Impact Stories

The Current, a local publication based in Lafayette, Louisiana, used email, social media and in-person events to gather more than 500 responses from young people answering questions about key issues ahead of local elections, such as housing, quality of life and flooding. In addition to growing brand awareness, this outreach and engagement led to the production of solutions-oriented stories. The Current also produced a candidate questionnaire, which most filled out, and an election guide. Lafayette’s new mayor-president, Monique Blanco Boulet, took heed of the ideas for responses to housing issues presented in the solutions reporting and those discussed in public forums with local residents in shaping the policies of her administration.

Over five months in 2022, the Bonn Institute, in partnership with the Rheinische Post Mönchengladbach, a local news outlet, ran an experiment to test the benefits of solutions journalism on monetization. Built around a sample of 20 solutions stories, the research assessed their performance, finding that: a) solutions articles attracted three times the number of engaged users compared with other articles behind the paywall; b) readers of solutions articles had a 27 percent higher average session duration compared with all other users; and c) paying users read those articles an average of 9 percent longer than all other content behind the paywall. Lisa Urlbauer, the Bonn Institute's head of journalism training, said the experiment was about “trying out new approaches and gaining insights into how journalism can be developed in such a way that it remains relevant and is also worthwhile for media companies.”

“Solution-based articles help me think about issues in a more holistic way,” said Ken Magri, a freelance reporter who writes for the Sacramento News & Review, one of the members of the solutions-focused Solving Sacramento news collaborative. Prior to learning about this approach, he wondered why journalism was often negative, especially after hearing a psychiatrist say watching less news every day could curb depression. Now he applies the solutions-based formula to more topics, seeking to “offer a more balanced reading experience for readers.” He considers it a more complete form of journalism, and said the kinds of questions it raises during the editing process have made him a better journalist. His stories have covered the city’s production of affordable housing and the role of cannabis dispensaries in moving toward social equity goals.

Keyshawn Davis (2023): In December 2023, Solving Sacramento, the solutions-oriented news collaborative in California's state capital, hired Keyshawn Davis as a part-time general assignment reporter. He had previously written as a freelancer for The Sacramento Observer, the city’s Black newspaper, while studying at the local state university, which he graduated from in May 2023. “Solving Sacramento and The Observer are excellent for journalism students who want to learn and get entry-level experience with professional publications,” said Davis. Sena Christian, project manager for the collaborative, said, “When he pitches stories, he always comes from a solutions approach.” While his reporting has focused primarily on housing issues in the Black community, one of his solutions-oriented stories looked at a program providing health checks to pets that belong to unhoused people.

9 Millones, a digital publication focused on telling stories that matter to the Puerto Rican community, has published several stories on how women in Vieques, an island that is part of Puerto Rico, politically engage around environmental and land management issues that adversely affect the local population. As a result of this reporting and community engagement work, the publication received two grants. The first, from the local María Fund nonprofit, provided $30,000 in funding over two years. The second came from the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism’s 2023 Impact Fund for Reporting on Health Equity and Health Systems. 9 Millones received $9,000 to engage with the local community, write solutions stories such as “Amid lack of services, this organization is supporting cancer patients in Vieques,” and receive mentorship.

A digital publication focused on telling stories that matter to the Puerto Rican communities on the islands and in the U.S., 9 Millones earned the trust of local community organizers. After producing a solutions-oriented series of articles about the Alianza de Mujeres Viequenses’ community organizing around environmental issues and land use policies affecting the local population in Vieques, its journalists returned to present their work to people they had interviewed. The coverage, as well as their effort to transparently present their reporting process and its outcomes, led sources to express appreciation for the role of 9 Millones, as a small independent media outlet, in fairly representing their voices, activities and purpose. One person said they found the journalism “enriching” and another that they valued the trust built through the careful development of relationships with local people. The community organization Alianza de Mujeres Viequenses received funding from Puerto Rican foundations after it used the reporting in which it was featured to showcase the value of its work.