Reveal launches newsroom collaborations in San Jose, New Orleans

Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting is joining newsrooms in San Jose and New Orleans – the first two of four cities across the United States – in launching ambitious investigative collaborations that showcase how local newsrooms can engage and empower communities.

Participating newsrooms in San Jose soon will begin mapping out a joint investigation under the auspices of the Reveal Local Labs initiative that will yield stories across platforms – in print, television, radio and online.

In San Jose, investigative teams from NBC Bay Area, Telemundo Área de la Bahía, KQED public radio and The Mercury News comprise the core partners in this first collaboration. Other ethnic media organizations also have been invited to participate.

The second collaboration will get underway soon in New Orleans, with three core partners: FOX 8 WVUE-TV, WWNO New Orleans Public Radio and NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune.

In the coming months, Reveal Local Labs plans to announce two more communities where Reveal’s partnership-building expertise will help foster future newsroom collaborations.

Reveal is partnering with Investigative Reporters and Editors to provide training to those involved and to other interested journalists. Reveal will host an IRE Watchdog Workshop on Sept. 29-30 with San Jose State University’s School of Journalism, one of four training events to be held in the host cities over the next two years.

Reveal Local Labs aims to help local newsrooms build trust across their communities by producing important investigations and amplifying the impact of their work through public engagement and Reveal’s extensive distribution network. The initiative is being led by Reveal Senior Editor Ziva Branstetter and Collaborations Editor Bobby Caina Calvan.

“This is an important opportunity to demonstrate how local newsrooms can work together to serve their communities,” Calvan said. “Investigative journalism is a core mission of our free press, and I’m so excited to begin working with our partners across the country.”

While collaboration partners will publish and broadcast locally, Reveal also will help draw a national audience to their work.

“So many of the issues that happen here reverberate far beyond California. This collaboration offers a unique opportunity to bring together our journalistic expertise to serve our audiences on radio, television, print and the web,” said Tonya Mosley, KQED Silicon Valley bureau chief.

“This collaboration brings us closer to the people we serve,” said Neil Chase, executive editor of The Mercury News. “Working with these partners makes our reporting and analysis more effective and the stories more impactful for our community.”

Through the initiative, Reveal will provide investigative training and mentorship, coach journalists in best practices of working together across platforms and engage the community throughout the collaboration.

“Creative partnerships are vital to the future of local journalism, and we’re thrilled to have the chance to work with CIR on this innovative project. Communities benefit when newsrooms work together to take investigative reporting to another level,” said Mark Lorando, editor of NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune and vice-president of content for NOLA Media Group.

“As the media industry evolves, so does how we gather and tell stories,” said Lee Zurik, an anchor and the chief investigative reporter for FOX 8 WVUE-TV. “This unique partnership will allow WVUE-TV to continue innovating and collaborating to produce impactful investigative journalism. We’re excited to work with CIR and our local partners on this project.”

“WWNO is excited to collaborate with Reveal and local partners, combining CIR’s investigative expertise and our local knowledge to dig into important stories in the greater New Orleans area,” said Tegan Wendland, WWNO’s acting news director.

This local news initiative is generously supported by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Democracy Fund, Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Jonathan Logan Family Foundation, Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Heising-Simons Foundation, News Integrity Initiative, and Reva and David Logan Foundation, among others.