3 case studies on creator-newsroom collaborations

The American Press Institute’s 2025 Influencers Learning Cohort helped local news organizations deepen engagement with the communities they serve through new experiments with creators and trusted messengers.

Three alumni of the 2024 learning cohort were among the 16 organizations in the 2025 cohort. Their plans, which built on previous influencer work, were each supported by a $3,000 grant from API.

You can read more about their work, in their own words, in the following case studies on API’s BetterNews.org:

Countering disinformation by training Latino content creators

Factchequeado, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, worked with Latino creators to design a culturally relevant modular training aimed at helping influencers recognize and counter Spanish-language dis- and misinformation and to communicate without spreading misinformation. The course’s first cohort will lay the foundation for the Latino Content Creators Network ahead of the 2026 elections.

How building a local creator map can lead to stronger community connections

Pittsburgh’s Public Source built a diverse, regionally representative map of local creators and trusted messengers to strengthen relationships and spark new opportunities for collaboration. Working with Adriana Lacy of Influencer Journalism and Adriana Lacy Consulting, Public Source was able to map more than 40 Pittsburgh-based creators on Instagram. The work has already led to eight new conversations with creators and one partnership, with others in the works.

How creator collaborations can help increase civic engagement during low-interest, local elections

THE CITY, a nonprofit newsroom in New York, worked with a trusted messenger to create a video series that helped New Yorkers better understand the issues so they felt motivated to cast their ballot. The three-part video explainer series with The Pigeon Post, published ahead of the 2025 mayoral primary, was a continuation of a partnership formed around the 2024 general election. The collaboration helped THE CITY reach a larger audience and the explainers were praised in the comments.