A News Garden for a (Potential) News Desert
Thursday, August 8, 2019 at 7:00 PM – 8:30 pm
Chris Faraone and Jason Pramas of the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism and DigBoston will address Artisan’s Asylum members on the danger of Somerville becoming a “news desert”—a community that no longer has professionally-run news outlets to cover local happenings and events in the public interest. They will then discuss their new project, the Somerville News Garden, a volunteer-driven effort aimed at reversing the process of news desertification with projects that will help strengthen and expand news coverage in the city, including: creating and maintaining an easy-to-use “Somerville PR Wire” where individuals, community organizations, and businesses can post tips and event notices to an audience of area journalists to help increase local news coverage; regular “news clinics” where people can talk to trained volunteers about how to get their stories covered in the local press; researching all the ways that people get local news in Somerville, then working to help fill gaps by creating or assisting the creation of new social media boards and news outlets in the city; starting a “Neighborhood Media School” to train people in reporting skills they can use to cover their own community; and more!
