Gone are the days of seemingly limitless news budgets and bullpens overflowing with reporters. We’ve moved to a new era. Journalists are overworked, stretched thin, and devoid of editorial resources. I don’t mean to be bleak about the pressures news organizations are facing. I’m simply offering a sense of context.

According to Statista, employment in the newspaper industry has consistently declined since 2006. And, according to the Pew Research Center, U.S. newspaper advertising revenues are down significantly, with digital ad revenues failing to offset print losses. What this means is that, by and large, today’s newsrooms have less revenue and fewer staff members. And, while this poses significant challenges, it has also opened the door to creative opportunities. Enter collaborative journalism.

Over the past few years, the Local has undertaken a number of ambitious reporting initiatives that we could not have done without the support and participation of other newsrooms, including pooling our resources and/or obtaining collaborative funding. Thareness about area flooding and shone a light on the possible problems of the City’s water infrastructure (a collaboration between the Local, GRID Magazine, and Delaware Currents). There was the retrospective piece about Jumpstart Germantown (funded by the Philadelphia Journalism Collaborative which was made possible through a partnership with the Philadelphia Citizen). WURD Radio has been consistently sharing our content, and we’ve shared articles by WHYY, Germantown Info Hub and Broad Street Review. I launched “A Local Lens,” monthly radio show on G-Town Radio, and our interim editor, Wendy Rosenfield, was able to implement a story series wherein the Local and Broad Street Review will be copublishing articles then hosting a joint event in October (The event is still in the planning stages).

In the coming months, we’ll be releasing another major collaboration between the Local, the Philadelphia Citizen, and Kouvenda Media, and will co-publish a couple of stories with LoveNow Media. We are cooperating and collaborating with major news organizations throughout the city, expanding into new audiences and ensuring more comprehensive coverage by pooling resources and appealing to collaborative funders.

In this issue, you can read the first installment of a weekly series of articles about water recreation in our area. This series, written by award-winning journalist Kyle Bagenstose, is being published in GRID Magazine, and Delaware Currents. It was funded, in large part, by the Philadelphia Journalism Collaborative (PJC). I’m proud of this series. Bagenstose pitched the project to us after the success of our prior collaboration, the Local and GRID jointly approached the PJC, multiple editors got involved, and our summer interns Brian Nelson and Lucy Tobier built an online map showing places for water recreation (both permitted and prohibited).

I’m excited about this water series. More than that, I’m excited that we journalists have been able to find creative ways to approach news coverage on shoestring budgets. We’re coming together in support of our communities to bring you comprehensive and relevant information. And that’s what the news should be about!

Daralyse Lyons can be reached at Daralyse@chestnuthilllocal.com.