Report

Change is hard. Leading others through major organizational changes that you are also experiencing is even harder. There’s a framework that Table Stakes organizations come back to again and again to help them navigate those tough waters.

Collaboration allows you to bring in more perspectives and ideas, making you better equipped to solve problems and take on bigger, more complex projects. Though the benefits are apparent, many teams and organizations need help with effective collaboration.

“Engaged journalism is an inclusive practice that prioritizes the information needs and wants of the community members it serves, creates collaborative space for the audience in all aspects of the journalistic process, and is dedicated to building and preserving trusting relationships between journalists and the public.”

Develop strategies based on the audience funnel, move from ad-supported journalism to subscriber- or member-supported journalism, and seek philanthropic funding.

More product-focused news organizations seek not only what content audiences need and want but also how they prefer to consume it. This information can help them develop new products that address needs and that their intended audiences will actually use.

This guide features strategies tested and proven by local news organizations that participated in the Table Stakes Local News Transformation Program along the themes of product thinking, revenue, engaged journalism, collaboration and managing change.

As newsrooms aim to boost their visibility and engage new audiences, identifying the right local influencers becomes an essential part of their strategy.

The newsrooms' shared curiosity and spirit of continuous learning will now support so many more news organizations than were present in this brief cohort. Here we share insights, templates and takeaways to support community-engaged journalists and capacity-building trust initiatives.

We can all play a role in understanding and improving how the free press serves an inclusive democracy. For those interested in similar work, we are outlining implications and recommendations.

To support the work of civil society, philanthropy and research, we are sharing what we’ve learned in terms of what ideas have resonated. Here are some of the calls to action that  sparked interest from news leaders over several recent API Local News Summits.