
Solving the Fried and Frozen Dilemma
Imagine a newsroom where the editor is also the publisher, sometimes the delivery driver, and even—on occasion—the janitor. That’s the reality for many local journalists today, like Dave Perry of
Imagine a newsroom where the editor is also the publisher, sometimes the delivery driver, and even—on occasion—the janitor. That’s the reality for many local journalists today, like Dave Perry of
“I would like [candidates] to talk about how high and unreasonable the cost of living has become. Do we pay rent and insurance but go hungry?” “Need to address returning Roe
An in-depth interview from the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel with Colorado News Collaborative Managing Editor Tina Griego. The discussion covers COLab’s latest project, Voter Voices, a statewide survey meant to
Take a close look at the map above. It represents something remarkable: The coordinated effort of more than 60 Colorado newsrooms to ask voters in their communities what issues matter most to
For all the talk about police misconduct, little has been known – at least publicly – about what, if anything, actually happens to most rogue cops in Colorado. One journalist set out
Media coverage of Colorado’s Indigenous communities has perpetuated harmful stereotypes and has other shortcomings when covering Indigenous populations, according to a new report from the Colorado News Collaborative. The Indigenous Voices report,
Last Thursday, Joie Ha, 29, the daughter of ethnic Chinese refugees from Vietnam, stood before an optimistic gathering of about 40 people amid Lunar New Year decorations and Valentine-festooned tablecloths at
Aspen is Colorado’s last two-newspaper town. Locals there have free access to daily reporting by the Aspen Times and Aspen Daily News, and to the work of Aspen Journalism and Aspen Public Radio. Four news outlets
On Thursday, we launched “Chasing Progress,” our latest reporting collaboration with partner newsrooms across the state. Chasing Progress examines the social, economic and health equity of Black and Latino Coloradans
Dear reader, My faith is rattled lately. This is not so much a crisis of the spirit (although, like many of us, I’ve had my moments these past few years).
Last week, a few of the state’s larger newsrooms, networks and The Denver Press Club hosted a mixer billed “Cocktails & Conversation” for local Black community members and journalists. About
Open Media will host a Town Hall event on behalf of PEN America with the help of Colorado News Collaborative (COLab) on the evening of Wednesday, October 13 from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. MT. This event
White supremacy works by alienating Black people from one another, which prevents us from connecting, sharing information and organizing. The media’s silencing of Black voices emboldens this alienation and makes
About a week ago, not quite a dozen editors and reporters hopped on a call to talk about their COVID coverage, specifically, their coverage of Coloradans who have yet to be
It was June 30 and Robert Davis was puzzled. The young freelance reporter for The Denver VOICE was covering a virtual event marking the opening of a new homeless shelter, and Denver’s
Join us for a discussion about the movement to minimize longterm harm in crime reporting Newsrooms in Colorado and nationally are starting to adopt policies seeking to reduce harm to criminal suspects and make it easier for them to move
When Silvia Solis moved to Longmont four years ago, she and her husband were expecting their first child. “My family was so far away,” she recalls. She felt isolated. Lonely.
If we at COLab had our way, there would be journalists in every Colorado community watchdogging local governments and demanding accountability from those who run them. But at least for
The following is Laura Frank’s keynote address to the 2021 joint convention of the Kansas and Colorado Press Associations, delivered May 20, 2021. Hello, Kansas and Colorado Press Association members.
Dear reader, If I have learned anything about Kiowa County, it’s that the phrase “You’re not from around here” isn’t a compliment. I’d been warned last spring by then-Eads-based journalist
Dear reader, Journalists receive lots of letters. Our inboxes and mailboxes are often full of news tips, requests for coverage and input from readers about what we write, what we
Journalists and journalism institutions are rethinking how they center the needs and desires of communities of color. But there is still a long history of disinvestment and harm that newsrooms must address
The story of the relationship between local journalism and Colorado’s Latinx community is complicated, contentious and ever-changing. It is a story that includes a media history of generalization, demonization and of
Dear reader, When she was a child growing up in a 1940s’ Greeley that still posted “No dogs or Mexicans” signs, Polly Baca remembers that the local paper had a habit
Dear reader, As of today, the Colorado News Collaborative is a year old. And what a year. What we imagined compared to what has come to pass is beyond what
Dear reader, I am thrilled to announce that John Ferrugia has joined the COLab staff to help us strengthen news throughout Colorado. John has won more professional honors than any other investigative
Dear reader, The people of Kiowa County woke Wednesday morning to an edition of their local newspaper unlike any other. The cover story, “Three Bullets to the Back,” is a deep investigative
Dear reader, Jessica Gibbs is a reporter for Colorado Community Media, the largest family-owned newspaper chain in the state. She’s been a reporter for five years, most of that time spent
By Diamond Hardiman, News Voices: Colorado Across the country, outlets like The Los Angeles Times and The Kansas City Star have published apologies for how their coverage has upheld and
There are times when she does not recognize herself. Who is this cautious woman whose heart hammers when she hears her kids cough or when the latest national political outrage
Dear reader, I want to introduce you to Alfonzo Porter. He is the thoughtful and talented editor of Denver Urban Spectrum, which serves the city’s Black community. But he is much more
Dear reader, Has this happened to you? I’ve now lost track of the number of times I’ve uttered “What an unbelievable year!” or some variation of that. But today, I’m
Dear reader, Yesterday, Susan Greene was hard at work — helping a trio of our partner newspaper editors prep for a project with the Colorado News Collaborative. She helped lead a
Dear fellow Coloradan, On this morning of the 2020 election, I’m moved to write you a letter about a conversation I had last night with my teenage son. Yesterday, Susan
Dear reader, Words generally come easily for me. But I have been struggling for seven months to name how it feels to live through this time. The pit in my
Dear reader, We at COLab think a lot — one could say “obsessively” — about readers, listeners and viewers of local news. We think about people we know and whom
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
Dear reader, From our angst department, I’m writing to fill you in about an ethical question I and journalists across the country are wrestling with this election cycle – one
Thank you and good luck to a Colorado reporter with a mind for data and a heart for people
Dear reader, Brandon, population 21, lies three hours southeast of Denver. It’s a speck of a place amid Colorado’s Southeastern Plains as they reach toward Kansas. On the afternoon of April
Dear reader, We’re writing to introduce you to our new boss, the Colorado News Collaborative’s (COLab) Executive Director Laura Frank. Laura is a Denver native and award-winning journalist who spent
Dear reader, Tina and I have spent much of the last month knee-deep in documents for a difficult investigative project we’re still piecing together. So instead of a newsy newsletter,
“Tell me a bit about the broader consequences that we found happen to a community when they lose their sources of local news.” “Well, there’s a lot of things that
Colorado has one of the highest suicide rates in the nation. Under a grant from the Carter Center and family of Ben Rosenthal, we will be chronicling mental health issues here over the next year.
Dear reader, Our apologies for our recent radio silence. Our new project launch with COLab (the Colorado News Collaborative) has us gathering string and casting nets and mining veins, basically all the metaphors
Dear reader, It had been too long since I smelled a newspaper. By that, I don’t mean the thing tossed on our front stoops each morning. I mean the building
A note about Thursday’s DACA story
A pair of Denver officers taught me a few things in the summer of 2018. #1: That a woman ought to “Act like a lady” when unlawfully being handcuffed for photographing police.
© 2025 COLab. All rights reserved.