Impact Stories

The New York Times [December 2021]: In an effort to to explore the world’s challenges through the lens of progress, The New York Times launched an initiative called Headway with a series of stories called “Hindsight” that looked at predictions from the past that did — or didn’t — come true and why, examining what could be learned from them. Headway is a philanthropically funded initiative that includes a partnership with the Solutions Journalism Network under which SJN will help train Headway contributors and staff. As part of Headway, The Times will also pioneer an online public square, focused on community-building, transparency, engagement and data dissemination. The goal is to support and encourage conversation, education and research around the topics Headway addresses.

The Real News Network [December 2021]: A private donor contributed $20,000 to The Real News Network, inspired by its reporting on how activists are using community organizing to fight voter suppression (https://therealnews.com/how-do-you-fight-voter-suppression-grassroots-organizers-in-wisconsin-have-an-answer). The network, a multimedia news outlet based in Baltimore, is one of 10 newsrooms supported by the Solutions Journalism Network’s Advancing Democracy initiative. John Duda, executive director of The Real News Network, said it would use the funding to do follow-up stories closer to the midterm elections.

WHYY/PlanPhilly [fall/winter 2021]: WHYY/PlanPhilly said the Philadelphia City Council had used its stories as the city worked to keep its streets clean. WHYY/PlanPhilly did a series last fall that looked at promising practices in parts of Philadelphia and elsewhere, including providing trash bins for all residents, which has shown success in Baltimore.

Better Government Association [November 2021]: The Robert R. McCormick Foundation and the Better Government Association (BGA), a watchdog organization, together have launched the Illinois Solutions Partnership (https://www.bettergov.org/news/better-government-association-and-mccormick-foundation-form-the-illinois-solutions-partnership/), an ambitious collaboration that aims to address the state’s urgent challenges through investigative and enterprise reporting. The McCormick Foundation will provide $10 million in grants to the effort over the next five years, and BGA will devote reporters and other resources to substantially match McCormick’s commitment over the same time period. In announcing the new partnership, BGA and McCormick described the venture as in-depth investigative journalism combined with reporting focused on potential solutions, saying Illinois residents need both to hold their government accountable and to engage public officials and leaders to improve Illinois and Chicago.

KPRC 2 [November 2021]: Officials in Harris County, Texas, are exploring whether to adopt a model operating in Bexar County, a few hours’ drive away. To help ensure that defendants out on bond don’t commit crimes while awaiting trial, Bexar County offers them support that can include mental health services, addiction treatment and support in job hunting. Harris County officials learned about Bexar County’s approach from a report on KPRC 2. KPRC 2 reported that Bexar County’s program also has attracted interest from Atlanta, New Orleans and Los Angeles, as well as from a number of other counties in Texas.

Daily Yonder [throughout 2021]: The Daily Yonder’s coverage of COVID-19 led to a twofold increase in readership over the past two years, which coincided with the time the publication started doing more solutions journalism on that topic. Besides showing where the pandemic is bad or getting worse, the Daily Yonder’s stories highlighted areas that were doing well or improving. One examined why Maine and Vermont, largely rural states, have high vaccination rates when most rural areas are below the national average.