Telling stories of how communities and businesses respond to crises should not be mistaken for just "good news" journalism. It can help inspire your readers and make them feel empowered
With crises like the covid-19 pandemic, it is often tempting to cover only the negative and tragic stories. However, a relentless stream of negative news will leave your readers feeling depressed and helpless.
Another approach is possible. The managing director of Nigeria Health Watch, Vivianne Ihekweazu spoke about how solution journalism helped her organisation cover health and the pandemic on a webinar hosted by ICFJ. You can find the main points here.
According to Ihekweazu, the benefits of solution journalism are two-fold. It shines a light on affected communities rather than just the larger problem and holds the government to account by highlighting its responsibility in solving the challenges. She also stresses the importance of "not just to do PR" around the solution but to actively scrutinise it to see whether it works.
"The reason for doing it is to find answers to social problems. That has to be your north star," she says in the article.
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