How we work
For our editions of Squirrel News, we do extensive research multiple times a week, scouring the German and English media landscape. We look for articles about new ideas, opportunities and solutions to societal problems as well as advances in all fields.
Selecting articles is the most important part of our work. This process is influenced by a variety of criteria, both standard news-value criteria and the criteria of constructive and solutions-focused journalism.
Our criteria
Important criteria for conventional news that are part of what we take into account are, for example:
- Novelty and originality of a particular solution approach
- Timeliness of the news
- Size, scope, and potential impact of the solution
We also look specifically at the focus on solutions:
- Is the solution at the centre of the piece, or is it only briefly mentioned in passing?
- Is the solution described in detail and in a way that is comprehensible? Do new insights emerge?
- Is the potential impact analysed?
- Are the limitations of a solution pointed out?
The Solutions Journalism Network has defined these requirements as core criteria for good solutions journalism.
Additional aspects of importance to us are:
- Is an approach transferable? Can others learn from it, adopt the model, and, when relevant, possibly develop it further?
- And: Is the solution potentially sustainable? Will it stand the test of time?
A further core criterion for us is the societal progress that is represented or achieved by a particular project, company or political decision as described in an article.
And last but not least, we also include stories that offer a new and constructive point of view on particular topics and counter common prejudices.
Constraints in the selection process
Of course, we do repeatedly confront limitations when selecting news. Not every current topic is covered by high-quality, in-depth articles that take all of the above criteria into account. We then decide on a case-by-case basis, taking into account how many other solutions-focused stories are available that day.
As we can only link to what other media have recently published, the quality of content in our editions can fluctuate. On some days, we have many more exciting and high-quality articles to choose from than we can fit into one issue. On other days, we struggle to find enough and would rather have a much wider selection. It is precisely on these latter days that we have to make more compromises. But even then there is usually enough of interest to warrant a closer look. And we are often rewarded by a rich mix of topics and articles in the following issue.
