PINF Launches New Toolkit for Collaborative, Accountable and Caring Journalism

Jonathan Heawood, Executive Director of PINF, introduces new framework designed to reshape trust, participation and truth in the media.

Photo credit: Suyin Haynes

What do you get when you put 50 experts in a room to talk about the future of media and democracy? That’s what happened yesterday (9 July 2025), and I’m still smiling at the memory of a fascinating discussion, with brilliant presentations from Elizabeth Seger, Marcus Ryder, Gavin Esler, Rhiannon Davies, Dan Hind, Lexie Kirkconnell-Kawana and Shirish Kulkarni. 

The occasion was the launch of the Co-Creational News Media Toolkit, which we at PINF have developed over the last twelve months with academics Rowan Cruft, Jay Howard and Fabienne Peter, and co-creational pioneers from the Bristol Cable, Bylines Network, the Ferret, Greater Govanhill, Inclusive Journalism Cymru and On Our Radar. 

What is co-creational news media? It’s different from the traditional model of professional news media, in which journalists investigate and report on events on behalf of everyone else. At its best, professional news media can help to establish the truth about current affairs, but as an elite sector, dominated by large corporations, it can also become detached from the rest of society, leading to distrust and disengagement. 

Co-creational news media is also different from social media, where – in theory – everyone with an internet connection can share information and ideas with the world. Social media has the potential to create a more inclusive public sphere, but it is notoriously bad at sifting truth from lies. 

In the co-creational approach, journalists work with communities to understand what’s really going on, drawing on the experiences of people who might otherwise be excluded from public debate whilst maintaining a rigorous commitment to truth. Unlike the professional model, the co-creational model puts the public in the driving seat – but this creates new complexities and responsibilities.

In our work with co-creational pioneers, we have found that, in addition to their core commitments to participation and truth-seeking, they also recognise the importance of being accountable to the communities they serve and truly caring for the people who take part in their work. 

So, the Toolkit shows how these four principles – participation, truth-seeking, accountability and care – intersect with core modules of journalism – governance, content creation, fact-checking and impact – to generate sixteen elements. These elements do not form a checklist or standards code, but a series of prompts and provocations inspiring journalists and non-journalists to work together in new ways. 

The Co-Creational News Media Toolkit lives on a dedicated microsite, built by Rhys Everquill at the Leicester Gazette, which is itself a groundbreaking co-creational outlet.  

Yesterday’s discussion ranged widely across a number of related areas. A few points struck me with particular force: 

• Democracy is the act of choosing a narrative for society. If the media is dominated by a narrow group of people, then their narratives may not reflect the experience of others. 

• News deserts, where there is a dearth of journalism, leave room for speculation and conspiracy theories to flourish. 

• The problem of democratic apathy is really a problem of lack of trust, which is really a problem of lack of truth in our media and politics. 

• The co-creational news media model gives a name and legitimacy to the pioneering work of many journalists and non-journalists in the UK and internationally. 

• As a society, can we say that we’re self-governing if we leave the production of opinion to others? 

• Are the elements of the Co-Creational News Media Toolkit rules or values – and could they form the basis for an accreditation scheme? 

• The value of the Toolkit is in seeding ideas for further exploration and experimentation. 

These were just a few of the comments and questions that I captured whilst taking part in the discussion. Many other points were made, and we welcome continuing feedback on the Toolkit. 

So, what do you get when you put 50 experts in a room to talk about the future of media and democracy? Well, very much the same thing that you get when you bring any group of people together for a constructive and forward-looking conversation. You hear a range of perspectives. You modify some of your ideas. You start to see new possibilities. You make new friends. You feel inspired and rejuvenated.  

In effect, yesterday’s launch event was a snapshot of the future of media and democracy: human beings engaging with each other to share information and find solutions. The Co-Creational News Media Toolkit shows how we can replicate this approach throughout the public sphere, and we would love to hear from anybody who wants to take this work forwards. 

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