This spring, the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism will bring programming and media installations to the reconstructed Harvard Square landmark
The Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism was founded to operate in the grassroots and independent realm and basically do everything different from traditional newsrooms. That includes fostering meaningful engagement in the communities we cover, which early on led us to do a series of popular “pop-up newsrooms,” where we interviewed people and generated article ideas while building a reader base for BINJ and our publishing partners.
Always looking to find people where they are instead of expecting them to find us, we found success by piggybacking on existing events like block parties and movie nights, and even setting up in a bar in New Hampshire during the US presidential primaries in 2016 and 2020. Much more than just journalistic theater, we harnessed all the media we made and channelled it into print and video clips to distribute widely.
What is a pop-up newsstand?
In late 2020, with readers still mostly stuck indoors dodging the pandemic but starting to venture out, we partnered with the Central Square Business Improvement District’s Popportunity Winter Market in Cambridge, where we transformed a wooden storage container into something we called a BINJ Pop-Up Community Newsstand.
A natural pandemic-time progression from our “pop-up newsrooms,” the concept was a media resource where people could learn about small and local outlets of all kinds—newspapers, blogs, community media centers, etc.—and support them in various ways. For starters, we asked other publishers and partners to give us their info and merch and papers to pass out. From there, we designed the installation as a safe and fun experience full of QR codes and more.
The BINJ takeover of Out of Town News
Though we intend on featuring and highlighting the few local outlets that still publish a print edition with our upcoming Harvard Square setup, this will be a true modern newsstand in our aim to connect people with solid news sources in any way possible—whether through QR codes, paper zines, digital media generated from events held in the kiosk, or otherwise. Part nostalgia installation and part present-day resource, the project is designed to facilitate media making and to showcase independent outlets.
To those ends, the BINJ takeover of the reconstructed Out of Town News kiosk was curated in coordination with the Cambridge nonprofit CultureHouse as a tribute to the iconic newsstand that once operated in this space and to the history of independent publishing in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Our programming has three main features:
- News Maps — The front windows of the kiosk will display an interactive and international “Pop-Up Newsstand.” By regularly rotating the featured outlets, we hope to introduce people to unique publications which cover everything from sports and culture to business and commerce. Simply click on some QR codes and explore.
- Speakers — On select evenings this spring, BINJ will host guest speakers and conduct interviews in the kiosk for our “15 Minutes of Cambridge” series highlighting Harvard Square-area publishing milestones. Please sign up for our newsletter and check binjonline.org for up-to-date speaker information.
- Publication Installation — For the inside of the kiosk, in addition to historic photos of Out of Town News and Harvard Square, we collaborated with the David Bieber Archives to source many legendary influential Cambridge publications along with some that have largely been forgotten. Thanks to David and his whole team and also to Pacey Foster and the Massachusetts Hip-Hop Archive who also lent time and resources. Items on display will rotate throughout the BINJ takeover.
More information and official schedule coming soon.
