How Community Listening Sessions

Can Help Your Station Serve Your

Audience Better

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Ron JonesKCUR Director of Community Engagement@RonJonesKCUR

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Ann-Elise HenzlProject Milwaukee Executive Producer

Stephanie LecciLake Effect Producer

Michelle MaternowskiDigital Editor

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Ron JonesKCUR Director of Community Engagement@RonJonesKCUR

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Beyond Our Borders

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Why listening sessions?

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the community knows more than

we do

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Before: how to prepare

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1. Identify a neighborhood and related association

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2. Find a gathering place

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3. Promote the listening session

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4. Provide refreshments

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During: how to pull it off

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1. Sign people in, ask to join PIN

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2. Delegate moderators and scribes

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3. Break into groups

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What do you want metro Kansas City to know about your

community?

How engaged are you, and how engaged do you want to be, in

your community?

4. Ask two questions

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Make sure people know it is off the record

Make sure everyone gets heard

Stay neutral

Keep the dialogue focused

Train moderators

Tips to Get People Talking

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After: follow up, take action

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1. Do a debrief

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2. Story and talk show conceptualization

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3. Do ‘proof of performance’ on air

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4. Continue to report and tell stories

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Key takeaways

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Believe in the process

Include everyone at your station

It needs to be an organizational commitment, not an add-on

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Ann-Elise HenzlProject Milwaukee Executive Producer

Stephanie LecciLake Effect Producer

Michelle MaternowskiDigital Editor

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Why a listening session?

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How can we access more diverse voices, sources and solution ideas?

How can we reach an audience wider than our radio listeners?

How can we build trust in community around a sensitive issue?

WUWM had three questions:

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Before: how to prepare

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1. Find collaborators

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2. Pick an accessible location

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3. Recruit attendees, as you would find sources

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4. Don’t forget refreshments

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During: how to pull it off

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1. Arrive early, leave extra time at end

Flickr, CC, Alex Eylar/hoyvinmayvin

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2. Resist your radio inclination to record

Flickr, CC, Alex Eylar/hoyvinmayvin

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3. Start honestly, be up front

Flickr, CC, Roger H. Goun

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4. Let it flow because you don’t know where it’s going to go

Flickr, CC, Phil Whitehouse

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After: follow up, take action

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1. Plan stories and show conversations

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2. Keep attending local events – don’t stop at your own

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3. Open up the conversation

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4. Give people the opportunity to tell their own stories

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Morethanmyrecord.tumblr.com

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Key takeaways

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This takes a lot of planning, especially at first

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Start earlier, use as a way to plan coverage

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Don’t go in with a preconceived notion of what it will be

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This is a group effort, and needs station support

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The success of a listening session leads to buy-in and closer

relationships with the community.

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Questions?

#PubTraining