What the Coloradoan staff is learning while experimenting with bots

We asked newsrooms and ad agencies what they are doing today that they weren’t doing a year ago. Turns out quite a lot! This new RJI series will highlight some of the innovations and experiments we discovered and share what leaders are learning along the way. We call it The What’s New Q&A?

Reynolds Journalism Institute announces 2017-2018 class of fellows

The Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute has selected six fellowship projects for 2017-2018 that will focus on filter bubbles, bite-size training and business-side analytics. “If you were looking for one word to describe this class, I’d suggest ‘practical,’” said Executive Director Randy Picht. “These projects are built to have an impact from the minute they’re … Continued

Trust us, your news consumers really want to talk to you about trust

It turns out, plenty of news consumers are eager to talk to journalists about trust. The 30 official newsroom partners in the Trusting News interview project have begun reaching out to their audiences, and the results have exceeded my expectations. Some newsrooms are seeing more than 1,000 responses to their introductory questionnaires. (Here’s what the … Continued

How building trust with news consumers is like dating

Relationships take work. You don’t get intimacy without putting in some time. You don’t ask for favors without offering the equivalent yourself. You earn trust by being there consistently, and by listening. The Trusting News project is basically a recipe for a genuine, two-way relationship with news consumers, rather than just an exchange of information. Relationships … Continued

Digital preservation: 7 steps to get started

There are a number of practical steps publishers at news agencies can do to lay the groundwork for preserving our historical record. While this is not a complete set of instructions for digital preservation, it will prepare the way for more advanced efforts to follow. 1. Reach out One of the best first steps to … Continued

Monetization of news

In the face of decreasing revenues and increasing costs, news agencies everywhere are exploring creative methods of extracting more funding from their products. Some methods are more suitable to larger organizations and others to smaller ones; each one has drawbacks, and for many, they are a gamble.  However, some of these gambles have become viable … Continued

Media lies and Brexit: A double hammer-blow to Europe and ethical journalism

Editor’s note: If you have an idea on how to solve problems created by fake news, filter bubbles or mistrust of the news media, please apply for a 2017-2018 RJI Fellowship. The application deadline is Feb. 1. In addition, RJI will soon post the full results of its Trusting News project, conducted by consulting fellow and engagement strategist Joy Mayer.