2024 Media Transformation Challenge Fellow and Baltimore Banner Managing Editor Emma Patti Harris, began her MTC Journey in January with the challenge of transforming her fledgling, city-centric startup to a more performance-oriented newsroom serving all of Maryland.

In the first of four updates on her experience throughout the yearlong program, Emma shares her experience in the early weeks as a new Fellow.

No one had on their 2024 News Bingo Card that The Baltimore Sun, our major competitor in the market, would be sold to [Sinclair Broadcasting Owner] David Smith. It certainly has put a spotlight on how important independent journalism is for Baltimore.

I feel the pressure for us to live up to that standard of being a true independent source for Baltimore and the entire state. And to achieve sustainability so that we can hold each other accountable and work toward producing quality local journalism that preserves democracy.

My Media Transformation Challenge is now going to shift into how we create a performance-driven newsroom that has the audience and analytics acumen we need to be successful. And then, as a startup, we have a significant challenge around brand marketing and extending awareness of The Banner.

How do we position ourselves in regional markets outside of Baltimore? How do we do community outreach? How do we reach customers who prefer to consume media in other mediums?

The first week of MTC was exciting, intense, and anxiety-inducing. Confronting the industry’s challenges is depressing, but also uplifting.

I was skeptical of being in this cohort. But by the end of the week, I had bonded with this mini family of colleagues, each facing our own journalistic and business challenges. After just five days together, we were already supporting each other, and staying connected through an agile and active WhatsApp group.

My coach also provides an honest checkpoint for me each week, which is important consider the fast pace at which everything is. Without that outside feedback, you can get stuck in your own pattern of thinking. Having someone who is objective but with similar experiences makes it easy for us to kind of speak the same language and for me to learn.