The Local News Lab was a testing ground for the future of local journalism, and supported people’s efforts to experiment with new ways of reporting, engaging communities, and sustaining news organizations of all sizes.

The Lab was originally launched by the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation to document and share their work building a more connected and collaborative news ecosystem in New Jersey. In 2016, the Lab relaunched at Democracy Fund as news ecosystems spread across the country; it was archived in 2023 as we focus on our new program strategy.

While we will no longer be updating this site, we continue to actively support the future of local news through a variety of local news ecosystems, infrastructure for the field, and other efforts. Local journalism has grown and evolved immensely in the time the Lab has been around, and we’re excited to double down on some of the solutions we’ve identified. Check out our website for the latest on our work.