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Recommendations on how local media can better serve Black community members
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Local Journalism (News Voices)
News Voices organizes with communities and newsrooms to transform local journalism.
Why News Voices?
Local journalism plays a critical role in our communities. Communities deserve a critical role in local journalism.
It shapes our lives
Local news shapes our communities’ stories, which impacts our homes, education, health and jobs.
It holds leaders accountable
Local journalism helps us hold our leaders accountable so they apply resources where we need them most. We need reporters keeping an eye on those in power.
It connects our communities
When journalists are connected to our communities, we become more connected to each other. This helps us work together to address local problems like gentrification, under-resourced schools and racial injustice.
It creates positive change
For our communities to thrive, we need to work closely with journalists to report our most important stories and use those stories to create positive change. This means working together.
News Voices is bringing communities and newsrooms together by:
Increasing community access to and engagement with local newsrooms
When our communities are missing from discussions about journalism, we aren’t involved in shaping its future. The stories told about us fail to include our voices. The more engaged we are with local media, the more local journalism reflects us, lifts up diverse voices and serves our needs.
News Voices organizes events, workshops and collaborative projects to build power with communities seeking a stronger voice in local news.
Strengthening news and information supporting our civic needs
We must find new ways to create and support local news and information. To do this, we must strengthen existing outlets that serve community needs while investing in new ideas meant to keep people civically engaged. The only way to accomplish that is by collectively taking action to support journalism in innovative ways.
At News Voices, we organize to supercharge community engagement, highlight underreported issues and build trust between journalists and the communities they serve. We also run advocacy campaigns to support local media and find new ways to fund it.
Question and Answers
Q:
Where is News Voices working?
A: We work on the ground in Colorado, New Jersey, North Carolina and Philadelphia. We also train and support newsrooms and dedicated community members around the country who want stronger local journalism.
Q:
Why is this a racial justice issue?
A: People don't always feel like the media works for them — and for good reason. Local news outlets have long misrepresented and maligned communities of color. Our work seeks to amplify the voices of people of color so they have a role in to setting the news agenda and changing coverage of their communities.
Q:
How can journalists connect with communities?
A: Adapting strategies that organizers use allows journalists to build trust with communities and uncover untold stories. We've created resources to help reporters adopt an organizing mindset and deepen their community engagement.
Locations
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News Voices
New Jersey
News Voices: New Jersey launched in 2015, and we’re working in communities across the state — focusing on connecting people with their local newsrooms.
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News Voices
North Carolina
News Voices: North Carolina launched in April 2017, and we’re working across the state to make stronger connections between communities and the newsrooms that serve them.
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