Newsroom transformation can be a daunting concept, especially in a bigger organisation. It can feel like trying to turn a hulking ship around in choppy waters. That’s why incubating initiatives with smaller teams and then spreading the training and knowledge is often more effective — it’s like sending the rowboat ahead of the ship to show it the way. 

My last Webinar featured two such examples of that: Bergens Tidende in Norway transformed breaking news and ultimately its newsroom by cycling everyone through breaking news shifts, and Valor Econômico in Brazil did the same with a growth desk. In this newsletter, we’ll talk about how they did it and how other media companies can incubate transformative ideas.

And speaking of newsroom transformation, my fall master class schedule has just gone live! We have an amazing line-up of speakers (with more on the way) and will tackle such subjects as what it means to transform your newsroom, how to become more relevant by understanding your audience, and case studies and lessons on newsroom reorganisation and transformation. It takes place over three modules in October. Sign up today.

E-mail me anytime: amalie.nash@inma.org. 

Amalie

P.S.: Have you downloaded my report Strategies for Continuously Transforming Your Newsroom? It focuses on how to position your newsroom for the future and how to instill the concept of transformation into the muscle memory of your organisation.

Breaking news team injects urgency at Bergens Tidende

Prior to the pandemic, Bergens Tidende considered itself digital-first — but still hung on to print mentality, said Liv Solli Okkenhaug, managing editor of Bergens Tidende, part of Schibsted. Breaking news was handled by the same few people.

But when the pandemic hit, everyone became a breaking news journalist, she said. 

“That’s when we started this transformation,” Okkenhaug said. “That’s where we learned a lot. A lot of journalists were rusty and did not know how to keep up. Many of the workflows were ineffective.”

Bergens Tidende soon reorganised its newsroom with multiple goals, including becoming more urgent. All 100 or so journalists cycled through breaking news shifts and received training.

“We realised we needed to change the culture, too,” she said. “We needed to make winning the news battles, both big and small, more prestigious.”

Bergens Tidende launched mandatory boot camps to instill a breaking news mentality, covering everything from how to approach sources on a scene to what equipment to bring to how to get news out quickly. Leaders also were trained in running breaking news coverage. 

Supporting that culture: tools. The data journalists created a breaking news bot that helps journalists who are covering breaking news.

The end results: month-by-month increases in Bergens Tidende’s key metric of daily active subscribers. Breaking news also appeals to younger readers, Okkenhaug said.

Beyond breaking news, the initiative spread across the newsroom. Reporters overall are more urgent, more focused on user needs and more attuned to metrics, Okkenhaug said. 

“The leaps we have taken in competence and tools means we’re ready for anything.” she said. “What I’m most proud of is changing the culture.”  

Have you done something similar? E-mail me: amalie.nash@inma.org.

Growth Desk increases authority, relevance at Valor Econômico

The challenge Valor Econômico faced: how to become more digitally agile and diversify its audience traffic sources to reach new users and expand its reach and relevance.

It started with a focus on metrics and SEO, said Catherine Vieira, executive editor. But it soon became apparent it made sense to create a Growth Desk.

“We tried a lot of things that weren’t working so we wanted to create this desk,” Vieira said. “And everyone needed to come to the desk for a time to understand the routines and do this type of work.”

Diogo Max, journalist for SEO and growth, said the Growth Desk has been key to Valor Econômico’s digital transformation. Journalists on the team start with an early morning meeting that covers the top stories and what readers are interested in (via Google Trends). That meeting sets the tone for the day.

However, the team’s goal isn’t to just chase trending stories. It aims to fill gaps in information in Brazil, Max said.

“Search results showed people wanted more detailed information,” Max said. “There were clear signs for explainers to be written. They wanted to know what happened.”

A key component of the Growth Desk’s routine: The entire team meets every Friday for an hour to openly discuss what went well and what could be improved upon.

The results have been impressive.

However, there is still work to be done, Max said.

Journalists across the room are doing more explainers. But continuing to replicate the Growth Desk’s success across the newsroom remains a challenge, Max said.

“We still don’t have the solution for the optimal training duration,” he said. “It’s not just about metrics — it’s also about culture. The Growth Desk has helped to initiate a digital culture. The Growth Desk is part of a broader strategy.”

Do you have a desk focused on growth? E-mail me: amalie.nash@inma.org. 

Now for advice: how to successfully incubate

Bergens Tidende and Valor Econômico have seen lasting change by starting small and slowly training journalists on how to be more digitally oriented. 

I see that as an effective form of incubation. Instead of trying to get the entire newsroom to change at once, start smaller. Here’s how that can work:

• Come up with an idea or hypothesis: Develop a concept you want to test within a smaller group. This can be an idea already proven with data — like the importance of breaking news. Or it can be an untested idea, such as whether publishing more videos will bring in a younger audience.

• Form a team: To be successful, you want to start with people who are already bought in and excited to be part of the initiative. Assign them to the incubation team full-time — not just as part of their regular duties.

• Establish what success looks like: Get specific on what you’re hoping to accomplish and how you’ll know when you are successful. Rely on metrics, not anecdotal evidence. 

• Set a timeline: This is not a permanent assignment; rather, think of it as a sprint or short-term experiment. Write up a plan that includes markers for where you hope to see progress. 

• Assess the results: Analyse the results at regular intervals and be transparent with the team about those results. Pivot as needed.

• Operationalise what you learned: Once the incubation period is over, determine whether it makes sense to bring in a new team or cycle new people through — or whether it’s time to take the learnings and spread them across the newsroom. This will depend on the nature of the idea and how easy it may be to quickly get the rest of the newsroom on board.

Mark your calendars

Upcoming INMA events that shouldn’t be missed:

• October 10-17: Newsroom Transformation Master Class. We will dive into metrics and KPIs that today’s journalists must know if news brands are to deliver impact and influence in a fast-changing world. We will look at establishing newsroom-wide KPIs, creating a data-fluent newsroom culture, understanding what data can and can’t tell us, and using data to guide decisions on what to stop doing. Register now.

• September 23-27: INMA’s next in-person event, Media Innovation Week, takes place in Helsinki, Finland. I’ll be there! And we’ll talk about future-proofing sustainable news brands in the sustainability capital of Europe. Learn more and register.

About this newsletter

Today’s newsletter is written by Amalie Nash, based in Denver, Colorado, United States, and lead for the INMA Newsroom Transformation Initiative. Amalie will share research, case studies, and thought leadership on the topic of bringing newsrooms into the business of news.

This newsletter is a public face of the Newsroom Transformation Initiative by INMA, outlined here. E-mail Amalie at amalie.nash@inma.org or connect with her on INMA’s Slack channel with thoughts, suggestions, and questions.

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