Why we’re starting a series of ‘solutions journalism’
A piece of the puzzle
Read more from our solutions series
There’s an old saying in journalism that “if it bleeds, it leads”, meaning that news organisations put the grimmest stories front and centre. No doubt, it’s necessary to highlight the bad and the ugly around us. The Cable can hardly be accused of being light-hearted. But journalism too often focuses on just the problem, not the solution. That’s why we’re launching A Piece of the Puzzle, the Cable’s solutions series.
Over the past few months we’ve asked Cable members what we should focus on. Hundreds responded with suggestions. Each and every one needs to be dug into, to raise awareness, to hold power to account and push for change. In that way all good journalism is partly ‘solutions journalism’, because to solve anything we first need to be aware of it.
But with this series we’re trying something new. We’re aiming to go further and look into the ‘solutions’ to those issues highlighted by Cable members and more. We’re looking for ambitious and realistic ideas, from community initiatives, to major changes to policy or how we do politics overall.
This isn’t about puff pieces or pie in the sky projects, and we definitely won’t be shying away from the criticisms and challenges of potential solutions. But we will be looking for the far reaching ideas that we need to take on the major problems we face.
Expect to find vibrant debates and big ideas, inspiring tales of innovators and people champions, and realistic solutions to some of the most pressing issues on our streets. Whether it’s our terrible bus service, families supporting one another in caring for children with special educational needs, a radical new approach to tackling street homeslessness, or local lawyers who are quietly holding the government to account for callous treatment of vulnerable people.
As large numbers of people turn away from a media that focuses on the latest outrage or tragedy, the Cable can be part of the solution by taking another perspective.
