11 Nov 2025 5 min read

🔶 News Alchemists #42: "Models for sustainability. Proven tactics, strategies... and an aspiration"

Hello and welcome back to the News Alchemists newsletter!

And a special welcome to new subscribers from Faktograf, The Ilkley Journal, Le Télégramme, The Globe and Mail, Ghost, Change.org, Contribly, WAN-IFRA, the University of Wyoming, Watch Medier, Antwerp University, and all of you brave souls working independently.

Whether you found your way here through the recommendation of JournalismUK (Thanks again, Jacob!), via my love letter to Ghost and fellow Ghosters, or thanks to a reader who forwarded you last week's newsletter to help me celebrate my birthday (🫶), I hope you will like it around here.

I didn't think it was possible but I've probably spent even more time than usual on LinkedIn lately (for reasons that may or may not include an unhealthy competition with some friends over Zip and Queens). This had two main consequences:

First, a new bout of FOMO for all the cool events and conferences I'm missing out on this autumn: the IPI Congress in Vienna, the NPA Summit in Chicago, the upcoming Splice Beta in Chiang Mai that just announced its programme with sessions like: "How we’re rebuilding local media through trust and connection" and "Your reporting is nothing without impact. This is how you stand up for a community through journalism" 🤩.

Secondly, I found so much hope and inspiration in posts by people in my network that all seven links today are LinkedIn posts that I didn't want you to miss.

Speaking about events: I'll be in Utrecht at the end of the month to give a talk at an event organised by SVDJ, the Dutch Journalism Fund. To my many Dutch-based readers: let me know if you'll be there! 🇳🇱

And: I've started thinking of proposals to submit for the 2026 International Journalism Festival in Perugia. Are you working on a proposal too? Should we collaborate? I'd love to see as many sessions about audiences, about impact, about creating value for people, about innovative approaches to fostering engagement and connection making into the programme. Let me know.

Alright, it's time for the links. See you next week!

⚠️ Next week's newsletter will arrive on Wednesday rather than Tuesday because of a deadline I'm working towards. Apologies for the heavy disruption to your weekly routine.

1. Models for sustainability. Proven tactics, strategies... and an aspiration 👉 LINK

🧞Khalil A. Cassimally gave this excellent presentation at the African Investigative Journalism Conference (AIJC) last week, curating insights on sustainability from other brilliant minds I often cite in this newsletter. The aspiration? "A stronger journalism with people, for people."

2. How different would journalism look if we accepted that humans are emotional beings, not rational ones? 👉 LINK

🧞Eliza Anyangwe is the editor-in-chief of 🧩 The Fuller Project, a global newsroom dedicated to catalysing positive change for women. In this post, she explores the power of emotion for social change, starting from reflections on news avoidance and the impact of AI, and leading with a powerful question: "Can we set Fuller apart not just by what we cover but how our coverage makes you feel?"

Replace 'Fuller' with the name of your own organisation and consider asking the same question at your next editorial meeting.

3. I asked the audience to write their "last year in one sentence." The results have been an incredible mix of painful, honest, and reflective. 👉 LINK

I already told you in #36 that I think 🧞Matt Kiser of 🧩 WTF Just Happened Today? is a genius. Just in case you needed further proof, here's Matt's latest experiment in engaging his audience.

4. Don’t say you can help someone fix their business until you’ve run one yourself 👉 LINK

In #22, I shared a post by 🧞Max Kabat titled 'Local journalism is in the wrong business', which is one of the links you've clicked on the most since the start of this newsletter.

Then in #37, I shared an interview with Max about the success of The Big Bend Sentinel, an old local newspaper he and his wife bought in 2019 and turned into a wonderful story by "getting out of just being in the local news and information business, and into the business of building a brand that builds community."

Back in September they sold the newspaper, and Max started sharing a series of lessons they learned through this experience: "As I process it all I started keeping a list of hot takes as they popped into my head. Part therapeutic/cathartic. Part something I thought others might find to be helpful."

This is lesson one. And I can't wait to read the next ones.

5. The Concept Library – a space that brings together work, conversation, and community. 👉 LINK

Just another example of a media organisation that opens its doors to the community by creating a physical space to meet, discuss, and create together. Oh, and it has a bar too.

🧩 Kosovo 2.0 is an online magazine "committed to explanatory, contextual and narrative journalism, where storytelling is not just about documenting the world around us, but also contributing to its reimagining." Post by managing editor 🧞Gentiana Paçarizi.

6. Journalists from all over Europe are putting tiny seeds to good use 👉 LINK

I was happy to come across this post by 🧞Alex Enășescu because it highlights some examples of small independent media outlets from across Europe that are doing interesting people-centred work – and that I had not heard of.

7. It's time to promote your Audience Engagement lead to Editor-in-Chief 👉 LINK

Judging by the amount of reactions and reposts, there's a good chance you've already come across this post by 🧞Dmitry Shishkin. But it's so good that I decided I'll take the risk.

"Ultimately, the future relevance of any media outlet hinges on its ability to build and sustain a loyal, engaged audience. [...] It doesn’t really matter what your business model is, nor does it really matter what your niche is - the audience is something that actually unites all of us in a media business. Audience Development/Engagement experts' perspective has been contributing to newsrooms shifting their focus from mere production to impact and service. They embody the principle that the audience is not a passive recipient, but the defining factor of success. This dedication to audience-centricity is why I advocate for their promotion."