What Works

@whatworks-nu

What Works: The Future of Local News, from Northeastern University's School of Journalism and the Center for Transformative Media. Visit us at whatworks.news

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What Works@whatworks-nu· 16d

In the AI era, even more than in the search era, there is no substitute for establishing a direct relationship with your audience. www.inma.org/blogs/earl/p...

What Works@whatworks-nu· Jun 15

The Plymouth MA Independent, a high-quality nonprofit digital news organization, is hiring a staff reporter. www.plymouthindependent.org/now-hiring-r...

What Works@whatworks-nu· May 20

🎆 Final reminder! Our free, all-day webinar on "Audience, AI and Events" will be held tomorrow, May 21. Sponsored by What Works: The Future of Local News, a project based at @northeasternu.bsky.social. #journalism Please register here: www.eventbrite.com/e/audience-a...

What Works@whatworks-nu· May 14

Sorry to see this kind of corporate-speak from Bob Cohn, the CEO of the Venetoulis Institute, the nonprofit that just acquired the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Here he (BC) is talking with @dicktofel.bsky.social (RT). #journalism dicktofel.substack.com/p/the-baltim...

RT: Pretty significant staff reductions in Pittsburgh were announced even before the closing on your deal. What can you say about those?

BC: Well, we haven’t announced any staff reductions.

RT: I mean, just before closing. There were significant staff reductions in Pittsburgh, right?

BC: Well, it was an asset purchase, which means that the prior owner terminated everybody. We arrived with nobody in the newsroom, and then we rehired many people from the old Post-Gazette into the new Post-Gazette. So we started with a blank sheet of paper.

What Works@whatworks-nu· May 14

One week from today! Register now for our free What Works webinar on "Audience, AI and Events." If you're a local news publisher, journalist or volunteer, our hands-on workshops will help you hone your skills. Just click here: www.eventbrite.com/e/audience-a...

What Works@whatworks-nu· May 8

We've got a great lineup for our free May 21 What Works webinar, "Audience, AI and Events," with hands-on workshops throughout the day. Please register! #journalism www.eventbrite.com/e/audience-a...

What Works@whatworks-nu· Apr 25

We didn't notice this until someone pointed it out: Look what's on Michael Fitzgerald's desk in this photo that accompanies a @bostonglobe.com story on the battle of dueling newspapers in Cambridge.

The post refers to a copy of "What Works in Community News," by Ellen Clegg and Dan Kennedy

What Works@whatworks-nu· Apr 9

Celebrate the first annual #LocalNewsDay by supporting #journalism in your community. whatworks.news/2026/04/09/c...

What Works@whatworks-nu· Mar 25

Are you a local news publisher, policymaker or thought leader? Please join our What Works Facebook group. You can keep up with news about our May 21 webinar on skills for publishers, including audience engagement, AI, and event planning. #journalism www.facebook.com/groups/24674...

What Works@whatworks-nu· Mar 6

New at Media Nation: How community publishers can survive and thrive in the AI era. #journalism dankennedy.net/2026/03/06/l...

What Works@whatworks-nu· Mar 3

Jackson, Wyo., newspaper settles $25m defamation lawsuit. What can be learned? #journalism wyofile.com/jackson-news...

“Why a paper anywhere in the U.S. would want to draft an article that affirmatively states that someone who is a private individual is a child abuser, without doing enormous amounts of verification work and being certain that they are correct is beyond my understanding,” Ochs said. “And unfortunately, that’s what happened here.”

What Works@whatworks-nu· Feb 26

The state of Vermont media is the subject of a massive project by @sevendaysvt.bsky.social. Publisher Paula Proutly lays out the challenges in her introduction. www.sevendaysvt.com/news/fromthe...

COVID-19 forever changed the Vermont media industry — and not just because it accelerated so many of the trends that were already eroding the revenues we relied on. Advertising dried up overnight as people traded in brick-and-mortar shopping for Amazon and streamed Netflix instead of going to movie theaters, clubs and performing arts venues. Even in Vermont, virtual life threatens to replace the real one.

What Works@whatworks-nu· Feb 1

The annual Bedford Guide is a glossy magazine published by @thebedfordcitizen.bsky.social, a digital nonprofit. This year it's up to 80 pages and is full of ads. It's mailed to every household in Bedford, raising visibility for the Citizen as well as serving as an important fundraising tool.

What Works@whatworks-nu· Jan 19

Mike Blinder of Editor & Publisher interviews Audrey Cooper, the new editor of @thebaltimorebanner.com. What Cooper says right up top is so important, and it's what animates the work that we do at whatworks-dot-news. www.editorandpublisher.com/stories/the-...

My whole career has been dedicated to local news. I think, you know, there have been opportunities
to get into national news, and I never took them because, to me, you know, it’s not a secret —
America is having a hard time having civil, civic conversations right now. And I think the reason
behind that is because of the shrinking local news ecosystem. And if we spent more time worrying
about whether our kids are being educated, whether our roads are paved, whether our water is safe
to drink, and less time about these national culture fights that, you know, to be honest, don’t affect
our day-to-day lives—
I think there’s a chance that local news has to reteach Americans how to have civic conversations.
So to me, saving the great American experiment means saving local news. And I think it’s difficult
to find a place in America right now where — where Baltimore is, like, second to none. You know
what I mean? I think what’s happening here and what The Banner is doing is the most interesting
experiment in local news.
And I wanted to be a part of it.

What Works@whatworks-nu· Jan 18

We wrote a book about this. "What Works in Community News," by @ellenclegg.bsky.social and @dankennedy.net, looks at nine local news projects around the country, from legacy newspapers to digital startups to TV and radio. whatworks.news/book

What Works@whatworks-nu· Dec 31

Since 2021, @ellenclegg.bsky.social and I have interviewed more than 100 local news leaders for our podcast, "What Works." Our latest is with Jennifer Peter, who tells us how The Marshall Project is helping to fill the local news void. whatworks.news/2025/12/23/j...

What Works@whatworks-nu· Dec 23

On the latest "What Works" podcast, Jennifer Peter, the new editor of The Marshall Project, tells @ellenclegg.bsky.social and @dankennedy.net about how the nonprofit covers criminal justice — including how it is extending its work to local news. Plus our Quick Takes. whatworks.news/2025/12/23/j...

What Works@whatworks-nu· Aug 12

Can nonprofit news mix with local TV? The idea is being tested in PA. www.niemanlab.org/2025/08/can-... Part of our book, "What Works in Community News," is about the @njspotlightnews.org, the merger of a nonprofit digital news project and a daily TV newscast. whatworks.news/book

What Works@whatworks-nu· Aug 11

Why walking tours offer another medium for local journalism. rjionline.org/news/why-wal...

What Works@whatworks-nu· Jul 16

New at What Works: How Fall River's sparse news ecosystem is responding to the tragic Gabriel House fire. whatworks.news/2025/07/16/h...

What Works@whatworks-nu· Jul 9

On the latest "What Works" podcast, @katrowlands.bsky.social tells @ellenclegg.bsky.social and @dankennedy.net how the Bay City News Foundation acquired the @mendovoice.bsky.social and took it nonprofit. whatworks.news/2025/07/09/k...

What Works@whatworks-nu· Jul 3

Traveling for the Fourth? Take the "What Works" podcast with you! Since 2021, @ellenclegg.bsky.social and @dankennedy.net have dropped 103 wicked cool jolts of optimism about the future of local news. whatworks.news/podcast

What Works@whatworks-nu· Jun 12

Thank you to the Massachusetts Center for the Book for highlighting "What Works in Community News."

What Works@whatworks-nu· May 5

New at What Works: In Maine, a printing deal with the former owner boosts the National Trust for Local News. Plus, fake news fills a vaccuum in California, and a paper in Washington State embraces nonprofit ownership. whatworks.news/2025/05/05/a...

What Works@whatworks-nu· May 2

📚📚📚 @ellenclegg.bsky.social and @dankennedy.net are thrilled that our book, "What Works in Community News," has been longlisted for a Mass Book Award by the Massachusetts Center for the Book. Winners will be announced this fall. whatworks.news/2025/05/02/w...