Five Newsrooms Spent a Year Using Solutions Journalism to Make Money – Here's How to Follow in Their Footsteps
We like to dream big at the Solutions Journalism Network (SJN). But we’re keenly aware that for more constructive and community-centered ways of reporting to flourish, eventually they will need to contribute to newsrooms’ financial stability. With the SJN Revenue Beacons, we decided to take a solutions journalism approach to building that. Five newsrooms spend nine months experimenting with building revenue around solutions journalism, sharing what worked, the successes they had, what didn’t work and what they learned that could help other newsrooms.
Today, we’re unveiling the results from the 2023-24 Revenue Beacon Cohort. If you’re in a hurry and just want the quick overview, we have that for you. But if you want to discover all the helpful strategies from WSHU, AL.com, The Dallas Morning News/KERA, Civil Eats and The Keene Sentinel — along with added ideas and observations from coaches Virginia Arrigucci, Joaquin Alvarado, Joe Whitwell and Claudia Laws — then you should explore the full, collaboratively created guide.
If all that has you eager to get your newsroom involved in turning solutions reporting into dollars, you’re in luck. In addition to those guides, we’re also launching applications for the Solutions Journalism Revenue Accelerators. SJN and Blue Engine Collaborative will lead four separate accelerators, each supporting eight to 12 news organizations and focusing on a specific revenue stream, including sponsorship, consumer revenue and philanthropy. Selected newsrooms will get:
- Nine months of support to build expertise in solutions journalism and revenue strategies;
- Coaching and training from SJN and Blue Engine experts;The opportunity to apply for up to
- $10,000 in funding for solutions journalism and/or sponsorship efforts during the Accelerator;
- More perks along the way.
Apply for the first round, focused on sponsorship, by Jan. 17. You can also let us know you’re interested in future rounds right here.
