February 13, 2017

There are a lot of ways to talk about digital transformation. But the latest program from Poynter will help your media organization make the successful transition to sustainable digital publishing.

The Poynter Local News Innovation Program, part of the Knight-Lenfest Newsroom Initiative, will bring together leadership teams from up to 20 news organizations in this unique year-long project.

The project builds on the achievements and learnings of  the newsrooms that participated in the 2016 Table Stakes program. Organizations that join the 2017 project will:

  • Learn a roadmap for transforming into an audience-focused, digital-first, market-leading, sustainable enterprise.
  • Define and pursue specific digital performance initiatives that will significantly advance their digital transformation.
  • Identify and address underlying skill, role, workflow, technology and culture changes required to achieve the objectives of the performance initiatives taken on.
  • Develop the individual skills and organizational capabilities to continue the work beyond the project.
  • Build a network of news organizations to share tools, technology and other resources.

“This project puts Poynter at the center of teaching one of the most critical issues facing journalism today,” said Poynter President Tim Franklin. “We are honored to work with the Knight Foundation and the project partners to articulate, promote and amplify the best practices in media innovation and transformation.”

The Poynter program is open to all U.S. newspaper organizations, regardless of size, geography or ownership model. (Learn more about how your organization can be part of this program.)

To accelerate digital and cultural change, all media organizations and journalists around the country will have access to the key takeaways of the project through a series of online courses and robust coverage via a new Local Innovation channel on Poynter.org. The channel, and a companion newsletter, Local Edition, will chronicle the transformation of the business and editorial strategies of newsrooms across the country.

Poynter also will incorporate the lessons of Table Stakes into other programs offered by the Institute, including its annual workshop for educators, Teachapalooza, and its leadership seminars.

Poynter joins Temple University, the University of North Carolina and American Press Institute in the Knight-Lenfest Newsroom Initiative, a project that helps advance digital transformation at local news organizations across the country. Funded by Knight Foundation and the Lenfest Institute for Journalism, the project is under the direction of Douglas K. Smith and Quentin Hope.

Details about the Poynter Local News Innovation Program and information about how your newsroom can be part of this project are available at poy.nu/localinnovation.

Support high-integrity, independent journalism that serves democracy. Make a gift to Poynter today. The Poynter Institute is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, and your gift helps us make good journalism better.
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Vicki Krueger has worked with The Poynter Institute for more than 20 years in roles from editor to director of interactive learning and her current…
Vicki Krueger

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