Journalists who need support as they brainstorm or polish ideas for solutions journalism stories now have a new set of helping hands—or claws, to be more precise.
Luz, the friendly sloth mascot of El Colectivo 506, is now the face of a trilingual, free, publicly available chatbot that guides journalists as they develop solutions journalism story ideas in Spanish, English, or Portuguese. The bot was built by the Reynolds Journalism Institute and El Colectivo 506. Luz was trained in the solutions journalism pillars: response, evidence of impact, insight / lessons learned, and limitations. She also connects journalists with resources for further learning about solutions journalism.
Luz provides useful feedback on solutions pitches and proposals, helping journalists develop their ideas for pitches to editors and applications to grants. Luz can also provide support to journalism professors and solutions journalism trainers who want to help their students dig into story ideas as they learn about the rigorous requirements of solutions methodology.
She is trained on materials from El Colectivo 506’s years of experience in solutions training, coaching, and editing the work of solutions journalists throughout Costa Rica and Latin America. El Colectivo 506 and its Latin American Solutions Journalism Fund have created more than 42 bilingual editions, trained more than 400 journalists on solutions journalism, and provided reporting fellowships to more than 72 journalists. Luz will help many more journalists so that they can access solutions journalism guidance, training and other opportunities.
Luz is freely accessible to all, keeping with the Reynolds Journalism Institute’s mission of providing free, practical and innovative resources to the journalism community.
The features of the Luz Lab
Now live at luzlab.org, you are invited to dive right into conversation with Luz. You can start with suggesting ideas for solutions journalism stories and receive feedback as you work through the four pillars with her.
Users can also toggle between the three languages offered and read more about solutions journalism, the Latin American Solutions Journalism Fund and the Reynolds Journalism Institute.
In the coming months, the team at El Colectivo 506 and its Latin American Solutions Journalism Fund will continue to add Spanish-language training materials to the site where Luz now resides to make it a one-stop shop for Latin American journalists who want to learn about solutions journalism, chat with Luz and/or register for the Fund so that they can apply for reporting grants, exclusive events, and other opportunities.
Register to join us on Feb 4 at 11pm CT to see Luz in action, ask questions and learn more about how she can help you with your solutions stories!.
