“Our best defense is to have an educated populace.”

So said Scott Bates, the deputy secretary of state in Connecticut, in response to new warnings that foreign countries are working to sow misinformation ahead of American elections.

Fittingly, the new reports coincide with the celebration of National Newspaper Week, which ended Saturday.

That the newspaper industry is facing unprecedented hardships is no secret. Ironically, it’s not because of a decline in readership – by most measures, newspapers reach more readers than ever in history.

The challenge stems from the move of the flow of information to online delivery formats, which are largely controlled by Big Tech companies.

While those companies profit off of traffic generated by news content, they monopolize the resulting digital advertising market. Content creators (i.e. newspapers) are left unpaid for their work, resulting in a record number of newspapers having to close their doors in recent years.

The consequences for democracy and society are dire.

Local newspapers have long been the primary source for community information, from birth announcements to obituaries and from Little League scores to election coverage.

And as foreign entities increasingly seek to undermine the U.S. by undermining our elections through misinformation, the role of newspapers is increasingly vital.

As Brett Wesner, chair of the National Newspaper Association, wrote in a recent column, newspapers have a vital role when it comes to protecting democracy.

He noted a recent study that showed that local newspapers are the most trusted source when it comes to learning about candidates for public office. The same study showed that newspapers are the most trusted source for such news, easily beating TV, radio, political mailings and social media.

That informed readership also translates into a politically active readership.

“The study confirms there is a strong correlation between those who read community newspapers and those who cast ballots in elections,” Wesner wrote. “A combined 96% of readers of local newspapers say they plan to vote this November – either ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ likely.”

What people can do to help the vital newspaper industry is relatively simple:

If you are in the market to purchase advertising, remember newspapers (print and online);

Encourage federal lawmakers to support things such as the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act, which aims to bring some equity to the relationship between Big Tech and newspapers;

And the simplest of all, keep reading and subscribing to your local newspaper.

It’s not an exaggeration to say our democracy depends on it.