Special Edition

As journalists, we spend so much time looking forward — to the next deadline or the next story — that we sometimes forget to look at the people working side-by-side with us. So, how do we build an authentic sense of belonging?

Vicky Ho, newly appointed editor of the Anchorage Daily News, uses project management frameworks to gather stakeholders from across the organization to participate in focused, short-term projects in an efficient and collaborative manner.

To stay ahead in an increasingly fast-paced digital media landscape, Univision transformed its approach to newsroom training and knowledge-sharing through the creation of a centralized digital training portal.

The Marshall Project, a nonprofit news organization focused on criminal justice journalism, has developed a sustainable approach to building a learning culture through two key initiatives.

We assembled a working group of news leaders determined to find solutions to help their peers navigate the process of building capacity and strengthening cultures of learning.

Newsday, which has about 200 editorial staff, has in recent years launched and evolved a number of staff development initiatives that have garnered significant engagement. We will explore three of them: reporter roundtables, data office hours and alternative story formats.

While the newsroom can hold a unique position as convener and connector, this function goes beyond the newsroom to support healthy, thriving communities and neighborhoods.

Because these types of committees are organized by and for news organizations, community member participants require extra support and advocacy to ensure the experience is beneficial for them, too.

Rather than a committee that simply listened to the concerns of newsrooms, we created one that empowered community members to influence and impact the work of these newsrooms.

Steps news organizations can take to set up their own community advisory committees based on lessons from the Pittsburgh Inclusion Index cohort.