PHILADELPHIA — Looking out the window on my flight home from a conference in Philadelphia, I wonder, how can the pilot navigate through the clouds?
Thousands of feet in the air, I wouldn’t dare take my phone out of airplane mode to check. This is only my second solo flight, and in general, I’m a rule follower.
So for now, I’m grateful that someone else is at the helm, that I can be in seat 17C, where I have time to think about my experience at the CLEF Convening, a gathering of several newsrooms that have received grants from the Lenfest Institute to enhance their ability to listen to their audience.
For too long, newsrooms have had a parent’s mentality — we know what’s best for you, eat your vegetables or else.
Many newsrooms have been flying blindly, but not with the same navigation tools that I sure hope my pilot has. Newsrooms have been giving readers what they think is best without seeking much guidance.
It’s just plain dangerous, and it’s not effective. It’s not working in newsrooms across the country. Take the fact that so many newsrooms were shocked when President Donald Trump was elected.
At the conference I was talking to another attendee. I told her where I grew up (Butler, Pennsylvania), where I went to school (Erie, Pennsylvania), and where I now live (Mansfield). Then I told her what I’ve covered in that time and how I’ve listened to the people around me.
“You weren’t surprised by the outcome, were you?” she said.
“No, not really,” I responded.
Whether you love or hate Donald Trump? I don’t care. This isn’t a column about the president.
It’s about how newsrooms and the need to improve their listening skills. Reporters need to listen to their audience more and better.
Hearken’s Julia Brandel encourages newsrooms to adopt a “servant’s mentality” instead of a parent’s. She tells reporters to listen to what their reader’s want and to let it inform their work.
Richland Source has long taken advantage of in-person meetups and invited our readers into our newsroom for events like our Newsroom After Hours concert series and a Community Baby Shower. Last May, we increased our ability to listen with the implementation of Open Source, a platform powered by Hearken that allows readers to suggest stories to the newsroom.
While we haven’t been able to personally respond to every submission, I have personally read every one, and that has informed the newsroom’s reporting.
Hearken has allowed Richland Source to move closer towards adopting a servant’s mentality, letting our readers be our boss.
Other newsrooms across the country are doing this, too. They are working with Hearken, Ground Source, the Listening Post Collective and the Coral Project to become better listeners.
Another speaker at the conference, Andrew Losowsky of the Coral Project, said newsrooms need to prioritize keeping promises.
So I won’t make any outlandish promises that I can’t keep, but I will say this: I promise to keep my ears open. I will listen and do my best to cover this community in a way that truly reflects what our audience is communicating.
If you want to reach out, please submit questions below or email me at tracy@richlandsource.com.
