We're thrilled to offer a variety of sessions led by industry experts eager to share their experiences and insights.
Sessions and speakers will be added on a rolling basis as they're announced, and the full agenda will be published in August. Click the darker blue boxes (the plus sign on the right) to view session descriptions and speaker bios. A huge "thank you!" to the nearly 100 people who submitted session proposals; we couldn't pull this off without you.
Beyond listening: Using audience engagement to make products people actually want
Description: Newsrooms have gotten better at listening to their communities — but what matters is what comes after: turning insight into a product or service. This is especially hard for small, resource-strapped newsrooms without a formal product team.
This workshop bridges the gap between listening and building, drawing on real work from grantee newsrooms. Participants leave with a practical process for moving from community insights to product decisions, experimentation frameworks, and measurement tips.
Speakers:
- Kim Bui, Consultant, Listening Post Collective
- P. Kim Bui is a news product and strategy consultant who helps newsrooms and their funders launch new projects, transform coverage models and build cultures where people can thrive. She runs Quen Media and is a 2023–24 John S. Knight Journalism Fellow at Stanford. She spent two decades in newsroom leadership — as a reporter, an editor who helped launch reported.ly and a leader who transformed crime coverage at the Arizona Republic. She researches and writes about empathy, power and news consumption and has spoken internationally on newsroom innovation, equity and culture.
- Bailey Hoskins-Orr, Senior Program Associate, Listening Post Collective
- Bailey Hoskins-Orr is a Senior Program Associate at the Listening Post Collective (LPC), a national nonprofit that partners with communities to develop the news and information solutions they need to thrive. Using LPC's Civic Media Playbook and Civic Information Index as a guide, she helps individuals and organizations map existing information gaps and opportunities, connect with trusted messengers, and conduct effective surveying and deep listening to better articulate community needs and chart a path forward to belonging and resilience. She is based in San Antonio, Texas.
Breaking out of solopreneurship: Leveraging part-timers, consultants, programs and community advisory groups to help share the burden of running an operation
Description: In January 2026, armed with $90,000 from an unexpectedly successful EOY campaign and the results of a self-serve LION Sustainability Audit, Emilie Raguso teamed up with Joe Lanane to break out of solopreneur mode and turn the ideas that had been stuck in her head into reality. How did they set priorities? What platforms helped them along the way? How did LION's Sustainability 360 program support their work? This fireside chat, with ample room for questions, will offer a case study of their journey.
Speakers:
- Joe Lanane, News Coach/Consultant, Operations Manager, The Berkeley Scanner
- Joe Lanane is a longtime community journalist who serves in various support roles for independent news publishers. As operations manager for The Berkeley Scanner, Joe oversees all revenue, audience, and editorial operations, providing strategic guidance and hands-on support.
- Emilie Raguso, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, The Berkeley Scanner
- Veteran reporter Emilie Raguso launched The Berkeley Scanner in 2022 to provide more robust public safety coverage in Berkeley and the Bay Area. After working for a decade at Berkeleyside as a general interest reporter and editor, Emilie realized her interest in publishing comprehensive, nuanced public safety news needed a bigger platform. As of 2026, she is working to launch a sister site, Albany Scanner, to offer comprehensive daily news about Albany, CA, and continuing to expand Berkeley Scanner coverage to include politics, City Hall, and the city’s biggest stories. Awards and affiliations: https://www.berkeleyscanner.com/about/#affiliations
Creating an effective events strategy: How to transition from ‘We host events’ to ‘We host events that drive real revenue, deepen engagement and deliver measurable impact’
Description: Events are a powerful way to connect with your stakeholders, but they also cost money, time, focus, and bandwidth — and they rarely pay off without a true strategy behind them. This workshop will outline the key elements of intentional event design, spotlight news organizations that have maximized their event impact, and lead participants through a robust exercise to more closely link event goals with organizational strategy.
Speakers:
- Zachary Ford, Director of Development, New York Focus
- Lisa Heyamoto, Vice President of Portfolio Learning, American Journalism Project
- Lisa Heyamoto is dedicated to building a durable local news infrastructure through sustainable organizational growth, systems thinking, and community engagement. She is Vice President of Portfolio Learning at the American Journalism Project, where she creates rich learning experiences that move news organizations forward. She was previously a senior leader at LION Publishers, a journalism educator at the University of Oregon, and a reporter at The Sacramento Bee and The Seattle Times.
- Allison Levine, Founder and CEO, Spotlight Delaware
- Maple Walker Lloyd, Vice President of Partnerships, Block Club Chicago
- Maple Walker Lloyd is vice president of partnerships at Block Club Chicago. She leads fundraising efforts focused on institutional giving, corporate partnerships and community engagement initiatives. Maple was a 2025 Poynter Institute MTC Fellow and the 2024 Institute for Nonprofit News Emerging Leader of the Year. She serves as an audit analyst for the LION Sustainability Audit program and was a coach for The Fund for Equity in Local News Transformation Tech Lab – programs that help advance revenue strategies for independent media outlets and legacy print publications. Before joining Block Club, Maple was team coordinator for the Journalism and Media program at the MacArthur Foundation and weekend news anchor for WGN Radio. Maple holds a B.A. in Telecommunications from Bowling Green State University and a Master's degree in journalism from Full Sail University.
Maximizing digital revenue: Making sales all the way down the funnel
Description: Local news publishers can grow digital revenue by applying the logic of an e-commerce funnel. Starting with casual readers at the top, we move them down the funnel — first to newsletter subscribers, then ultimately to paid supporters or “True Fans” who contribute $10/month or more. We break down the revenue potential at each funnel stage: display ads for visitors, sponsorships in newsletters, and recurring revenue from members, exploring the 1000 True Fans concept as a framework for growth.
Speaker:
- Todd Stauffer, Executive Director, AAN Publishers
- Todd Stauffer serves as executive director of the Association of Alternative Newsmedia and program manager for News Navigators, a GNI-funded program of the Fund for Equity in Local News. He's developed and managed granting and coaching programs to help hundreds of publishers develop new digital revenue strategies in their efforts to sustain critical newsroom operations. Prior to joining AAN leadership, Todd was the co-founder and publisher of the Jackson Free Press, an alternative newsweekly that served Jackson, Miss., for nearly 20 years. There he was responsible for generating revenue to sustain the publication's staff, web and printing operations. When the pandemic threatened the publication's revenue and distribution model, co-founder Donna Ladd and most of the JFP team made a successful transition to the non-profit, digital-only Mississippi Free Press, which bought the JFP's journalism assets in 2022. Todd remains owner and CEO of Changemaker Media Services, Inc., a content marketing and consulting firm based in Jackson.
Media sales 101: Selling impact, building relationships, and growing sustainable revenue
Description: Whether you're making your first sales call or leading a mature revenue operation, success starts with mastering the fundamentals.
This session is designed for everyone from first-time sales representatives to experienced publishers, revenue directors, and media executives. Participants will learn practical, proven techniques for prospecting, preparing for appointments, conducting effective discovery meetings, overcoming objections, building proposals, and closing business with confidence.
Drawing on nearly four decades of media sales experience and real-world lessons from Dallas Voice, Leo Cusimano shares a practical framework that combines traditional sales fundamentals with a consultative "Marketing 101" approach. Rather than simply selling advertising, attendees will learn how to become trusted marketing advisors who help businesses evaluate their overall marketing strategy, identify opportunities, and achieve meaningful outcomes.
The session explores prospecting, discovery, proposal development, objection handling, and closing techniques, while also demonstrating how publishers can use marketing consultations to deepen relationships, improve retention, and uncover new revenue opportunities.
Attendees will also explore an emerging reality in local media fundraising and revenue generation: impact matters. Funders, sponsors, and community partners increasingly want evidence that local journalism creates measurable change in the communities it serves.
Leo will share a powerful case study from Dallas Voice's Press Forward-funded work in an East Texas news desert, where a reader credited the publication with saving his life after finding community connection and mental health resources through its journalism. The story illustrates a critical lesson for media organizations seeking revenue and philanthropic support.
Participants will leave with actionable tools to:
- Build stronger advertiser relationships through consultative selling
- Conduct effective Marketing 101 conversations with clients
- Shift from transactional sales to strategic partnerships
- Better communicate audience value and community impact
- Identify and document stories that demonstrate measurable outcomes
- Apply impact storytelling to revenue, membership, sponsorship, and fundraising efforts
- Increase advertiser retention and long-term revenue growth
Speaker:
- Leo Cusimano, Publisher and CEO, Dallas Voice/OUT North Texas
- Leo Cusimano is the publisher and owner of Dallas Voice, the premier media source for LGBTQ Texas, where he has spent more than three decades helping build one of the nation’s most influential local LGBTQ news organizations. He began his career in advertising after earning a degree in marketing, joining Dallas Voice in 1992 and serving as advertising director for two decades before becoming publisher in 2013.With a foundation rooted in sales, Cusimano has trained, mentored, and led generations of advertising professionals, developing practical, relationship-driven sales strategies that have sustained and grown local media revenue in a rapidly changing industry. His approach blends fundamentals with real-world application, making him a sought-after voice on sales training and revenue development.
Under his leadership, Dallas Voice has evolved into a multi-platform media organization spanning print, digital, video and live events, while continuing its mission to inform, advocate and amplify the voices of LGBTQ communities.
Cusimano is a co-chair of the National LGBT Media Association and a founder in News Is Out, a national collaborative of queer media publishers working to strengthen local LGBTQ journalism. He also serves on the board of the Local Media Foundation and is an active voice in conversations about sustainability, innovation, and the future of local news.
A longtime community advocate and Eagle Scout, Cusimano is a founder and former board chair of the North Texas LGBT Chamber of Commerce and has served on numerous nonprofit and civic boards. His work reflects a deep commitment to both journalism and the communities it serves, particularly at a time when trusted local media is more essential than ever.
- Leo Cusimano is the publisher and owner of Dallas Voice, the premier media source for LGBTQ Texas, where he has spent more than three decades helping build one of the nation’s most influential local LGBTQ news organizations. He began his career in advertising after earning a degree in marketing, joining Dallas Voice in 1992 and serving as advertising director for two decades before becoming publisher in 2013.With a foundation rooted in sales, Cusimano has trained, mentored, and led generations of advertising professionals, developing practical, relationship-driven sales strategies that have sustained and grown local media revenue in a rapidly changing industry. His approach blends fundamentals with real-world application, making him a sought-after voice on sales training and revenue development.
MVP: More than a website and a dream
Description: For too long, journalism entrepreneurs have launched their publications with a website and a dream. In this workshop, leaders and members of Tiny News Collective will walk attendees through a realistic minimum viable product that will set them up for a promising trajectory, instead of a fast start on the road to burnout. Attendees – whether they're pre-launch or wondering if they need to revisit their MVP – will answer the question, "What does my MVP look like" for their startup or new product.
Speakers:
- Amy Bushatz, Founder and Editor, Mat-Su Sentinel
- Daphne Magnawa, Co-Founder, News Relay Network
- Daphne is a co-founder of News Relay Network, publisher of the Tenderloin Voice news site and zine. She has decades of experience working in the corporate and nonprofit sectors building operations infrastructure that includes vision-aligned strategic planning, finance, HR, and impact tracking. As Director of Membership & Community at San Francisco Public Press and Managing Director of Programs at Renaissance Journalism, she developed membership, community engagement, and fellowship programs. A community organizer at heart, she has dedicated most of her career to making positive social change.
- Erica Perel, Operations Director, Tiny News Collective
- Erica Beshears Perel is the operations director of Tiny News Collective Inc., an organization that lowers barriers to entry for early-stage news entrepreneurs. Previously, she was director of the UNC Center for Innovation and Sustainability in Local Media and general manager and adviser to The Daily Tar Heel, UNC's independent nonprofit student newsroom.
