We’re thrilled to welcome Resolve Philly and Dallas Free Press to the Documenters Network sites, our first cohort of 2023.

By Max Resnik

In the past two years the Documenters Network has more than doubled in size to nine cities across the country thanks to support from the Stronger Democracy Award. As the Network grows, so grows the depth and breadth of Documenters coverage in each of our network sites. In Cleveland this fall, our colleagues launched Signal Cleveland, a new nonprofit newsroom that fuses community building with local news reporting. In Detroit, new media partnerships bring Documenters reporting to even more Detroiters. Communities of practice, locally and across the growing network, inspire new relationships, learning and innovation across the country. We’re psyched to welcome our first cohort of 2023, and our first Documenters sites in Pennsylvania and Texas.  

Here’s what you need to know about our new partner sites: 

Philly Documenters

Resolve Philly is an unconventional journalism organization changing how journalists engage communities in Philadelphia and around the globe.  Philly Documenters, sitting inside the Shake the Table initiative, will hold elected officials accountable to the concerns of Philadelphians who have been systematically excluded from decision-making.

“Philadelphians currently don’t have access to a full public record of what happens in our city’s meetings, and I’m thrilled that we’re expanding the Documenters Network to do that,” said Julie Christie, Director of Data and Special Projects at Resolve. “I can’t wait to see what we’ll be able to do as residents when we’re equipped with as much information as possible. Folks will be able to participate civically even if they can’t make it to a meeting, newsrooms around the city will be able to keep tabs on what happened, and at the end of the day, we’ll all get to learn about how the city operates.”

We’re longtime fans and friends with the team at Resolve and we can’t wait to see what new ideas Philly Documenters brings to the table. Know someone who should get involved in Philly Documenters? Send them here: https://resolvephilly.org/phillydocs!

Resolve Philly Staff

Dallas Documenters  

Dallas Free Press launched in early 2020 with the belief that all neighborhoods deserve reporting and storytelling that values their community and holds leaders accountable. 

“I’ve been following City Bureau’s Documenters program since the early days – even before Dallas Free Press came onto the scene!” said Keri Mitchell, Dallas Free Press Founder and Executive Director, “and I’m overjoyed that our newsroom and our city are now part of the network. I truly believe this will be a game changer for Dallas, increasing local government transparency and accountability in meaningful ways, and making civic processes familiar and accessible to citizens who historically have been left out.” 

Dallas is our first Documenters site in Texas, and we’re thrilled to work with the growing Dallas Free Press team to open up the reporting process to Dallas residents. Do you know someone who should get involved with Dallas Documenters? Send them here: https://dallasfreepress.com/dallas-documenters/!

Dallas Free Press staff

Resolve Philly and the Dallas Free Press are leaders in their local media collaboratives. Through these solutions-oriented partnerships, Documenters reporting will reach new communities while tackling complex local and regional issues. We’ll facilitate the sharing of data and best practices across the growing network.

The Documenters Network is expanding and we can’t wait to bring more communities together in our growing network. If you’re interested in bringing Documenters to your city or region, please let us know!