In response to the enormous impact of the pandemic on news organizations and communities around the world, API created a special dashboard in our analytics tool Metrics for News to help newsrooms assess the impact of their COVID-19 coverage. Today we’re excited to announce 20 news organizations will receive free access to that data to assist in their coronavirus coverage strategies.
Metrics for News provides powerful journalism analytics that go beyond traditional traffic metrics like pageviews. It’s a strategic tool built around newsroom priorities to grow audiences, deepen engagement and drive subscriptions, and it’s designed so every user can see how their work contributes to larger organizational goals.
This new topic-specific Coronavirus Dashboard can help publishers learn what coverage is connecting with their audiences. It can help them identify what’s working (or not working), how their coronavirus coverage intersects with other topics they cover and how their public service journalism resonates with some audiences over others. When combined with their local knowledge and editorial experience, this data becomes even more powerful. It allows them to create or refine content strategies, identify what types of coverage build loyalty and, ultimately, drive subscriptions.
The 20 selected newsrooms came from a pool of 72 applicants who applied for free access within one week of our launching the new Coronavirus Dashboard. In their applications, newsrooms identified why they wanted to use Metrics for News.
“Our interest in Metrics for News is based on informing our journalists of which stories make a difference to our readership and drive subscriptions,” wrote Lucas Presson, assistant publisher of the Southeast Missourian. “Our strategy comes down to frequency. The more we can get readers to return to our website, the better opportunity we have to convert them to subscribers.”
For Carolina Public Press, Director of Audience and Engagement Ellen Acconcia said her newsroom would use Metrics for News “to ensure that we are delivering the news to our audiences in the ways in which they want it,” and “to keep on top of trends and topics related to the coronavirus and to adjust our strategies based on hard data.”
API has made the coronavirus dashboard available to these 20 newsrooms for up to four months. This program also includes training on the tool, strategic coaching sessions and access to API experts. If we can expand free use of the tool to more newsrooms we will do so. The selected newsrooms include:
- VTDigger.org, a nonprofit organization and project of The Vermont Journalism Trust that focuses on statewide watchdog reporting
- Southeast Missourian, flagship newspaper for Rust Communications in Cape Girardeau, Missouri
- The Colorado Independent, a nonprofit independent media organization based in Denver
- Rivard Report, a nonprofit local news site serving San Antonio, Texas
- Carolina Public Press, an independent nonprofit news organization in Asheville, North Carolina
- Advocate Media, a local news source for four neighborhoods in Dallas, Texas
- The Daily Memphian, an online source for the community of Memphis, Tennessee
- North Carolina Health News, a nonprofit independent news organization covering health care across North Carolina
- Northern California Public Media, a public media organization with PBS and NPR affiliates based in Sonoma County, California
- Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, a daily newspaper in Tupelo, Mississippi
- The Altamont Enterprise, a weekly newspaper in Albany County, New York
- Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, a daily newspaper in Little Rock, Arkansas
- Voice of OC, a nonprofit news agency serving Orange County, California
- Albuquerque Journal, a daily newspaper in Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Times Union, a daily newspaper in Albany, New York
- Crosscut.com, a nonprofit online newspaper based in Seattle
- The Santa Rosa Press Democrat, a daily newspaper in Santa Rosa, California
- Detour Media LLC, local news startup and email newsletter based in Detroit
- Documented, a nonprofit news outlet dedicated to New York City’s immigrant community
- The Gazette, a daily newspaper in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
For more information on Metrics for News, email team@metricsfornews.com.
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