and services, surged 7.5% over the same time last year, representing a 40-year high. If the invasion continues to disrupt supply chains and cause energy prices to spike, inflation could rise even further from already "very high levels," Goldman Sachs analysts said in a report Sunday, CNN reported.
"The inflation picture has worsened this winter as we expected, and how much it will improve later this year is now in question," economists for the Wall Street institution wrote.
Stock market volatility
As word of the Russian invasion broke Thursday morning, global stock markets took a hit: The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 830 points, while the Nasdaq slipped about 1.5% and the S&P 500 tumbled 2.5% at the start of trading.
After rallying on Friday, stocks prices tumbled again on Monday, the last day of February: The Dow fell about 489 points, or 1.43%, by 3 p.m. ET, while the S&P 500 dropped 54 points, or 1.23%, and Nasdaq dipped 0.76%, or about 106 points.
In Europe, on Friday, the German DAX, French CAC 40 and British FTSE also all marked strong rebounds from Thursday lows. But by Monday, the DAX had declined 106.21 points, or 0.73%.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index shed 0.24% Monday, while China's Shanghai Composite Index ticked up 11 points, or 0.32%.
Russia's main stock market, the Moex Index, suspended trading Thursday morning, according to The Wall Street Journal. On Friday, it bounced back, rising 20% to 2,470 points.
Trading on the Moex was suspended again on Monday, the same day the Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange temporarily halted trading of select Russian companies.
More cyberattacks
The US departments of Treasury and Homeland Security have both sounded the alarm over possible cyberattacks on US banks, hospitals, government offices and power grids in retaliation for sanctions against Moscow.
On Thursday morning local time, websites for the Ukrainian cabinet and foreign affairs and education ministries were all experiencing disruptions.
Herbert Lin, senior research scholar at Stanford's Center for International Security and Cooperation, told The Atlantic's Rachel Gutman that the Russians have elevated cyberattacks to an "art form."
Though US banks have been heightening their defenses, Lin added, utilities in larger cities might be more at risk because they lack the extra funding for cybersecurity.
Lin discouraged a panicked response by everyday Americans but said having extra cash and a go bag might not be a bad idea. He underscored that those items should always be in place regardless.
Rising food prices
Food prices have already risen in the US and abroad, and analysts say the Russian invasion of Ukraine is only pushing them higher.
Ukraine is the world's largest exporter of sunflower seed oil, an industry that has come to a virtual standstill amid the ongoing attacks. That absence will undoubtedly drive up the price of soybean oil, palm oil and other alternatives, even as the world faces a shortage of vegetable oils.
Ukraine is also one of the top five corn exporters in the world, trading some 35.9 million metric tons in 2019 alone. An extended open conflict would likely see prices go up in Europe for corn and related goods, including cooking oil, corn syrup and livestock feed.
Soybean prices have also surged in the US in recent months, following an unusually poor crop in South America. If US farmers have to make up the difference in both corn and soybeans, which compete for land, prices for both crops will likely rise in the United States, as will the cost of packaged goods made with them.
Prices of wheat and corn could rise, with a ripple effect on packaged goods made with grain.
Aja Koska/Getty Images
Russia is the world's largest exporter of wheat, a crop that Ukraine exports as well. Together the two countries account for nearly a third of the global wheat trade.
The US doesn't rely on Russian wheat, but Robb MacKie, president of the American Bakers Association, told The Washington Post the grain markets "are all tied to each other."
If the conflict continues for more than a few weeks, American consumers will see rising prices for anything that has grain in it: flour, pasta, pizza, cereal, animal feed -- even beer.
Coffee grind size: Why it matters and what you should be using
Coffee grind size: Why it matters and what you should be using
Making better coffee at home is spending a little extra time on a few, simple steps, such as using the correct temperature water, weighing coffee instead measuring by volume, and grinding your own beans on the spot.
Of everything you might encounter when brewing at home, grinding coffee is arguably one of the most crucial steps, as grind size alone can dramatically change the taste of your cup. Grind size and consistency can be the difference between one of the best cups you've ever had and a bitter, undrinkable mess.
Discover how grind size affects your cup and which is right for your brew method of choice.
Why grind size matters
When it comes to grind size, there are three factors which make the biggest difference: contact time,extraction rate and flow rate. To put it simply:
The extraction rate of coffee grounds increases with a larger surface area.
To increase surface area, grind the coffee finer.
The higher the extraction rate, the less contact time is needed.
A finer grind can reduce the flow rate of water, increasing the contact time.
Knowing this, if you have a brew method with a short contact time, the grind should be finer. In an immersion brewer, which steeps coffee grounds in water for several minutes, the contact time is much higher and, thus, requires a more coarse grind than most other brew methods.
If the contact time is too high or the grind is too fine, it will result in an over-extracted brew which can be bitter. If the grind is too coarse or the contact time is too short, the coffee will turn out weak.
Finding the proper balance between the two will help in producing the best cup of coffee possible.
Different types of filters, pressure and temperature can also play a part in determining grind size, but most brewing methods operate between 195 and 205 degrees Fahrenheit (90.6 and 96.1 degrees Celsius) with little to no added pressure.
Which grind size should you use?
With an array of different brewing methods, knowing which grind size to use is crucial to getting the best possible cup.
Taylor Martin/CNET
Turkish coffee calls for an extra fine grind size, similar to that of powdered sugar.
Espresso is a brewed through using pressure (approximately 9 bar) to force water through compacted coffee grounds. The contact time is very short, requiring an extra fine grind size.
The AeroPress is a popular single-cup manual coffee maker. It's similar to a French press in design and use, though users have come up with a laundry list of ways to brew. Recommended grind size is between medium and fine, depending on steep time.
Siphon brewers use pressure to force water into a chamber holding the coffee grounds. Once the steep has finished, heat is removed, which creates a vacuum in the lower chamber and pulls the water through a filter. This method calls for a medium-fine grind size.
Pour-over brewers come in an array of different sizes and shapes. While different brewers require varying grind sizes to control the flow rate of water, most pour over methods call for a medium to medium-fine grind.
A stovetop espresso maker or Moka pot is a coffee maker which uses steam pressure to force water upwards through a filter basket full of coffee grounds. The contact time is quite short, but the pressure (approximately 1.5 bar) is a bit higher than your typical manual brewer. It calls for a medium grind size.
A single-cup coffee maker, such as a Keurig or Verismo machine, is a drip brewer method, similar to the commercial drip brewers found in cafes. The contact time is fairly low, meaning it calls for a medium to medium-fine grind size, comparable to that of table salt.
Drip coffee is what you typically get from a cafe or coffee shop. It's made in large batches and contact time is dictated by a small hole in the bottom of the brewing basket, so recommended grind size varies between medium-coarse to medium.
The French press is an immersion brewer. Water is added to coffee grounds and allowed to steep for several minutes before straining out the grounds. This method calls for a coarse grind setting.
Cold Brew, unlike other brewing methods, is done at or below room temperature and takes between 12 and 72 hours. Due to the low temperature, the extraction rate is low, regardless of grind size. A coarse or extra coarse grind size is recommended, as it's easier to filter. A finer grind size will work just as well (with a slightly shorter steep time), but can cause the final product to appear a bit cloudy.
Of course, all the above recommendations are just that -- recommendations. They are subject to change based on preferences and slight differences in brewers. Getting the grind size exactly right requires some testing and tweaking.
If you feel your cup of coffee is a tad weak, try a slightly finer grind size next time. Or if the coffee tastes too strong or slightly bitter, test with a slightly larger grind size to see if it solves the problem.
Instant Pot's Vortex Plus proves 2019 really is the year of the air fryer
Instant Pot's Vortex Plus proves 2019 really is the year of the air fryer
Earlier this year, my colleagues and I scoured the aisles of the International Home and Housewares Show in Chicago looking for the hottest kitchen innovations. What we found were air fryers. Everywhere.
Now, Instant Pot has released its own air fryer (with six other functions, of course), called the Instant Vortex Plus. Looks like the combination cooking trend isn't going away anytime soon.
Air frying is moving from a dedicated special appliance to a mode on your toaster oven or even your full-size oven. Other cooking functions might soon follow, too.
Read more:Best air fryers of 2019: Philips, Cuisinart, Black and Decker and more
Cuisinart's newest toaster oven includes an air fry button.
Chris Monroe/CNET
Combining multiple cooking functions in one device isn't new. We've seen products like the Thermomix TM5 attempt it in years past. Adding an air fryer to a toaster oven isn't breaking news, either. Breville was the first to introduce the air fryer-toaster oven concept in 2018.
But the trend is exploding this year. At the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show in Las Vegas, Frigidaire and Bosch both announced air fryer buttons on their newest full-size ovens. Cuisinart, Galanz Americas, Hamilton Beach and De'Longhi all showed off new air fryer toaster ovens for 2019 at IHHS.
And of course, there's Instant Pot. The brand known for its countertop multicookers released the combination air fryer in early July. The $119 Instant Vortex Plus is only available at Walmart and has a seven-in-one design with air fry, roast, broil, bake, reheat and dehydrate. There's also a rotate option for rotisserie cooking.
Chris Monroe/CNET
It's sensible enough, given that many toaster ovens already perform a myriad of heating tasks such as baking, broiling, reheating and even rotisserie-style cooking. Most models we saw included the classic wire frying basket in one form or another, and other specialty functions like modes specifically made for pizza and cookies.
Combining (or as I affectionately call it, "Frankensteining") multiple functions in one device is more popular than ever before. Some companies are taking a simple approach. Black & Decker is releasing a sous vide-slow cooker combination device this year that's fine-tuned for those two functions.
Others are more ambitious when it comes to how many tasks one appliance can perform. Galanz, a Chinese company bringing its brand to the US for the first time this year as Galanz Americas, showcased a four-in-one appliance called the ToastWave that can microwave, convection bake, air fry and toast your food.
It's not just the heating element. Gourmia recently announced a new CoolCooker line that includes a pressure cooker and a multicooker with built-in refrigeration to keep foods cool until scheduled cooking begins.
The Black & Decker Sous Vide Slow Cooker performs both functions and includes a temperature probe.
Chris Monroe/CNET
Is it great to have fewer small appliances cluttering up your countertop? Yes. Is it cost-effective (in most cases) to buy a combo device rather than two separate appliances? Yes. Still, those perks aren't enough to convince me that a combination cooker is a smart buy.
For these to really be the right choice for most homes, they need to work well. I don't mean a passing C- grade for adequately accomplishing the tasks they advertise. I mean really work well. That's what will make these options truly worth it. After all, I'd rather have a great air fryer making an extra crispy batch of snacks and a great toaster oven for my morning bagel than one below-average combination of the two.
If small appliance makers can master the all-in-one style appliance, how does that affect their bottom line? Are they hoping these multitaskers will sell well enough to offset the demise and discontinuation of all their single-function models? Clearly, I have questions.
For now, I'll keep my task-specific workhorses around until a worthy jack-of-all-trades comes around.
