This piece was published as part of the American Journalism Project’s Product & AI Studio, which explores how generative AI and other emerging technologies can strengthen local news and better serve local communities.
For local news producers, social video is a critical tool for audience engagement, brand identity and community relevance. Platforms like Instagram and TikTok, which feature these vertical videos, represent both massive audience opportunities as well as important forms of storytelling.
In 2024, a Pew Research Center study found that about four in 10 adults under the age of 30 regularly get news from social media influencers. In a 2025 News Influencers Fact Sheet, Pew confirmed this pattern holds steady, finding that about 38% of adults ages 18-29 rely on news influencers, and about three-quarters of those influencers are not affiliated with a traditional news organization.
To learn more about how newsrooms are using vertical video, Hannah Woodsworth, a data journalist and Impact Fellow at the Brown Institute for Media Innovation, spent several months last year working with our Product & AI Studio to understand how the American Journalism Project’s portfolio members have been using social video.
Her research combined social platform data analysis and interviews with news editors to understand what’s actually working, from how teams structure their workflows to which types of videos resonate most with audiences.
Below, we highlight two approaches to social video from WyoFile and Block Club Chicago, and we share what they learned.
WyoFile: Reporter buy-in builds authenticity
WyoFile, an independent, member-supported nonprofit newsroom covering the people, places and policy of Wyoming, has spent years building trust with readers through public-interest reporting. As the organization expanded its reach via social platforms, building buy-in from reporters to appear on camera and post video content took time, intention and experimentation.
But the effort paid off. Over the course of about seven months, the team reduced the average production time from ideation to posting from several hours to roughly one hour. Initially, former WyoFile Engagement Editor Anna Rader offered scripting support and informal coaching to help reporters at WyoFile feel more comfortable on camera.
“I told them, ‘Just shoot it like you’re FaceTiming your mom.’ That helped,” Rader said.
This more casual approach led to more authentic, frequent participation from reporters and strengthened the overall social video voice of the newsroom. One unconventional TikTok reader support request combined humor and “trend-adapted content,” garnering nearly 900 views and over 65 shares at the time.
“It took us about seven months to really hit the rhythm of our video process. From shooting to posting took about an hour. That felt manageable,” she said.
Now, she says, the reporters do it on their own, and they “don’t need a script anymore.”
The team also found that posting social videos on their YouTube channel helped drive growth and has led to more than 1,800 YouTube subscribers.
Thanks to their social video strategy and improved processes, as of publication, they have about 20,200 Instagram followers and over 7,000 TikTok followers. WyoFile’s Instagram says its followers doubled in less than a year after adding social video. TikTok brought non-local awareness: “I’ve never been to Wyoming, but I like your videos,” one commenter posted.
Rader also said that massive growth can come from adopting a “video first” mindset during reporting and that a large part of their growth in social followers came from one reporter and one video on Jan. 28, 2026.
When reporter Dustin Bleizeffer attended a town hall for U.S. Congresswoman Harriet Hageman, Rader told him to “start recording if anything ‘spicy’ happens,” she said.
And it did.
“During the Q&A portion, things took a turn, and there was a heated exchange between the audience and Hageman,” Rader said. “Dustin was able to capture this interaction. He then added an intro, outro and other small bits among the footage, and we posted the video to YouTube, TikTok and Instagram.”
What happened next was a massive moment that helped grow all of WyoFile’s social platforms. The YouTube video received 165,355 views, and the Instagram video received 528,921 views.
Block Club Chicago: Learning from influencers
Melissa España, social media editor at Block Club Chicago, is uniquely positioned to apply influencer strategies to local journalism because she’s an influencer herself. Her personal experience running a popular seasonal lifestyle account, @splashofspooky, has sharpened her instincts around audience behavior.
These lessons carry over into how she approaches social content for Block Club Chicago, a nonprofit news organization dedicated to delivering reliable, nonpartisan and essential coverage of Chicago’s diverse neighborhoods.
One of España’s tips for social video includes leading with the most compelling content, or lede, first – and making that lede an optimal length of eight to 10 seconds.
“I stick to 8–10 seconds for my influencer videos,” she wrote in an email. “Learning how to do content as an influencer taught me that keeping things short just works. People have short attention spans.”
She also recommends never saving the money shot for the end of the video, since “they’re not watching it.”
Being an influencer as well as social director in news helps her stay on top of trends, she said.
“I see a lot more funny, trendy things when I’m on my Splash of Spooky account versus when I’m scrolling through the Block Club Chicago TikTok. It helps the news side of things because every so often influencer-related stuff makes its way to Chicago news,” she said.
España says she works closely with reporters at Block Club Chicago, especially those who are “camera naturals” or come from broadcast backgrounds, such as Melody Mercado and Jon Hansen, to develop recurring video segments, such as “City Council in 30 Seconds.” At the same time, she collaborates with community news organizations and their social teams, including Chalkbeat, Borderless and LA Public Press, to co-create content and to promote civic campaigns, like this video election guide.
Block Club Chicago saw major growth across social media platforms in 2025, with engagement surging over the summer. TikTok’s following grew by more than 3,000% in 2025 and Instagram increased by nearly 70%.
Three TikTok videos related to federal immigration enforcement went viral, including one that reached over 36 million views, helping drive rapid audience growth.
Top takeaways: Six approaches to social video
Six video formats have consistently performed across several newsrooms: B-roll with text overlay, community-driven content, personality-driven explainers, trend-adapted content, local business spotlights and weekly roundups.
For all these formats, it’s important to capture the viewer’s attention quickly.
“We started asking our reporters to lead folks in with a one to two-sentence teaser before introducing themselves,” Rader from WyoFile said. “You only have [a few seconds] to get someone’s attention on social, so this approach lays out what the topic is immediately, telling folks the stakes and hopefully it gets people hooked.”
1. B-roll and text overlay
- What it is: Simple, scroll-friendly videos built from short clips with headline-style text that generally require the least time investment: 30 to 90 minutes to produce.
- When to use it: You need a fast turnaround or quick visual updates.
- Why it works: It matches how people scroll — fast and often without sound. Text delivers key information instantly, while simple visuals keep attention. It’s also quick to produce, making it easier to post consistently.
- Examples: El Paso Matters, San José Spotlight
- “Those standardized videos perform infinitely better than any other videos we do.” — El Paso Matters
2. Community-driven content
- What it is: Videos rooted in the cultural or geographic uniqueness of the community.
- When to use it: You want to highlight content that reflects place-based pride, reinforces brand identity and deepens local engagement.
- Why it works: It taps into identity and place. People engage more with content that reflects their community, making it more likely to resonate, build loyalty and get shared.
- Examples: WyoFile (e.g., natural resources, public lands), Block Club Chicago (e.g. weather, neighborhood culture, Chicago sports)
- “Our best videos highlight something distinctly Wyoming – wildlife, land use or natural beauty.” — WyoFile
3. Personality-driven explainers
- What it is: Reporter-led videos meant to build trust and audience connection. An individual answers community questions or explains local issues directly to the camera. Can sometimes take longer to produce.
- When to use it: You want to build your individual brand, update on issues like legislative actions, answer audience questions and provide community tips.
- Why it works: It builds trust through familiarity. Seeing reporters on camera humanizes the newsroom and helps audiences connect with and return to specific voices.
- Examples: Outlier Media, WyoFile, Block Club Chicago
- “You have to think like a content creator and a journalist.” — Block Club Chicago
4. Trend-adapted content
- What it is: Think of this as an inside joke to capitalize on popular TikTok and Instagram trends (e.g., green screens, voiceovers, memes) to present newsroom content, entertain audiences and build brand awareness.
- When to use it: You want to quickly capitalize on viral moments, make evergreen topics feel timely or inject humor or novelty into the news cycle.
- Why it works: It uses formats people already enjoy. Familiar trends lower the barrier to engagement and help less compelling stories capture attention.
- Examples: El Paso Matters (Original trend) (Corresponding story) WyoFile
- “We lean into trends for stories that aren’t super engaging otherwise.” — El Paso Matters
5. Local business spotlights
- What it is: Videos highlighting community storefronts, restaurants, vendors or small business initiatives. These often use a narrative or personality-led format. These might be sponsored content partnerships or organic.
- When to use it: For growing an audience through community visibility or cross-promotion on partner platforms.
- Why it works: It’s highly shareable and community-centered. Featuring local businesses encourages cross-promotion and introduces the newsroom to new audiences.
- Examples: Outlier Media, Block Club Chicago
- “We sit down with a local business owner and tell a short story. That’s what gets people to follow.” — Outlier Media
- “People want to see their neighborhood reflected in the news – businesses, restaurants, parks. That’s what gets shared.” — Block Club Chicago
6. Weekly round-ups
- What it is: A weekly round-up of the week’s top stories in a 30-60 second clip.
- When to use it: You are building consistency and want to maintain a presence.
- Why it works: It builds consistency and habit. Even without going viral, regular updates give audiences a reliable way to stay informed.
- Examples: San José Spotlight
- “We’re not going viral every time – but we’re consistent.” — San José Spotlight
To read more about how local newsrooms approach influencer collaborations, refer to these resources:
- AP: The power of video in news media: how increased audience engagement drives success
- Local Media Association: What newsrooms need to know about collaborating with influencers
- International News Media Association: Social influencers can bridge the gap between journalism, local audiences
- International News Media Association: How Newsroom Personalities and Video Strategy Helped Newsday’s Facebook Following Increase by 194%
- Local Media Association: Why Reels represent a major opportunity for local media
- American Press Institute’s guide to influencer collaboration
Hannah Woodsworth worked with the American Journalism Project’s Product & AI Studio in 2025 to conduct this research, and Maggie Cogar authored this piece.
