OU Daily is one of 11 state news organizations that, as part of its membership in the Oklahoma Media Center, has been selected to work with a nationally known network of media coaches to improve digital user experiences and find new ways to drive revenue.
The Oklahoma Media Center works to strengthen the state's journalism ecosystem and spur innovation through collaboration that benefits Oklahoma's diverse audiences. It recently secured funding from the Oklahoma City-based Kirkpatrick Foundation to launch a training program with Blue Engine Collaborative, which since 2016 has coached news organizations build sustainable businesses around mission-driven work.
Participating news organizations
In addition to the Daily, the Blue Engine training cohort includes:
• NonDoc
• OETA
• VNN
Project goals
Blue Engine has audited the online presence of each participating newsroom and through late June will engage with them in one-on-one coaching, culminating in measurable product enhancements shown with hard numbers.
“Blue Engine’s program explores all aspects of a newsroom’s revenue streams, emphasizing the importance of user experience,” David Grant, Blue Engine's director of partnerships, said in Oklahoma Media Center's press release. “We’ll be asking tough questions — what makes a great digital product, what truly connects with audiences and how we can reduce the friction that keeps users from engaging fully with the news.”
Grant will be the coach working directly with the Daily, led by editor-in-chief Ana Barboza and her team, this summer.
The Daily has already begun making adjustments to its website to:
1. More immediately center short-form video storytelling
2. Grow the number of community members who subscribe to its free newsletters
3. Ultimately earn more support from those who regularly consume the journalism produced by the independent student news organization that's served OU and Norman since 1916.
Lessons to benefit other state newsrooms
Participants will receive stipends to continue to implement the changes identified throughout the training and will report their results in OMC group meetings later this year. The lessons will serve as a key rubric for other newsrooms across Oklahoma and will help strengthen local news in the digital age.
“This workshop is a key part of the OMC’s nonprofit mission to support sustainable local information through innovation, training and collaboration,” OMC Executive Director Rob Collins said in a release. “By reaching audiences where they are with relevant content, we can more effectively engage folks with documented, verified news in local communities.”
In 2024, the Daily was one of 12 Oklahoma news outlets — and the only collegiate one — to participate in a $100,000 Oklahoma Media Center grant project that helped its participants cultivate trust in local journalism. Additionally, last year the Daily was named one of the nation's top three college media outlets by the College Media Association and one of the nation's top nine college media business operations by the Associated Collegiate Press.
