08 Apr 2025 6 min read

News Alchemists #14: "Stop pretending journalism matters on its own"

Hello and welcome back to the News Alchemists newsletter!

I'm preparing to fly to Perugia, and my inbox, Whatsapp, and LinkedIn DMs are full of many variations of let's catch up, let's have a coffee, etc. If you are also in Perugia this week, keep scrolling after the seven links to see where we can meet.

Last week, I opened the newsletter by sharing some of my recent struggles with stress and procrastination, and judging by some of the replies I received, I'm not alone:

❝ Thank you for what you shared about procrastination. It is a struggle point of mine too. I didn't realise it was linked to stress, but that makes sense. I am looking forward to listening to the podcast.❞

❝ I really like the newsletter. Firstly the content is good, but secondly, I really like the honesty of it. Like how in the last one you talked about your procrastination: that sounded very familiar.❞

❝ Ah man, sorry to hear about the procrastination and stress. So hard to get a newsletter out the door and maintain everything else in life. Also hear you on the 'financial concerns' part. It's really hard for people trying to pursue less conventional routes, build up their own organisations without major outside funding etc. I've struggled a lot with that.❞

I don't know if it's really true that 'a trouble shared is a trouble halved' but your replies made me feel less alone. Thank you.

Time for the links, which this week are even more amazing than usual. Believe me, I picked them.

⚠️ Heads-up:

Next week I'm taking a break from writing the newsletter because #Perugia. I'll be back in your inbox in two weeks, on 22 April, with a fresh dose of hope and links.

1. Stop pretending journalism matters on its own 👉 LINK

When an article has a subheading that reads "Helping people > telling stories", you can be sure it has my attention. This post by 🧞Patrick Boehler made me think 'I wish I wrote that.'

"The strongest media organizations I've encountered understand that people don't seek out journalism for journalism's sake - they want solutions to problems, ways to improve their lives, recognition, community. [...] I've found this realization oddly liberating. When we stop pretending that journalism matters on its own and start focusing on being genuinely useful to people, we open up exciting new possibilities. [...] The question isn't whether journalism matters. The question is: are we helping anyone? If we're not, maybe it's time to stop pretending that we do."

2. Toward equitable models of journalism sustainability 👉 LINK

Sometimes your strongest held beliefs need a good ~~kick in the butt~~ reality check to be reminded that the world is more complicated than your simplifications. That's what happened to me when I read this piece by 🧞Madeleine Bair, who created 🧩 El Tímpano in 2018 to serve Latino and Mayan immigrants in the Bay Area (California).

Since I started working on News Alchemists, I put forward a simple theory: our journalism must create real value for people's lives so that, in seeing that value, they will want to pay for it, and our journalism will find opportunities for sustainability. The theory is not wrong. (Link #6, and other examples shared in previous editions are proof of that.) But what happens when the people you want to serve simply don't have money to pay? They still deserve journalism that helps their lives, no? But they are not in the position to help you pay the bills, so reader revenue is not a viable option for your business. What do you do?

El Tímpano found a solution in their Civic Partnerships strategy that earns them revenue "from government agencies and nonprofit service providers who value El Tímpano’s trusted relationship with thousands of “hard-to-reach” community members." But the real takeaway, Madeleine says, is that "there is no one model of sustainability for news outlets. If we want a thriving news ecosystem that supports a vibrant and equitable democracy, it will take not only diverse models of journalism, but diverse models of revenue, and it takes time to develop new ones."

3. New engagement metric drop: the email CC. 👉 LINK

Simple but brilliant idea by 🧞Simon Galperin and 🧩 The Jersey Bee to track engagement and, dare I say, impact.

🧩 Pamplonews is a Whatsapp-only daily local newsletter that tells subscribers the need-to-know cultural news in the city of Pamplona, Spain. It's a great project, and I especially love the philosophy behind it that founder 🧞Juan Andrés Muñoz shared last year in a LinkedIn post: "Pamplonews has grown by surgically focusing on what makes people's lives better and striving for covering what unites people, rather than what separates them. At the end of the day, it's about leaving a positive mark in the world, and highlighting what is inspiring, helpful, what makes us better."

5. Our new tagline is: Making sense of it all. 👉 LINK

Last week, 🧩 Vox announced a new tagline and a new mission statement. I love the explanation in this post by chief of staff 🧞Nisha Chittal: "More than ever, we know that audiences are feeling news fatigue and overwhelm – many people are telling us they simply don't consume the news at all anymore. At Vox we want to be the antidote to that: we're not going to inundate you with push alerts and panic-inducing headlines – we're here to help you understand what really matters. So our new tagline & mission statement are about what Vox can do for you in this current era of information overload."

6. We asked for 10,000 new subscribers in Slovakia. We got 24,000. Here’s why it worked 👉 LINK

In the last edition of this newsletter that I sent as a LinkedIn post before moving to the current email format, I had shared the exciting story of 🧩 Denník N, a news organisation from Slovakia that gained 10,000 new subscribers in just four days thanks to a bold campaign it run for its 10th anniversary.

By the end of the campaign, ten days later, the new subscribers were 24,000. In this article, 🧞Veronica Munk, director of innovation and new markets at Denník N, shares five things they learned from this experience. My favourite: "People will invest in a better future if you ask them directly. Audiences care about their own future and believe in free media – but they need to be invited to take part in its operation. When framed as a collective effort, people respond."

7. Tell me what you want: why every piece of media needs a call to action 👉 LINK

"Your writing is probably amazing. You just didn’t give your reader anything to do with it." This love letter to call to actions by 🧞Rishad Patel – or CTAs if you like the jargon – is the perfect way to close the loop I opened with Patrick Boehler's newsletter at the top: "If you’re working in media, you already know your job is to provide useful information. But too often, we stop at 'informing' the audience. We forget to serve them. A good CTA helps people move from curiosity to clarity — or from interest to intention."

What's the call to action that will help your audience move from interest to intention when they read your next story?

More links? 📚 Check out the previous editions

Let's hang out in Perugia?

💬 On Thursday, I will be on a panel about "Journalism’s public value: balancing individual metrics and societal impact". I'd love to see you there!

🍻 On Friday, I will join a bunch of friends and the fantastic Splice community at Quei Bravi Ragazzi from 6pm. Come say hi!

👐 On Saturday, I still have availability for one or two free mentorship sessions. I'd especially love to support anyone who is navigating difficult career choices or is looking to redefine themselves professionally. Sounds like you? Just reply to this email and let's meet.

🫨 First time in Perugia and feeling a little overwhelmed by it all? Reply and let me know what is stressing you out. It's gonna be my eighth festival, so I have loads of tips to share.

(Not in Perugia this week? Remember that all sessions are live-streamed and available on demand shortly after the Festival.)

The relationship between journalism and the people it aims to serve is broken. But we can heal it if we learn to put audiences and communities at the centre of everything we do. The News Alchemists newsletter wants to help you to do just that.

Every week I share seven links to give you some hope and to introduce you to the many smart, kind, and courageous people (🧞) who strive every day to use journalism as a force for good in society – and to the organisations (🧩) that show us that a different journalism is possible, and profitable.

To respond to this newsletter, just hit reply. I love hearing from you and reading your questions, comments, and suggestions.

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