Welcome to the Local Fix. Each week we look at key debates in journalism sustainability and community engagement through the lens of local news.  But first, we always begin with one good idea…

One Good Idea: Find an Expert
Need a scientist for a story, panel, or event? The organization 500 Women Scientists recently launched a “request a woman scientist” database that lists scientists from all across the country that you can contact. Similarly a new project called SciLine (from  American Association for the Advancement of Science), offers journalists “high-quality scientific expertise and context—on demand and on deadline.” 

When Readers are Collaborators

We loved ProPublica’s 2017 year in review, which focused not only on their important reporting but also how the public made that reporting possible. It was written as a letter of sorts, addressing what “you” the reader made possible instead of what “we” the newsroom did. In Chicago, City Bureau is empowering communities as documenters of local government, and creating new avenues for civic participation that supports and strengthens local news and local communities. Finally, Joy Mayer of the Trusting News Project profiles how reaching out to your community through simple, small actions can have a big pay off.  

• How the Public Fueled Our Investigations in 2017 – ProPublica 
• It’s not “citizen journalism,” but it is “citizens taking notes at public meetings with no reporters around” – NiemanLab 
• Earning trust by inviting questions … and answering them – Joy Mayer 

Doing More With Less isn’t Really a Thing

When your readers are collaborators, it can be easier to say no to work that doesn’t fit your newsroom’s mission. In Local Edition this week, Kristen Hare shared how some newsrooms are using the public and other strategies to say no. Editor Sandy Banisky reminded us on the Local News Lab that saying you’ll “do more with less” isn’t a useful way to respond to questions of capacity. Instead, define a focus and mission, think community-first, and start from there. Here are more examples on how some newsrooms have done just that.

• Local Edition: Knowing your newsroom’s mission can help you say no – Poynter   
• When membership might not be your publication’s best path forward – Membership Puzzle Project 
• Defining a focus, and then saying no – Keren Goldshlager
• Editors, stop saying ‘We’ll do more with less.’ ‘That’s never going to be true, and everyone knows it.”  – Local News Lab
• ‘Focus on your readers, start thinking about ways that you can solve their problems, and act on that.’ – Local News Lab

Don’t Use the “M” Word

ONA’s new journalism mentorship collaborative, and the Clurman award for outstanding mentors (nominate someone here) inspired us to pull together some links with useful thoughts about mentorship in media and beyond. Mentorship can be an important step to growing in your career and life, both for mentors and mentees, but finding the right mentor and mentor-mentee relationship can be a tough roadblock. First Round presents the 10 commandments of mentorship. Commandment #1 might surprise you: don’t call someone a mentor. Read on for advice from Nicole Zhu and David Yee about how to set up a useful mentor-mentee relationship, how to reach out in the first place from The Creative Independent, and why 2018 is the year of the mentor from Adam Thomas. 

• We Studied 100 Mentor-Mentee Matches — Here’s What Makes Mentorship Work – First Round 
• What’s the best way to reach out to people you admire?  – The Creative Independent 
• The life-changing magic of media mentorship – SRCCONWORK 
• Sharing is Caring: The Year of the Mentor – Adam Thomas

Josh and Teresa
@jcstearns, @gteresa

The Local Fix is a project of the Democracy Fund’s Public Square Program, which invests in innovations and institutions that are reinventing local media and expanding the public square. Disclosure: Some projects mentioned in this newsletter may be funded by Democracy Fund, you can find a full list of the organizations we support on our website.