Community Information Commons Aims to Rebuild Trust and Belonging in Local Media
Empower Media Exchange Launches the Community Information Commons: A New Model for Inclusive, Community-Driven Journalism
Empower Media Exchange (EMX) has announced the launch of the Community Information Commons (The Commons), a groundbreaking initiative designed to rebuild trust in local journalism. Centered around collaboration and transparency, the initiative aims to strengthen belonging through inclusive, community-centered storytelling.
Born from years of community listening and feedback, The Commons represents a living, evolving space – both digital and social. Facilitation will allow people from all walks of life to co-create the news that informs their communities, shaping a more responsive media ecosystem.
“Right now, The Commons is a blank slate,” says Ruby Jones, President & CEO of Empower Media Exchange. “It will grow with the community and respond to the needs of the people as we collectively navigate changing social, economic and political landscapes.”
Restoring Trust Through Inclusion
The Community Information Commons was conceived in response to exclusionary and gatekeeping practices that have historically undermined public trust in newsrooms.
Jones, who has worked across Colorado’s media landscape, experienced firsthand how selective coverage and advertiser-driven decisions erode credibility.
“Local news coverage shouldn’t be decided by who is paying for advertising,” she says. “There are so many wonderful organizations doing the work in our communities. Especially now, with federal funding shifts and budget shortfalls. Nonprofits are stretched to the max.”
“When nonprofits share their stories, it can bolster support for their work and fundraising efforts. When stories are restricted to those who can afford to pay – whether because of newsroom budgets, preference or bias – it creates avoidable gaps in coverage. The goal of the Community Information Commons is to change that – with innovation and collaboration.”
Recognizing that local news ecosystems are only as strong as the stories they share, Jones developed a framework for strategic narrative to help build nonprofit capacity. Through storytelling labs and office hours, EMX enables nonprofit outreach, advocacy and fundraising, while helping to leverage the power of storytelling.
Building Belonging in a Fragmented Era
According to research by Harvard’s Human Flourishing Program and the American Psychological Association, belonging is one of the strongest predictors of individual well-being and community resilience. Yet, more than half of Americans report feeling socially disconnected or undervalued. The Commons aims to counter this divide by empowering people to co-create the information systems that shape their understanding of the world.
“Building frameworks for inclusion, belonging, empathy — we need organizations to be behind these social movements. Organizations have a responsibility to be part of social change. We need to figure out how to measure empathy and compassion so that it matters to the people in charge. Because it does matter, and it’s becoming a priority to the newer generations,” says Megan Henshall, Events Strategic Solutions Lead at Google.
Henshell’s determination stemmed from a comprehensive study on “Building Belonging,” led by Storycraft Lab in partnership with GoogleXI.
Naomi Clare Crellin, CEO of Storycraft Lab, presented the team’s findings, at the American Press Institute’s Summit on Inclusion, Belonging and Local Leadership in Washington D.C. this October.
“We learned that true connectedness comes when we allow attendee to follow their interests and find meaning for themselves, encountering and engaging with others along the way,” Crellin writes. “While communities are spaces where we can gather, belonging is the outcome of communities when they are successful.”
“Belonging doesn’t happen in silos,” Jones says, after attending Crellin’s presentation. “It happens when people work together, share information transparently, and build understanding across differences. This project invites everyone – students, seniors, professionals, parents and more – to take part in redefining what community media can be.”
A Broad Coalition of Voices
The Community Information Commons will be guided by a Community Advisory Board representing a cross-section of Colorado’s Front Range. The board will span youth and college students, professionals, educators, seniors and civic leaders. It will provide input on editorial direction, outreach priorities and inclusive coverage strategies.
Through partnerships with local organizations and media outlets – including the Colorado News Collaborative’s “On the Ground Colorado” story-sharing resource, KGNU Community Radio, the Colorado Ethnic Media Exchange, local journalism associations and more – The Commons will serve as a source for hyperlocal information sharing. It will focus on key quality-of-life areas, such as education, healthcare, housing, financial services and the local workforce.
Lowering Barriers to Access and Participation
The Community Information Commons builds upon EMX’s broader mission of fostering community-centered media, civic engagement and workforce development.
As part of the new initiative, the nonprofit’s community-fueled multimedia co-op will activate its digital newsroom, Front Range Focus, positioning it to serve as a storytelling platform. With “Community” space already reserved, individuals can contribute firsthand perspectives, multimedia stories and local data insights.
By lowering barriers to trustworthy and accurate information, and co-creating news with the people it represents, the effort will increase public interest journalism’s accessibility and sustainability.
A Call for Collaboration
“It’s so refreshing to step out of limitations and into an environment where people recognize the importance of collaboration and want to work together. We’re putting purpose over profit, and that feels amazing,” says Jones.
“Information sharing is a vital aspect of a healthy community, and with so much distrust in media right now, that’s needed more than ever. News belongs to all of us.”
EMX is currently seeking Community Advisory Board members and hosting community listening sessions across Colorado’s Front Range. In an era defined by division and digital noise, the Community Information Commons is a movement toward shared understanding and collective progress. It is an intentional effort to create a space where transparency, collaboration and belonging can take center stage.
By bridging the gap between institutions and individuals, The Commons reflects the idea that communities thrive when everyone has access to accurate information – and, most importantly, the opportunity to be heard.
Editor’s note: To learn more about the Community Information Commons or apply for the Community Advisory Board, visit empowermediaexchange.org/community-information-commons.
