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News, information and much more for independent online news publishers. 
A playbook for launching a local online nonprofit news org
 
A new "playbook" for launching local online nonprofit news organizations has been published in conjunction with the Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center and the News Revenue Hub.

"So you’re starting up a local, nonprofit news firm," write co-authors Adam Fisher and Adam Giorgi, who cite several members of LION and the Institute for Nonprofit News as case studies. "Maybe you’re concerned about sparse statehouse coverage in your state. Maybe you’re concerned about the growth of tribalism and view local media as a tool toward improved civic literacy. Maybe you see systemic issues facing America—like voter suppression, labor rights, decaying infrastructure, political extremism—manifesting themselves at the local level, and you want to build an outlet that is responsive to these trends. Maybe your hometown is in the middle of a news desert. Whatever your motives, they’re important. And whatever your vision, it should be clear and intentional. ... The following playbook strives to build on your motives and connect your vision with a business model that can lead to long-term sustainability."

 
Reader revenue, seed funding, investigative news at LION summit
 
If you're attending this week's Investigative Editors and Reporters or Institute for Nonprofit News conferences in Orlando, admission is free to a day-long summit that LION Publishers will hold on Friday, June 15.
 
Melanie Sill of the Membership Puzzle, Anne Galloway of VT Digger and Mother Jones CEO Monika Bauerlein will talk about getting financial support from readers for investigative and accountability journalism.
 
Dorrine Mendoza of Facebook will update publishers on how the platform treats local news engagement and reach in the News Feed, and other efforts by the Facebook Journalism Project.
 
LION members Joe Hyde of San Angelo Live, Uriah Kiser of Potomac Local and Charlotte-Anne Lucas of NowCastSA will talk about the things every publisher should know and have in order to run a sustainable local independent online news organization.
 
Denise Malan of INN will talk about investigative reporting ideas and tips for small local newsrooms.
 
Kenny Katzgrau of Broadstreet Ads will talk about the advantages small local publishers have over big tech platforms in local advertising sales.
 
And Tracie Powell of the Democracy Fund, Wendi C. Thomas of MLK50 in Memphis and Rebekah Monson of Whereby.Us will talk about seed funding for local news startups and "information inequality."

Admission before June 8 is FREE for LION members, INN members, and registered attendees of the IRE conference, and is only $25 for non-members.

This event is sponsored in part by Broadstreet Ads. RSVP by clicking here.

 

Could a billionaire or two save U.S. journalism forever?
 
What if a simple endowment fund -- of, say, $8 billion -- could restore local journalism in the United States to its glory days, and do so in perpetuity? It worked for the establishment of public libraries across the country, why not journalism?
 
 
 
Publishers fight Facebook classifying news as 'political ads'
 
Facebook's decision to classify (and label) some news stories as "political advertising" when publishers pay to boost their reach on the platform continues to draw protests from media organizations.
 
"Facebook’s political ad disclosures are a train wreck in progress," writes Media Shift's Mark Glaser.
 
Local independent online news site East Lansing Info chronicled its experience with the new policy with this piece: "7 words we can't say on Facebook."
 
Meanwhile, Ned Berke, a LION co-founder who has advised members on audience development, wrote a detailed account of Facebook's explanation of the new policy and
 
Related: Washington sues Facebook and Google over failing to disclose political ad spending.
 
 
News About Local Independent Online News Sites
 
CONNECTICUT: Elizabeth Hamilton, a veteran reporter who worked for the Hartford Courant before working as communications manager for the Connecticut Hospital Association, has joined CT Mirror as its new editor.
 
CHICAGO: New local independent online news site Block Club Chicago is launching on Wednesday.
 
DC: DCist relaunches under public radio umbrella after it was shut down by its billionaire owner along with Gothamist, LAist and the DNAInfo local sites in New York and Chicago. The site was dark for 221 days.
 
PRO PUBLICA: Pro Publica is celebrating its 10th anniversary. A look back at its pioneering work in independent nonprofit digital journalism.
 
TV: How one Pennsylvania station hopes to reinvent local TV news by embedding reporters in communities.
 
 
Tools and Tips: Advertising and Revenue
 
AD BLOCKING: Lost revenue from ad blocking on the rise in Europe.
 
AD TECH: The End of the Ad World as We Knew It. Concerns Grow Over Facebook, Google Duopoly as Marketers Prioritize Data Transparency. ‘Personalization diminished’: In the GDPR era, contextual targeting is making a comeback. Programmatic advertising is coming to audio. Should podcast producers embrace it or run for the hills? When It Comes To Mobile Programmatic, Buyers Are Behind.
 
EVENTS: To grow its events business, NPR is taking a franchise approach to its shows.
 
NEWSLETTERS: Here are some of the ways you might be doing email newsletters inefficiently (and how to do them better). All the news that’s fit for you: The New York Times’ “Your Weekly Edition” is a brand-new newsletter personalized for each recipient.
 
PODCASTING: Marketers Add More Podcasts to the Mix. Podcast Revenues Top $300M, IAB Study Says. Bloomberg sees big opportunities in audio.
 
SIDE JOBS: When the math doesn’t work. Many local journalists work a second job to make ends meet. How to find financial security in a volatile journalism industry.
 
SPONSORED CONTENT: Publishers Discuss How To Build Successful Paid Content.
 
SUBSCRIPTIONS: The reader-revenue revolution is a reality. De Correspondent is coming to America with an innovative twist on paid content. Tuned out: Publishers aren’t ready for a Spotify for news yet. How German publisher Spiegel is experimenting beyond the metered paywall to drive reader revenue.
 
 
Tools and Tips: Journalism and Technology
 
CRIME: Where killings go unpunished: New Washington Post probe allows others to access information. Tips for reporting on gender-based violence.
 
DATA: What to consider when choosing colors for data visualization.
 
HEALTH: Zika rumors got three times more shares than real Zika stories. What can health educators do?
 
INVESTIGATIVE: Miss editing investigative projects? Sign up here. Five ways your small newsroom can make big projects manageable.
 
NEWS LITERACY: Here is fresh evidence that journalists may misunderstand the public.
 
OVERLOAD: Who’s exhausted by news? Everyone, but especially Republicans, white people, and people who don’t follow news closely.
 
SEO: How original photos can help you rank higher in Google Image Search. From Google, a starter guide for search engine optimization.
 
 
SOCIAL MEDIA: Here’s what you need to know about viral article length. 'Be an early tester and a late adopter,' and other social media tips for journalism educators.
 
 
SUICIDE: How the news media impacts suicide trends: Research roundup. Best practices for covering suicide responsibly.

TRUST: A new recipe for talking about “public trust” in media. How can we restore trust in news? Here are 9 takeaways from Knight-supported research.
 
VIDEO: The 2018 guide to video on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. Instagram Could Soon Allow Users to Post Long-Form Video.
 
WRITING: Navigating Taboo Language in Journalism. "Only in being forced to slow down as a writer did I come to learn anything at all about my reader."
 
 
Industry News
 
AI: The power algorithms exert over us and society as a whole is expanding into every sector. Are journalists doing enough to provide accountability? Students create guide to teach journalists how to teach ‘the robots.
 
APPLE: Study: Apple News’s human editors prefer a few major newsrooms. Here's what Apple's latest iOS update means for journalists.
 
BUFFALO: Buyouts hit newsroom at Buffalo News.
 
 
CUNY: Craigslist founder Craig Newmark donates $20M to CUNY Graduate School of Journalism, which will rename itself the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism. Craig Newmark’s biggest bet on news: The next generation.
 
DIVERSITY: A Survival Kit For Journalists Of Color. Coverage of Kate Spade’s death reveals need for media diversity. 'It's a business imperative': How the New York Times and Gizmodo tackle gender diversity in the newsroom. “If you don’t have gender equality in your newsroom, it’s like running on one leg. And in the current climate, the male leg is limping.”

DOCUMENT CLOUD: In the hunt for sustainability, DocumentCloud and MuckRock are joining together as one organization.
 
FACEBOOK: Most Local Merchants Unfazed by Facebook Controversies, But There Are Some Signs of Trouble. Facebook finally monetizes Marketplace with ads from users and brands. Pivot to traditional: Direct-to-consumer brands sour on Facebook ads.
 
Facebook Paying for News Shows From ABC News, CNN, Fox News, Univision, Others. Facebook’s new Watch feature cements its status as a media entity. Spurned by Facebook’s News Feed, Guatemala’s Nómada prepares for a more independent future.

Facebook bug set 14 million users' sharing settings to public.

FACT CHECKING: Can crowdsourcing scale fact-checking up, up, up? Probably not, and here’s why.
 
GATEHOUSE: How the Peoria Journal Star Did a Lot More With Less After Deep Cuts Shrank the Newsroom.
 
GOOGLE: Google Posts testing different design and functional treatments in the search results.
 
GUILD: A conciliatory News Guild settles for small victories as the industry shrinks.
 
HEARST: Big City, Small Newspaper: Behind the Latest Cuts at the San Antonio ‘Express-News.’

MAINE: Meet the former janitor who owns 25 Maine newspapers.
 
MIAMI: Steadying the Miami Herald newsroom, after cuts and a digital reinvention.
 
 
PITTSBURGH: Dozens rally against ‘censoring’ of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette cartoonist Rob Rogers. Critics are calling the move unprecedented.
 
PRESS FREEDOM: Forbidden Stories Protects and Continues the Work of Reporters Who Can No Longer Investigate. Important lessons from Obama’s mistakes in Trump’s new crackdown on leaks.
 
 
PUBLIC MEDIA: Struggling public media in Europe are under attack from right-wing politicians.
 
TWITTER: Blocked: The Trump Twitter Case in Context.
 
YOUTUBE: As YouTube looks to improve its news credentials, it is interviewing senior news people about a job.
 
 
Upcoming Events

INN DAYS: The Institute for Nonprofit News will hold its annual INN Days summit June 13-14 at the Investigative Reporters & Editors' annual conference in Orlando.

LION AT IRE: LION will hold a day-long session on revenue, journalism, engagement and audience development issues relating to local independent online news sites June 15 during Investigative Reporters & Editors' annual conference in Orlando.

LION ANNUAL CONFERENCE: LION's annual conference, the country's largest gathering of local independent online news organizations, will be held Oct. 11-13 at Columbia College, Chicago.
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