Sarah Alvarez has spent much of her career rethinking how local journalism can serve the public. After working as a civil rights attorney, then as a reporter and producer at the NPR station Michigan Public, she founded Outlier Media in 2016. Alvarez said the Detroit-based nonprofit newsroom was designed to fill information and accountability gaps in communities that were often overlooked by traditional news organizations.. One of its signature innovations, TXT OUTLIER, is a text message service Alvarez created to connect Detroiters directly with journalists and provide practical information on issues affecting their lives, from utility bills to housing and foreclosures.
Under Alvarez’s leadership, Outlier also expanded its Documenters program, an initiative that trains and pays residents to attend and report on public meetings to create a public record of local government decisions in places that don’t have press coverage. The initiative has engaged more than 700 Detroiters and since spread nationwide, creating new opportunities for civic participation and public accountability. Alvarez, who is now the James B. Steele Chair in Journalism Innovation at Temple University in Philadelphia, is working to replicate these types of programs in more newsrooms and communities beyond Detroit.
She spoke with the 2027 class of Nieman Fellows about building journalism around community information needs, using technology to make local news more useful, and creating mechanisms for feedback and input from the people they serve.
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The post Rethinking Local News: How Sarah Alvarez Is Building Journalism in Support of Community Needs appeared first on Nieman Reports.
Sarah Alvarez has spent much of her career rethinking how local journalism can serve the public. After working as a civil rights attorney, then as a reporter and producer at the NPR station Michigan Public, she founded Outlier Media in 2016. Alvarez said the Detroit-based nonprofit newsroom was designed to fill information and accountability gaps in communities that were often overlooked by traditional news organizations.. One of its signature innovations, TXT OUTLIER, is a text message service Alvarez created to connect Detroiters directly with journalists and provide practical information on issues affecting their lives, from utility bills to housing and foreclosures. Under Alvarez’s leadership, Outlier also expanded its Documenters program, an initiative that trains and pays residents to attend and report on public meetings to create a public record of local government decisions in places that don’t have press coverage. The initiative has engaged more than 700 Detroiters and since spread nationwide, creating new opportunities for civic participation and public accountability. Alvarez, who is now the James B. Steele Chair in Journalism Innovation at Temple University in Philadelphia, is working to replicate these types of programs in more newsrooms and communities beyond Detroit. She spoke with the 2027 class of Nieman Fellows about building journalism around community information needs, using technology to make local news more useful, and creating mechanisms for feedback and input from the people they serve. Edited excerpts: The post Rethinking Local News: How Sarah Alvarez Is Building Journalism in Support of Community Needs appeared first on Nieman Reports. Read More