What can grow in the desert?

We are awash with studies and white papers about the demise of local newsrooms as a threat to our democracy. But what if, instead of asking what we’ve lost, we ask what can actually grow in these deserts? 

What’s next for Documented Semanal, a WhatsApp newsletter

When the pandemic began, we, like many other organizations, worked quickly to respond to all of the pressing needs of our readers. Tens of thousands of NeW Yorkers were suddenly left jobless and afraid of getting sick. We knew financial relief and organizations seeking to help were out there, but many residents did not know … Continued

Readers can help you plan your next move

The beginning of the coronavirus pandemic brought with it a surge in engagement and traffic to the Spanish materials we publish on our site, Documented Semanal.  Within weeks, we had built an ecosystem where our readers, using our WhatsApp app, had guided us to create certain stories which would then draw in more subscribers who … Continued

Engaging with your audience = eyes, ears and super fans

After the New York City Mayor’s office announced a $20 million donation from the Open Society Foundation to help undocumented immigrants, city officials went on live TV to show the beginning of the delivery of the funds. Many of our users heard this news and messaged us to report that the phone numbers and email addresses … Continued

Utilizing the WhatsApp audio feature for news

One of the most popular features of WhatsApp is the ability to leave a short audio message in lieu of a text message, video or photo. It’s a feature that’s widely used across the world, but less so in the United States. And Radio remains popular across Latin America, especially in areas with limited internet … Continued

We’re meeting our audience where they are. Now what?

Early on in our existence we realized we were facing a challenge. Our reporting was about city, state and federal immigration related policies and how they were failing the New York residents they were aiming to serve. However, our metrics told us our stories were not always reaching the people the stories were about. I … Continued