Stakeholder201 Report8 FROM THE CHAIRMAN Founded in 2011, The Conversation is a big success. Today, it is produced in four OUR FOUNDING PARTNERS languages and ten countries and over 38 million people read it every month. The idea is simple: articles are written by academic experts, commissioned and edited by professional journalists, and distributed for free online. Articles are free to republish by any media outlet that credits The Conversation. Universities support The Conversation because it helps them meet their community engagement objectives – we give them rich analytics and metrics. Academics like The Conversation because it gives them a large and diverse audience. Readership grows rapidly because the articles are trustworthy, informative and entertaining. Friends of democracy value The Conversation because fact-based journalism enables better public discourse. The Conversation serves and is supported by a range of stakeholders – including universities and individual scholars, foundations, government and individual donors, and the talented journalists and technologists who come to work every day determined to see facts inform public discourse. Our CEO Lisa Watts, Editor Misha Ketchell and the Board join me in thanking all of you. Harrison Young, Chairman THANK YOU Support from the AMP Foundation enables The OUR STRATEGIC PARTNERS Conversation to shine a light on employment-related issues, barriers and research-based solutions. With a commitment to innovation, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia is a long-time strategic partner of The Conversation. The Conversation is grateful for the legal services provided by Corrs Chambers Westgarth. The Ian Potter Foundation supports The Conversation's science coverage and our work with early and mid-career researchers. The Lord Mayor's Charitable Foundation partners with The Conversation to promote informed discussion of cities in the face of pressures such as continued urbanisation and growth. The State Government of Victoria is a valued partner of The Conversation. Working with the Department of Education & Training helps us advance civic discussion about education and develop resources linked to the school curriculum. Foundations looking to partner with us and support public interest journalism can contact Damian Thompson on (03) 9988 1973. OUR UNIVERSITY + RESEARCH MEMBERS Auckland University of Technology James Cook University University of South Australia Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource La Trobe University University of Southern Queensland Economics and Sciences Macquarie University University of Sunshine Coast Australian Catholic University Massey University University of Sydney Australian National University Monash University University of Tasmania Australia New Zealand School of Government Murdoch University University of Technology Sydney Bond University Queensland University of Technology University of Waikato CQUniversity Australia RMIT University University of Western Australia Charles Darwin University Southern Cross University University of Wollongong Charles Sturt University Swinburne University of Technology UNSW Australia CSIRO University of Adelaide Victoria University Curtin University University of Canberra Victoria University of Wellington Data61 University of Melbourne Western Sydney University Deakin University University of Newcastle Edith Cowan University University of New England Flinders University University of Notre Dame Australia Griffith University University of Queensland FROM THE EDITOR AND CEO Trust is in steady decline across the world. Trust in experts, ways our member universities enrich trust in institutions, trust in democracy, trust in the media. You our society, and we would not be here don’t have to look hard to find thoughtful disquisitions on the without that commitment. nature of the problem. We live in an age of disinformation and spin, in which platforms like Facebook and Google have Similarly we have found wonderful made it way too easy to publish information likely to muddy support from philanthropists such the waters on matters of public interest. as the AMP Foundation, the Ian Potter Foundation and the Lord The Conversation is a project ahead of its time in fighting Mayor’s Charitable Foundation. The back. By only working with academics and researchers who Commonwealth Bank is another are drawing on their expertise we rebuild trust and inform the supporter that has been quietly public. generous and public-spirited. The idea is so simple and compelling it has spread across As you read through this report you the world. Teams of Conversation editors are now working will find numbers that give you a sense in Australia, UK, France, Spain, Canada, Africa, the US, of the magnitude of our success: a Indonesia and New Zealand. Others are lining up to become rapidly growing audience at a time part of this global movement of sharing expertise more when most media companies are widely. struggling. The magic of the project lies in the fact it is built on a We are extremely proud of these achievements, of course, relationship of trust and respect. Public debate is increasingly but we are most proud of the fact that it is all built on strong partisan and shrill, with people retreating to their corners and relationships with our stakeholders and partners, as well as listening only to ideas that confirm their pre-existing views. an unabashed idealism and a shared commitment to public service. The Conversation takes the opposite approach. It is based on collaboration between people from somewhat different Thank you to everyone who has played a part in our worlds: journalists and academics. success, in particular Harrison Young and the Board, our Editorial Board, our generous donors and our discerning The analysis we deliver is made possible by a relationship readers. between academics with deep expertise and the experienced journalists in our team: academic rigour, journalistic flair. Misha Ketchell, Editor This is mirrored in the way we work with our university members. Supporting The Conversation is just one of many Lisa Watts, CEO OUR JOURNALISM Misha Ketchell, Editor What kind of journalism do we do? When most people think about journalism they tend to focus on the role of journalists in holding power to account. Big investigations into corruption like Moonlight State in Queensland or Watergate. This work is vital, but there is another role for journalism that is even more fundamental: journalists provide quality information that helps people understand the world around them and make informed decisions. The aim of The Conversation’s journalism is to inform our readers by providing quality information from academic experts. This type of journalism is essentially explanatory. We explain new research findings, or provide the background and context to big policy debates that are in the news. The key is being engaged with the news cycle and giving readers what they need when they need it. How a black box flight recorder works is a pressing topic after a plane crash, maybe less so at other times. a blind peer reviewer. We also answer questions what to eat to stay healthy, or how to keep our from children for our Curious Kids articles. We aim children safe online, or how to avoid the risks of Editors know which academics to turn to for to serve the needs of readers, widely defined. problem gambling. It helps people make sense background and “explainer” pieces – sometimes of a confusing barrage of information. Quality published within a few hours. Our award-winning This type of information is essential for democracy information makes markets more efficient. It fact-checking team examines claims made during but it does so much more than help us take provides essential insights that help us understand election campaigns using academic expertise and part in public debate. It also helps us decide our environment, our culture, our history. OUR CHARTER The other essential element is ● Inform public debate with ● Ensure the site’s integrity by trust. Our journalism has to be knowledge-based journalism obtaining only non-partisan trustworthy and our readers have to know it is trustworthy. Our charter that is responsible, ethical and sponsorship from education, of independence protects us from supported by evidence government and private partners. commercial or other influence. Any advertising will be relevant Authors must be academics or researchers writing in their field ● Unlock the knowledge of and non-obtrusive of expertise. They are required to researchers and academics to disclose conflicts of interest. provide the public with clarity ● Ensure quality, diverse and To ensure errors are not introduced and insight into society’s biggest intelligible content reaches in the editing process, we require problems the widest possible audience by authors to sign off on all articles before publication. Our editorial employing experienced editors to process is overseen by an editorial ● Create an open site for people curate the site board of senior academics. to share best Errors are corrected quickly and around the world prominently. practices and collaborate on ● Set the standard in journalism Most importantly we ensure our developing smart, sustainable best practice. Be open, work is widely accessible. Our solutions transparent and accountable. publishing system has an inbuilt Where errors occur correct them readability index with a traffic light system which turns green when ● Provide a fact-based and expeditiously the article is pitched at