In April, the American Press Institute convened nearly 70 news leaders and experts from non-news spaces in Akron, Ohio, for our Local News Summit on Elections, Trust and Democracy. Leaders from such organizations as Louisville Public Media, Baltimore Beat, Dallas Morning News and Factchequeado spoke with one another about their communities’ local elections as well as the national election that threatened further disruption and division.
One thing was clear: Everyone knew the job was to use information and access to support their communities and democracy.
The two-day summit also led to a five-step process for how news organizations can do this work now — and year-round. How we cover elections and engage local communities can be one piece woven into how we serve them every year. It shouldn’t be disjointed. Our election coverage can flow from, pull from and build upon yearlong engagement that helps people make decisions and their communities thrive.
While news organizations focus on the Nov. 5 vote, how might this coverage prepare for the work to come after? Here’s the process that emerged as we held space for, and listened deeply to, some of the most thoughtful local and community news leaders in the country.
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