Citizen and community news
Small-town paper wish list: Time-efficient means to analyze and implement innovations
What Houston (Mo.) Herald folks want from the Potter Conferences was something of a surprise. Publisher Brad Gentry and his team aren’t shy about dedicating resources to digital innovation although they want to do it in the most cost-efficient way. But with only eight employees to serve 25,000-plus souls in Texas County, they’re spread thin. … Continued
Potter listening tour of community newspapers begins this month
Walter B. Potter Jr. — donor of the Missouri School of Journalism’s Walter B. Potter Fund for Innovation in Local Journalism — will be visiting community newspapers in Missouri this month and next as part of what’s known informally as The Potter Listening Tour. The tour name is inspired by trips politicians sometimes take to … Continued
Futures Lab update 84: Engagement using text messages, and corrections via social media
This week we learn about a platform for engaging with audiences via text messages, and we explore how to handle corrections to social media posts. PART 1: Groundsource A new platform called Groundsource seeks to help newsrooms interact with their communities outside the confines of smartphones and social media, instead relying on more basic text … Continued
Underserved health beat leads fellow to create niche news network
When traditional news organizations begin laying off beat reporters, crucial community coverage can take a hit. Health is one beat that is underserved in almost every community. People want to understand why so much money is spent on healthcare every year and why there are so many health problems in communities, said Jane Stevens, ACESTooHigh.com … Continued
2012: What we know now on building public trust, raising money and a free press
Was 2012 prosperous for publishers? The four-part series continues, with this third installment offering key lessons from three well-respected practitioners known for thinking outside the box. Mike Fancher, veteran news business strategist and 2008–2009 Reynolds Fellow; Lila LaHood, director of operations and development at San Francisco Public Press; and Keith Hammonds, director of Ashoka’s Knowledge … Continued
WellCommons: Revolution under the radar
Last week, WellCommons.com, a local health news site, part of the Lawrence Journal-World in Lawrence, KS, won Editor & Publisher’s EPPY award for “Best Community Service on a Media-Affiliated Website with under 250,000 unique monthly visitors”. Thank you, judges! Since there wasn’t an article about the winners, just a list, I’ll explain why we nominated … Continued
Block by Block: Imagining the sequel(s)
The online community news leaders and their shared passion for local news was the most impressive part of Block by Block: Community News Summit 2010. More impressive — and challenging — is where local editors and publishers take it from here. A big tip of the hat to online publishers, including Susan Mernit, Andre Natta … Continued
AUDIO: Community media and the future of news
Reynolds Journalism Institute consultant Bill Densmore moderates a panel at the Alliance for Community Media in Pittsburgh: “Community Media and the Future of News.” As the decline of newspapers is felt throughout the country, could community media & technology centers be the new model for local news? Could Citizen Journalism be an opportunity for community … Continued
Using Media to Create Shade in Miami’s Little Haiti: Part 2
PRI’s morning news show The Takeaway, co-produced with WNYC Radio, has been in Miami this week trying a new approach to serving a community. Instead of covering the Little Haiti neighborhood, journalists are trying to build ties and engage Haitian residents in the newsgathering. This is the second of two posts from PRI’s Michael Skoler … Continued
The Takeaway seeks to engage diverse communities via texting: Part 1
This week, The Takeaway takes to the streets of Miami in the latest of its experiments to partner with communities in gathering news and uncovering stories that deserve attention. The Takeaway is a new morning news show produced by Public Radio International (PRI) and WNYC Radio. Initial audience data shows its conversational format and editorial … Continued