University of Kwazulu-Natal

What Is Solutions Journalism Tol Education

Bonisiwe Shabane
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what is solutions journalism tol education

This innovative journalism approach goes beyond simple issue identification and instead focuses on featuring what is already working. It uses the same rigor of investigative reporting to highlight the mechanisms and success factors as well as the limitations of already-existing solutions to well-known problems. As a result it activates citizens by functioning as a catalyst for accountability that can lead to meaningful change. A problem that was seen as unavoidable comes to be seen as unacceptable. Solutions Journalism covers a wide variety of topics and its approach ranges from identifying cases of positive deviants to exploring new ideas in action to reporting on experiments in progress. The result is informative, impactful content that strengthens audience engagement, reestablishes trust in the media, and increases both readership and revenue.

Is Solutions Journalism a Solution? (Alex Sabadan, The Fix) – this article is covering the main questions and answers on the new rising trend in journalism Explore the Solutions Journalism Network’s Basic Toolkit – now available in many Central & Eastern European languages (Czech, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian, and Russian) And … don’t forget to browse the Solutions Journalism Network’s Solutions Story Tracker – a curated database of more than 6,400 solutions stories from all over the world. Solutions journalism is rigorous and compelling reporting about responses to social problems, which includes these key elements: Solutions journalism investigates and explains, in a critical and clear-eyed way, how people try to solve widely shared problems.

While journalists usually define news as “what’s gone wrong,” solutions journalism tries to expand that definition: Responses to problems are also newsworthy. By adding rigorous coverage of solutions, journalists can tell the whole story. Solutions journalism complements and strengthens coverage of problems. Done well, solutions stories provide valuable insights that help communities with the difficult work of tackling problems like homelessness or climate change, skyrocketing housing prices or low voter turnout. We also know from research that solutions stories can change the tone of public discourse, making it less divisive and more constructive. By revealing what has worked, such stories have led to meaningful change.

We gathered in 2023 to celebrate a decade of solutions journalism, impact, insights, and the people who have made this possible. Have you ever finished reading the news and felt… exhausted? It often feels like a constant stream of what’s broken, what’s failing, and who’s to blame. This “if it bleeds, it leads” approach is a cornerstone of traditional journalism, and its role as a watchdog is vital. But what if it’s only showing us half the picture? What about the responses?

This is where a powerful, rigorous, and evidence-based approach called Solutions Journalism comes in. Solutions journalism is rigorous, evidence-based reporting on responses to social problems, focusing on what works, what doesn’t, and why. It’s not “fluff” or “good news” puff pieces. It’s not about finding local heroes and patting them on the back. Instead, it’s a critical and in-depth investigation of the systems and strategies that are working to solve a problem, providing a more complete and functional view of the world. At its core, solutions journalism shifts the narrative.

While traditional reporting often stops at the problem, solutions reporting asks, “Who is doing it better, and how?” Let’s use an example. Imagine a city is facing a massive high school dropout crisis. This second story is fundamentally more useful. It not only highlights a problem but also provides actionable insights and a sense of agency to other communities facing the same issue. Solutions Journalism is rigorous reporting about responses to society’s problems.

It is complete journalism that not only spotlights the problems but follows an evidence-based presentation of existing solutions. Such reporting enhances knowledge and accountability by providing the whole story to readers and offers constructive content in an age of media apathy. This innovative journalism approach goes beyond simple issue identification and instead focuses on featuring what is already working. It uses the same rigor of investigative reporting to highlight the mechanisms and success factors as well as the limitations of already-existing solutions to well-known problems. As a result, it activates citizens by functioning as a catalyst for accountability that can lead to meaningful change. A problem that was seen as unavoidable comes to be seen as unacceptable.

Solutions Journalism covers a wide variety of topics and its approach ranges from identifying cases of positive deviants to exploring new ideas in action to reporting on experiments in progress. The result is informative, impactful content that strengthens audience engagement re-establishes trust in the media, and increases both readership and revenue. The Four Qualities of Solutions Journalism 1) A solutions story focuses on a RESPONSE to a social problem — and how that response has worked or why it hasn’t. (“howdunnit”)2) The best solutions reporting distills the lessons that makes the response relevant and accessible to others. In other words, it offers INSIGHT.3) Solutions journalism looks for EVIDENCE — data or qualitative results that show effectiveness (or lack thereof).4) Discusses LIMITATIONS or gaps of the approach (no response is perfect!)

Solutions journalism is an approach to news reporting that focuses on the responses to social issues as well as the problems themselves. Solutions stories, anchored in credible evidence, explain how and why responses are working, or not working. The goal of this journalistic approach is to present people with a truer, more complete view of these issues, helping to drive more effective citizenship. Solutions journalism is rigorous, evidence-based reporting on the responses to social problems. Solutions stories can take many forms, but they share several key characteristics. They identify the root causes of a social problem; prominently highlight a response, or responses, to that problem; present evidence of the impact of that response; and explain how and why the response is...

When possible, solutions stories also present an insight that helps people better understand how complex systems work, and how they can be improved. Proponents of solutions journalism distinguish the approach from so-called "good news" reporting, which can be characterized by a superficial presentation of a response without careful analysis or examination of whether the response is effective. Solutions stories assess responses that are working today, as opposed to untested theories—and they tend to place more emphasis on the innovation than on a person or institution responsible for that innovation. Solutions journalism supporters believe that it provides important feedback that allows society to see credible possibilities and respond more successfully to emerging challenges. Compelling reporting about responses to social problems, they say, can strengthen society by increasing the circulation of knowledge necessary for citizens to engage powerfully with issues in their communities, and for communities, leaders, innovators,... Simply reporting on problems, some research shows, can reduce citizens' sense of efficacy, leading them to disengage from public life.

In a 2008 study, the Associated Press found that young people were tired of news, which they perceived as being negative and lacking resolution.[1] This resulted in "news fatigue", in which people tended to... Solutions journalism is rigorous and compelling reporting about responses to social problems, which includes these key elements: Founded in 2013 by the award-winning journalists David Bornstein, Tina Rosenberg and Courtney Martin, the Solutions Journalism Network includes: The Solutions Story Tracker® is the largest collection of solutions journalism: 17,200 stories produced by 9,700 journalists and 2,140 news outlets from 98 countries. The stories cover responses in 199 countries, in 18 languages. This resource is made possible because of a growing movement of journalists who use solutions journalism to illuminate both problems and evidence-based responses to them.

The Solutions Journalism Network offers newsletters for journalists, educators and everyone interested in how people are responding to problems. Journalists in our global network use solutions journalism to strengthen community efficacy, challenge false and harmful stereotypes, build trust and civic engagement, depolarize public discourse and build new sources of revenue. In this two-hour course, the Transitions team, aided by resources from the Solutions Journalism Network, will introduce you to the practice of solutions journalism. This course consists of five lessons, several interactive exercises, a short video on how to do SoJo, and links to additional resources. By the end of this course, you will be able to: 1) Define solutions journalism and identify SoJo “imposters”; 2) Explain the key criteria of solutions journalism; 3) Get started on a SoJo story; and 4) Know how to pitch a solutions-oriented story.

After completing the course, you can pass the quiz and obtain a downloadable certificate (the certificate is subject to a 15 Euro issuing fee). © TOL EDUCATION 2025. All rights reserved.Published by Transitions z.s., Školská 689/20, 110 00 Prague 1, Czech Republic. The Solutions Journalism Network works to support reporting that examines potential solutions to social problems, rather than just chronicling the problems themselves. It just received a grant for $180,000 from the Knight Foundation to collaborate with the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation on giving reporters data about solutions to health problems. We talked with co-founder David Bornstein about the mission and how to do this kind of reporting well.

Co-founder of Solutions Journalism Network DAVID BORNSTEIN: The Solutions Journalism Network is a new organization founded by veteran reporters to legitimize and spread the practice of “solutions journalism” — rigorous reporting about responses to social problems. The Solutions Journalism Network (SJN) is an independent, non-profit organization that advocates an approach of solutions journalism, an evidence-based mode of reporting on the responses to social problems. It was founded in 2013 by David Bornstein, Courtney E. Martin, and Tina Rosenberg. Its staff in New York City and Oakland, California, help journalists and news organizations across the country understand, value, and build the capacity to do solutions-oriented reporting.

The mission of SJN is "to spread the practice of solutions journalism: rigorous and compelling reporting about responses to social problems".[1] What SJN calls solutions journalism is preceded by very similar journalistic styles that... The Solutions Journalism Network grew out of the "Fixes" column in The New York Times Opinionator section written by journalists David Bornstein and Tina Rosenberg since October 2010.[2] Together with Courtney Martin, an author,... SJN's first major project was a collaboration with The Seattle Times to produce a year-long series of solutions-oriented stories about public education called Education Lab. This initiative was extended for a second year.[3] In its first year, SJN also launched a series of funds to provide financial support to journalists pursuing solutions stories on topics concerning climate change resilience,... SJN believes that most news reporting fails to fulfill journalism's mission to hold an accurate mirror up to society. While traditional journalism holds that a reporter's primary role is to expose problems, SJN argues that the press should also examine examples of responses to those problems, with the same degree of rigor.

These responses, it holds, are an important part of what is happening in the world, and accurate coverage of society must include them to be able to provide the whole story.

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