Working Groups

How can we create more understanding of the Spanish-speaking media ecosystem and strengthen its reach? The group established a dynamic collaboration of Spanish-language news outlets, civic leaders, and media innovators united to revolutionize local journalism for Hispanic communities in the US.

Cycle: 2024-2025

What set of standards should we advocate for in local news and information ecosystem assessments? This group established a set of shared standards centered around community well being and ethical research practices. It convened discussions, gathered feedback and produced a report with models, key principles, practical options for researchers, and recommendations for the field.

Cycle: 2024-2025

How might we ramp up News Future’s influence to foster policy and cultural conversations around reimagining local news for our communities? We need to set the terms of debate around what local news is and what it could be. To that end, this group envisioned a kind of “publishing wing” of our civic media movement that would seed, fund and support the publication and distribution of media of many types (writing, videos, TikToks, etc) about the future of local news, and the structural/cultural shifts required to usher in civic media.

Cycle: 2024-2025

How might we better support journalists in their transition to becoming newsroom leaders? Journalists are trained to report, but as they excel, they are often promoted into roles that require skills in management, finance, strategy, and more.

This group addressed the gap in leadership and management training within the industry. Through virtual convenings, it engaged current, future, and past leaders to explore the types of training, community-building, and resources needed at various stages of leadership.

Cycle: 2024-2025

How might we refresh the original Hierarchy of Information Needs, articulated in our 2018 paper “Is Your Journalism a Luxury or a Necessity?” There is huge transformative potential in a structural approach to meeting information needs, where fundamental needs are addressed as a public good and higher levels of information preference are met by the market as a luxury good. This framework, created at the first meeting of what would become News Futures, has helped people around the world, but it’s time for a refresh. 

Cycle: 2024-2025

How might we build stronger alliances with values-and mission-aligned people and organizations outside of the local news space? We got to know civic allies who work across libraries, digital spaces, grassroots organizing, and more. We hosted online and in-person learning sessions with potential civic allies. Outside of those learning sessions, we debriefed what we learned and identified areas of collaboration between News Futures and civic allies.

Cycle: 2024-2025

What would a $1 billion economy for civic information look like? This group envisioned an economic model for a reparative civic information sector that prioritizes community well-being and sustainability. The goal: To surface different approaches to enable mission-driven financing, grantmaking, mutual aid, and investment strategies that prioritize public interest and civic media sustainability.

Cycle: 2024-2025

How might we elevate examples of civic media being practiced by individuals and organizations in communities? We translated the News Futures Charter into an accessible, growing set of living examples (framed as a cookbook) for others to learn from, as our community advances civic information / civic health.

Cycle: 2024-2025

How can we understand and map the emerging civic media movement? We've just published the Civic Media Census Report and are currently canvassing feedback to shape an expansion and future iteration.

Cycle: 2023-2024

How can policy platforms guide and shape the future of local news? The Media Power Collaborative, born out of News Futures in 2021 and now part of Free Press, is made up of media workers, movement organizers and allied researchers and is working to be an active political voice in emerging debates about the future of local news and civic information.

Cycle: 2023-2024

How can community media centers serve as laboratories for collaborative journalism? This group worked with community media center leaders nationwide, developing case studies and narratives showcasing these centers as collaborative journalism laboratories, emphasizing their role in coalition and trust building.

Cycle: 2023-2024

How can local journalism challenge mainstream narratives in West Virginia? This group addressed journalism's role in West Virginia's democracy, partnering with Black By God, The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation, and News Futures to develop local journalism that challenges mainstream narratives.

Cycle: 2023-2024

What is at the intersection of care-full gatherings and storytelling? Season II of the Care Collaboratory focused on how we gather people (IRL and virtually) in ways that generate a deeper sense of connection, belonging and possibility.

Cycle: 2023-2024

How might we create a publishing platform for civic media voices? This group supported members in completing book proposals while exploring the development of a publishing wing for the civic media movement.

Cycle: 2023-2024

How can we best equip community members with journalism skills? This education-focused group connects journalists, organizers, and educators, developing best practices for community journalism training programs and facilitating knowledge exchange among practitioners.

Cycle: 2022-2023

What is our vision for the information ecosystem of our dreams? This group develops News Futures' strategic direction, working with news and information leaders to craft a vision for transforming communities through improved information ecosystems.

Cycle: 2022-2023

How can we care for community members in our storytelling processes? Through six monthly virtual gatherings, the Care Collaboratory brought together an interdisciplinary group to explore why enacting care is crucial to building trust, belonging and healing and shared examples and resources on how to do it.

Cycle 2022-2023

How can public policy support and strengthen local news? This group emerged from discussions about the New Jersey Civic Info Bill campaign, shaping media policy initiatives and helping launch the Media Power Collaborative to support the field through public policy.

Cycle: 2021-2022

How can we effectively advocate for and impact our communities? This group strengthens strategic decision-making and impact communication in journalism, assessing existing models and developing new frameworks to measure influence from individual to national scales.

Cycle: 2021-2022