The LMA coach and consultant discusses collaboration, diversified revenue and the importance of building upon a foundation of trusted local journalism.

Local media organizations cannot build a sustainable future by standing still.

That was one of the central messages LMA coach and consultant Liz White shared during a conversation with Keep It Local host Ryan Welton at Local Media Fest 2026 in Chicago.

White had just helped welcome participants into two new cohorts of the Lab for Journalism Funding. The opening session gave participants an opportunity to meet one another, discuss why they care about journalism and begin the work they will undertake through the lab.

For White, the gathering demonstrated one of the most valuable things Local Media Association provides: the knowledge that local media leaders are not confronting their challenges alone.

“The networking is so powerful,” White said. “Beyond that, just the innovation, the collaboration, the idea sharing — and you know you’re not alone when you’re in this room full of people who are all dealing with the same challenges and experimenting together.”

Creating space for collaboration

White said LMA supports local media organizations in several ways, including conferences, collaborative labs and individual coaching.

LMA’s labs create another kind of learning environment. Participants work alongside other local media leaders facing similar challenges while also receiving coaching as they develop and test new approaches.

White understands the experience from both sides.

Before becoming an LMA coach and consultant, she was a publisher in central Connecticut and a fifth-generation family media owner. She was an LMA member for 16 years and served on its board for eight years. She also participated in LMA programs, taking ideas from the labs back to her own company.

Now, she has the opportunity to help other publishers undertake that same journey.

“I actually have been in these labs,” White said. “I went through them, got ideas, brought them back to my company, and now I get to be a coach and pay it forward.”

Making transformation part of the culture

The local media industry has undergone significant change over the past two decades, but White believes the pace of that change is accelerating.

That makes it essential for news organizations to create teams and cultures capable of continually adapting.

“Building that culture of transformation within your company is so important,” White said. “Building teams that have that mindset—that’s what LMA is all about.”

The purpose behind that transformation remains consistent with LMA’s mission: reinventing business models for news in order to help produce sustainable local journalism.

Transformation, in other words, is not the final objective. It enables local news organizations to continue serving their communities and expand their impact.

Building new pillars on a trusted foundation

White described sustainability as a structure supported by multiple revenue pillars.

At her former company, those pillars included events and a digital agency. Philanthropy later became another important component of its strategy.

The organization’s journalism, however, remained the foundation beneath every new business line.

“The foundation of all of it was trusted local journalism,” White said.

That foundation also included the organization’s community relationships, its legacy and the team responsible for putting new ideas into practice.

The objective is not to abandon the identity or purpose of a local news organization. It is to create additional sources of support that allow its journalism to remain strong.

Providing support throughout the process

Participants in LMA programs are not expected to undertake that transformation by themselves. White said coaching is available throughout the process, whether a participant needs strategic advice, help working through a problem or simply someone who understands the experience.

“Sometimes [I can] give good advice, or just be there to listen,” White said.

She makes herself directly available to the publishers she coaches and emphasizes that the broader LMA team is also ready to help.

“We’re here—the LMA team is here—to support local media companies anytime, anywhere,” White said.

For White, becoming a coach has brought her LMA experience full circle. The organization once provided the environment in which she could learn from other media leaders and bring new ideas into her own company. Today, she helps create that environment for a new generation of participants.

“It’s very full circle for me to be able to pay it forward as a coach,” White said.

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