The New England Newspaper and Press Association assisted with Radically Rural’s community journalism program run by The Keene Sentinel on Sept. 22-23.
Each year, the Radically Rural summit brings together experts to share ideas and network with attendees on topics of importance to small communities. The tracks include community journalism, rural health care, clean energy, land use, downtowns, entrepreneurship, and arts and culture.
The journalism sessions focused on building trust for local news, tapping philanthropy to support newsrooms, and tech and techniques that can help journalists do a better job, including investigative tools.
The event was staged in-person and online. Overall, Radically Rural attracted 457 registrants from 40 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada. The journalism sessions drew 86 registrants from 27 states. A Knight Foundation sponsorship allowed 30 journalists to attend at no cost, and, of those who registered, 56 came from communities of less than 25,000 population.
Terrence Williams, president, and COO of The Sentinel thanked NENPA for its marketing support. Each year, NENPA members can attend Radically Rural at a discount.
“One of the wonderful aspects of belonging to NENPA is the staff’s willingness to help advance the cause of journalism in any manner possible,” Williams said. “The organization’s connections to the journalism community, not just in New England, but through associations throughout the country is an invaluable resource.”