We experimented with ways to engage with “news avoiders.” Here’s what we learned.

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There's been a lot of talk in our industry about how to engage with folks who distrust journalism outlets or avoid the news entirely. The Texas Tribune has set out to find ways to be part of the solution in breaking down these barriers.

Starting last year, the Tribune dived into various experiments to see how we could think differently about engaging "news avoiders" and be more responsive in addressing their needs and gaining their trust.

We’re excited to share details about the experiments we conducted, what we’ve learned from this work and what we’re already implementing. We hope this helps other news outlets in their strategies around engagement and building trust, and we invite you to reach out to talk more with us about this experimentation.

We identified three opportunities of experimentation: engaging with younger audiences through short-form video, direct engagement with lower-than-average consumers of news and surveying events attendees about how to drive in-person engagement.

We were able to complete this research through partnerships with University of Minnesota professor Benjamin Toff, The Alliance for Trust in Media and the Google News Initiative.

Here's what we learned.

Short-form video strategy 

Led by Matt Adams and Laura Duclos, our Audience team ramped up production of short-form videos for platforms like Instagram and TikTok. We convened focus groups in Austin, San Antonio and Houston to provide feedback on this content.

Here’s key feedback we received that we’ve already applied to our strategy:

Authenticity: To build connection, we feature our journalists as much as possible and we don't overproduce the videos (though good lighting is key!).

Impact: We focus on stories that have as much impact on Texans - our target audience - to help users know we're focused on service.

Get to the point: We understand that viewers often scroll quickly, so we highlight the most attention-grabbing part of our story within the first 3-5 seconds.

Reward your viewers: Include "gold nuggets" of interest along the way to keep them engaged.

Keep it interesting and fun: Whether it's your background, angle or the way you present the story, don't get caught up in formality.

Build brand identity: It's good to have your brand in the video, so users can associate the brand with quality information that helps them navigate their lives.

“You kind of have to move with the social media times too,” said Penny, a San Antonio focus group participant. “I think that you have to find a short, effective way to deliver the news. ... People are not reading.”

The "radical transparency" texting experiment 

We created a texting group with Texans who weren't Tribune readers and were lower-than-average news consumers. The participants were also Texans who didn’t generally trust the news. We designed the experiment to evaluate impact by recruiting a “control” group of participants who were also surveyed in parallel at the start and end of the project.

With this texting group active in the runup to the 2024 general election, we anticipated questions about election processes, but discovered something different.

Real questions were more foundational: Instead of asking about vote counting or certification processes, participants asked basic civics questions like "Why are there so many judges on the ballot, and what do they all do?"

Quick, reliable responses built trust: We answered questions as quickly as possible, and survey results showed participants appreciated having this safe space to get reliable answers.

Trust and engagement increased: In relation to the control group, participants expressed more trust in our brand and interest in following our content more closely.

Opportunity identified: We saw a clear way to meet future audiences where they are when delivering foundational information.

We aim to continue this experimentation and gain further insights into serving new audiences and building trust.

Insights on in-person engagement

We surveyed event attendees to understand what drew them to our events and how we could extend that engagement elsewhere.

Here are some key findings:

Location matters significantly: While we've largely partnered with colleges and universities, we need to think deeper about other spaces that could be more appealing to different Texans.

Partnership opportunities: Working with different organizations that have the trust of Texans who might not be engaging with the Tribune is crucial.

Safe spaces are valued, but we need diversity of perspective: People often attend events to be around others with similar ideological mindsets. We want to create respectful environments while also incorporating diverse perspectives for better context.

The results 

These experiments are already paying off: We've seen marked growth in Instagram followers, boosted brand visibility across Texas, and inspired other newsrooms to adopt similar strategies. Most importantly, we're building the foundation for our network of local newsrooms to be resources for community-driven inquiries — empowering residents to be more informed and engaged members of their communities. We’re also revamping our events strategy to make it more accessible, appealing and engaging to more Texans. We'd be happy to talk about our work with other newsrooms. Got questions? Thoughts on ways to collaborate? Reach out to us.

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