COLab - The Colorado Independent

Colorado News Collaborative (COLab)

Strengthening journalism in Colorado through collaboration

1927 map of Colorado (Published by the National Map Company, shared via the David Rumsey Map Collection — Cartography Associates)

We know there are stories out there newsrooms don't have the resources to cover alone as well as stories in increasingly wide swaths of Colorado that have become news deserts — meaning communities have no local news source. Veteran award-winning Colorado journalists Susan Greene and Tina Griego, in their new role with the Colorado News Collaborative (COLab), a nonprofit supporting journalism excellence, can help your newsroom produce in-depth narrative, explanatory and investigative reporting. They are offering reporting, editing and mentoring help to ensure important stories are reported with the depth they deserve, offering hands-on training in the process.

Thank you for joining this movement in Colorado collaborative journalism. Together, we can do great things.

First, what kind of story are we talking about?

A million stories are waiting to be told, so we'll need to prioritize. Some criteria we'll be considering:

Does it address an issue the community wants examined more closely?
Does it expose an un- or under-reported issue or problem?
Does it scrutinize institutions or power-structures that have gone unchecked?
Does it explore challenges affecting vulnerable communities, especially underrepresented racial groups or people in geographic news deserts?
Does it focus on solutions, not just problems?
Is it of statewide interest (and likely to be carried for free by other outlets)?
Can it be localized by others?

Does your story idea check any of these boxes? Great. Please fill out this form to help us figure out your needs and how we might help. What you write stays between us, so please be as detailed as possible.

Our primary goal is to help Colorado Press Association members, who represent communities large, small, urban, rural and suburban across the state.

COLLABORATION IN ACTION

Your 2020 Election interactive Colorado voter guide

COLab Staff Report - October 24, 2020

As of Friday morning, Colorado voters had cast more than 434,000 ballots in the 2020 election — a gigantic increase in early returns over the 2016 election. But we know many of you are...

Arapahoe County election ballot drop-off box

Updated: Got voting questions? We’ve got more answers.

COLab Sandra Fish, Colorado News Collaborative - October 17, 2020

This q&a was updated on Oct. 20, 2020 Why is the envelope for my ballot different than the one my friend received? Each county decides the design of the ballot envelopes, using different colors on the...

Eight months into pandemic, blind Coloradans still cannot access some state and county COVID...

COLab Max Lee, Colorado News Collaborative - October 15, 2020

County and state public health agencies in Colorado have posted coronavirus data, public health orders and testing locations on their websites. But many of those documents, forms and graphics are inaccessible for people with...

COVID-19’s ongoing reach into Colorado’s Latino community stretches far and deep

COLab Max Lee, Colorado News Collaborative - October 12, 2020

COVID-19 has reached into Hispanic communities in every corner of Colorado, afflicting some at rates more than double their share of the population, a new analysis by the Colorado News Collaborative found. The Colorado News...

Looking through a broken window to the lobby of the old Denver Post building the morning after the May 29, 2020 racial justice protest in downtown Denver.

Your thoughts on truth-telling and bias

COLab Susan Greene, Colorado News Collaborative - October 6, 2020

Dear reader, Wow. We asked for your thoughts last week on the test the Trump administration has posed to journalists seeking to be “objective” while adhering to the obligation to tell the truth. Where, I asked,...