We empower trusted community voices and rebuild connection with local media through local leaders and inclusive journalism. Through data-driven media assessments and hands-on educational programming for youth and local leaders, we help communities and local newsrooms rebuild connection and foster a more inclusive information ecosystem.

What we do

Rebuilding news trust requires actionable research and engaged community education. The LIFT Project tackles news disengagement by conducting comprehensive media landscape analyses and leading trusted messenger trainings with youth and invested community members. Explore our strategies, or contact our team to commission research and training programs tailored to your community's local information ecosystem.

news

NOM Food Forum is today!

RAIN OR SHINE -- IT'S STILL NOM TIME!!! THE TABLE IS SET. COME SNACK WITH US TODAY! We're so excited you're joining us today for the Nutrition, Opportunities, and Media (NOM) Food Forum. Leaders of this project, Dr. Danielle K. Brown and Professor Jarrad Henderson, have been planning, creating, refining and perfecting today for the past two years, and we can say with great confidence that there's something for everyone today. We know what you were just thinking: Should y

New Release: Where do we go from here?

Ever wonder what moms, weather people, and ditching the newsroom have in common? Read the report.

Research

Indiana Newsrooms Move Beyond the Protest Paradigm

From university encampments to labor strikes at the steps of the capitol, protests are a vital, legally protected mechanism for democratic participation. Yet, when collective action disrupts the status quo, the ways journalists choose to cover these events can either empower civic understanding or fuel what scholars call the protest paradigm—a pattern that emphasizes spectacle, conflict, and disruption over the actual grievances of the organizers. Our team recently conducted

Research

Latest news

Research

We study media patterns and community perspectives in Minnesota, Michigan, and the Midwest.

research

Programs

We turn data into compelling stories. Our efforts unite researchers, visual journalists, and community messengers through events and trainings.

programs

LIFTxVoices

We partner with Pop Up Docs™ to host public workshops where researchers, media makers, and youth transform data into visual stories that highlight trusted messengers and community concerns.

LIFTxVoices