Start Here: Don’t overthink it. Do these things.
PHASE 1: GET THE RIGHT PEOPLE IN THE ROOM
☐ Identify 3–6 potential partners
☐ Make sure they:
Produce original content
Are willing to collaborate (even a little)
Serve overlapping or complementary audiences
☐ Hold a first meeting (keep it simple)
👉 Ask:
Why are we doing this?
What do we each want out of it?
What can we realistically contribute?
PHASE 2: DEFINE YOUR FIRST PROJECT (KEEP IT SMALL)
☐ Choose your starting model:
Option A: Content Sharing (easiest)
☐ Share stories you’re already producing on a topic
Option B: Co-Reporting
☐ Pick ONE topic
☐ Divide reporting roles
☐ Define:
Topic: __________________
What you’re producing: __________________
Who’s doing what: __________________
Deadline (be realistic): __________________
PHASE 3: BE HONEST ABOUT CAPACITY
☐ Each partner says what they can actually do
☐ Agree on a deadline
☐ Create a Plan B (DO NOT SKIP THIS)
If work falls through:
☐ Pool funds to hire a freelancer
☐ Assign a lead editor
☐ Align on editorial direction upfront
👉 (This avoids confusion and conflicting edits—critical in collaboratives)
PHASE 4: SET SIMPLE RULES
☐ Agree on:
Can we share each other’s content?
Can we edit/localize it?
How do we credit it?
☐ Use a simple partnership agreement (don’t overcomplicate it)
👉 Remember:
Content stays owned by the original outlet
Attribution is always required
PHASE 5: ASSIGN OWNERSHIP
☐ Assign:
1 Lead
1 Backup
☐ Decide:
Rotation schedule (monthly / quarterly / per project)
☐ Responsibilities include:
Scheduling meetings
Following up
Keeping things moving
👉 No owner = no progress
PHASE 6: SET UP BASIC INFRASTRUCTURE
☐ Choose:
Content sharing method (Plucky, Google Drive, etc.)
Communication (Slack, email, etc.)
Meeting cadence (monthly or biweekly)
☐ Decide:
How often you’ll share content
Where content will live
PHASE 7: PUBLISH SOMETHING (FAST)
☐ Set a goal: publish within 30 days
☐ Start with:
Shared stories OR
A small joint piece
☐ Create a shared identifier:
Project name
Tagline or boilerplate
👉 (Helps audiences understand this is collaborative work)
PHASE 8: ALIGN ON STANDARDS
☐ Agree to basic editorial standards:
Accuracy (verify facts)
Fairness (represent perspectives responsibly)
Transparency (label and disclose clearly)
Independence (no undue influence)
☐ Decide:
How corrections will be handled
How conflicts of interest will be disclosed
PHASE 9: CHECK IN + ADJUST
After your first project:
☐ What worked?
☐ What didn’t?
☐ What should we change?
☐ Adjust:
Roles
Expectations
Workflow
👉 Collaboratives evolve—nothing has to be perfect upfront
PHASE 10: BUILD FROM THERE
Once something is working:
☐ Expand content sharing
☐ Try deeper co-reporting
☐ Bring in new partners
☐ Consider more formal structure (bylaws, committees, etc.)
COMMON PITFALLS TO AVOID
☐ Waiting for perfect structure before starting
☐ Not being honest about capacity
☐ No deadline
☐ No Plan B
☐ No clear ownership
☐ Too many projects at once
BOTTOM LINE
👉 Start small
👉 Be honest
👉 Assign ownership
👉 Publish something
Need help getting this moving?
These steps are based on real-world experience building and running newsroom collaboratives.
If your group wants support with:
Structuring your collaborative
Facilitating early conversations
Launching your first project
👉 The Granite State News Collaborative offers collaborative consulting and coaching.
Tools like Plucky can also help streamline content sharing once you’re up and running.
Learn more: www.collaborativenh.org/consulting