Sam Cholke
@samcholke.bsky.social
Audience @ Institute for Nonprofit News, formerly Medill, IL Humanities, reporter/editor in Chicago
$80 a lead for a newsletter subscriber, very low outlook for conversions to donor. This project with Shasta Scout comparing methods to reach rural audiences convinced me we need way more experimentation. inn.org/research/cas...
Case study: How Shasta Scout is reaching rural audiences with direct mail
Shasta Scout is an independent, nonprofit news organization that provides crucial news coverage of rural Shasta County, California—a region that
inn.org
March 13, 2025 at 3:21 PM
$80 a lead for a newsletter subscriber, very low outlook for conversions to donor. This project with Shasta Scout comparing methods to reach rural audiences convinced me we need way more experimentation. inn.org/research/cas...
Reposted by Sam Cholke
“Every item that could be stripped out because it contained enough value to stand on its own was, sometimes by the very news organizations themselves," @samcholke.bsky.social writes.
News faces its final unbundling
"Every item that could be stripped out because it contained enough value to stand on its own was, sometimes by the very news organizations themselves."
buff.ly
December 18, 2024 at 9:10 PM
“Every item that could be stripped out because it contained enough value to stand on its own was, sometimes by the very news organizations themselves," @samcholke.bsky.social writes.
My @niemanlab.org prediction: News has to confront that where people build knowledge, cultivate understanding and discuss the news are increasingly separate spaces — the final "unbundling" of the news product.
www.niemanlab.org
December 18, 2024 at 8:10 PM
My @niemanlab.org prediction: News has to confront that where people build knowledge, cultivate understanding and discuss the news are increasingly separate spaces — the final "unbundling" of the news product.
Two bits I found really surprising working on new INN research: *ALL* posts from Facebook Pages were eliminated from the feed in Oct. '23 + 85% of nonprofit news orgs were founded during the era where social media dominated referral traffic ('07-'23). medium.com/innsights/ho...
How the INN Network weathered the decline of Facebook
Nonprofit news organizations are now increasingly reliant on Google to drive new audiences to their website and newsletter.
medium.com
December 6, 2024 at 4:23 PM
Two bits I found really surprising working on new INN research: *ALL* posts from Facebook Pages were eliminated from the feed in Oct. '23 + 85% of nonprofit news orgs were founded during the era where social media dominated referral traffic ('07-'23). medium.com/innsights/ho...
So cool! Would love to see how this map changes as more responses come in and curious to know more about how this map was made as there are some areas where no one w/ any relation to that place seems to have responded (is it one person defining a place in some cases?)
Chicago is called a “city of neighborhoods” — but where do they really begin and end?
Over 5,500 locals shared where they think the official boundaries should be: https://buff.ly/3ZizTrW
Over 5,500 locals shared where they think the official boundaries should be: https://buff.ly/3ZizTrW
December 4, 2024 at 4:42 PM
So cool! Would love to see how this map changes as more responses come in and curious to know more about how this map was made as there are some areas where no one w/ any relation to that place seems to have responded (is it one person defining a place in some cases?)
Reposted by Sam Cholke
This is so important. It’s one of the primary psychological factors driving news avoidance. So, it’s not good enough to explain the world. The way we work, the framing, tone & value to the audience is everything.
Crisis framing activates fatalism (a sense the world is beyond repair), which makes people apathetic.
A far better strategy for inspiring action is to show that change is not only desirable but also possible www.nytimes.com/2024/11/21/opinion/public-health-crisis-america.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share
A far better strategy for inspiring action is to show that change is not only desirable but also possible www.nytimes.com/2024/11/21/opinion/public-health-crisis-america.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share
Opinion | ‘We Tire Very Quickly of Being Told That Everything Is on Fire’
Why invoking a public health crisis too often can lead society astray.
www.nytimes.com
November 26, 2024 at 2:04 PM
This is so important. It’s one of the primary psychological factors driving news avoidance. So, it’s not good enough to explain the world. The way we work, the framing, tone & value to the audience is everything.
Part of my @niemanlab.org prediction for this year just came true.
Source: www.cambridge.org/core/element... thanks @snsoroka.bsky.social
Source: www.cambridge.org/core/element... thanks @snsoroka.bsky.social
November 21, 2024 at 2:43 AM
Part of my @niemanlab.org prediction for this year just came true.
Source: www.cambridge.org/core/element... thanks @snsoroka.bsky.social
Source: www.cambridge.org/core/element... thanks @snsoroka.bsky.social
Reposted by Sam Cholke
I‘ve begun putting together a starter pack of Chicago’s alternative, independent and community media. We have one of the richest media ecosystems anywhere around! go.bsky.app/Rn9XDbg
November 20, 2024 at 4:07 PM
I‘ve begun putting together a starter pack of Chicago’s alternative, independent and community media. We have one of the richest media ecosystems anywhere around! go.bsky.app/Rn9XDbg
Reposted by Sam Cholke
Added several more accounts to the IL news media starter pack bsky.app/starter-pack...
November 20, 2024 at 6:32 PM
Added several more accounts to the IL news media starter pack bsky.app/starter-pack...
There's probably a great book or podcast series in here. Why is reforming institutions so hard? CPD faced court orders, protests, reporting + hearings, new institutions to heighten accountability, threats of abolition. Do people not trust institutions because capture is easy and reform now so hard?
In the 5 1/2 years since CPD agreed to federal court oversight, there have been bursts of activity to address the brutality & civil rights violations that led to the decree.
But the record of actual accomplishment is meager, according to an investigation by @propublica.org & @wttw.bsky.social
But the record of actual accomplishment is meager, according to an investigation by @propublica.org & @wttw.bsky.social
In Five Years, Chicago Has Barely Made Progress on Its Court-Ordered Police Reforms. Here’s Why.
Chicago police agreed to judicial oversight in 2019. Since then, a series of mayors and police chiefs let efforts languish and no one in a position of oversight has pushed forcefully to keep the proce...
news.wttw.com
November 20, 2024 at 4:13 PM
There's probably a great book or podcast series in here. Why is reforming institutions so hard? CPD faced court orders, protests, reporting + hearings, new institutions to heighten accountability, threats of abolition. Do people not trust institutions because capture is easy and reform now so hard?
Reposted by Sam Cholke
If you're looking for fresh, independent insight on current events, try these nonprofit news outlets. They're members of the Institute for Nonprofit News. bsky.app/starter-pack...
November 15, 2024 at 6:51 PM
If you're looking for fresh, independent insight on current events, try these nonprofit news outlets. They're members of the Institute for Nonprofit News. bsky.app/starter-pack...