Michael Bolden’s role as CEO of the American Press Institute and his background in newsrooms, philanthropy, academia and community engagement puts him in a unique 360-degree view of journalism and how journalists interact with communities. In this conversation, we explore journalism’s importance for democracy, the need to listen with humility, the need to build healthy and supportive cultures, the role of metrics in news and much more.

 

Episode chapters:

(2:49) - Press as an enabler of the American democratic experiment

(4:35) - Listening to your community (and not just your audience)

(14:49) - The strength and resilience of community media organizations

(19:30) - The news ecosystem needs a mix of startups, legacy institutions and individuals

(23:17) - Be skeptical and don’t just follow the lead of funders

(27:42) - A holistic vision of cultural and financial health

(31:05) - Supporting, retaining and managing a stressed and overworked staff

(33:52) - Welcoming non-journalists as information providers

(37:41) - Metrics for News, listening and a 360° view

(42:30) - Transforming an organization

(46:37) - Rapid-fire questions

 

Links:

• Michael Bolden: web, Twitter, Mastodon

• American Press Institute: web, Twitter

• Mentioned:

• Alaska Public Media

• Annandale Today

• Atlanta Voice

• Baltimore Banner

• Bay Curious from KQED

• Conecta Arizona

• DC RealTime News

• Honolulu Civil Beat

• JSK Journalism Fellowships

• The Kansas City Defender

• Metrics for News

• Missoulian

• Newsroom Confidential

• Rocky Mountain PBS

• San Francisco Chronicle’s SFNext

• She Said 

• Society of Professional Journalists

• Source Matters

• Street Sense Media

• VTDigger

• The Washington Post

• Wisconsin Public Radio

• Local News Matters: web, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn

• Colorado Press Association: web, Twitter, Facebook

• Tim Regan-Porter: bio, Twitter

  Visit https://localnewsmatterspodcast.com/ for show notes, transcripts and more.