🚀 The Creator Journalist Bundle is here — a low-cost, high-value way to connect with other independent journalists, get access to trusted resources and stay grounded in the work. For $15/month, you’ll join the Project C Slack, receive exclusive newsletters and get invited to member-only events designed to help you build smarter and learn from others on the same path. Join Now!

Kaila White is making public radio go viral

When Kaila White joined MPR News in 2022, her mission was clear: build a social video team from the ground up and find new ways to reach Minnesotans who might never tune in to traditional public radio — especially in the Twin Cities’ buzzing cultural core.

Three years later, that experiment has turned into a powerhouse. The team, dubbed Reverb, has produced more than 300 original videos, won over skeptics in the newsroom and built thriving TikTok (40K followers) and Instagram (177K followers) communities — outpacing other Minnesota outlets and even edging out some major metro newsrooms along the way.

MPR’s core approach

Although the MPR News social team was built to experiment, White made one thing clear from the start: the content might be native to TikTok and Instagram, but it had to stay true to MPR’s mission and tone.

That meant setting firm editorial guardrails — and a core guiding principle: every video should be fully understandable on its own without requiring viewers to click through or seek out context elsewhere.

“I really hate seeing these organizations create content that's intended to drive clicks off-site because it doesn't work,” said White. “They're just tanking their own platforms.”

Instead, MPR’s videos are designed to stand alone. Like this explainer on the difference between a weather watch and a warning — it gives you what you need to know, right there in the scroll.

That approach isn’t just platform-friendly. It’s strategic.

“We emphasize amplifying normal people,” explained White. “Sparking feelings of pride for Minnesota, quickly explaining how news impacts the average person.”

And every piece of content has to meet two criteria: it must have a Minnesota connection and a news connection. The vibe is informative, grounded — and deeply local.

Tone matters, too. Even while experimenting with creator-style formats, the team avoids the kind of snarky or ironic tone that might clash with the MPR brand.

“We keep a respectful tone on all social,” said White. “We don't really delve into snarky ever because I don't think it works for public radio.”

By pairing creator-savvy instincts with old-school editorial discipline, White has helped MPR build something many legacy outlets are still struggling to define: a credible, engaging social presence that feels native to the platforms and true to the brand.

Understanding the culture

Taking a cue from independent creators, White and her team don’t treat social platforms as marketing tools or secondary spaces. They treat them like what they are: real communities, each with its own culture, language and expectations.

That means showing up authentically — and measuring success by engagement, not clicks. That’s why they’ve prioritized engagement over traffic from the beginning.

“We do not measure by conversions, which is something that I have really appreciated,” said White, “because at many privately owned media companies, everything is conversions.”

MPR News’ approach is working. The Minnesota Journalism Center at the University of Minnesota conducted a study with 143 Minnesotans aged 18 through 34 who used Instagram regularly but didn’t follow MPR News. They randomly assigned some to start following MPR News and found trust in the organization increased over the course of one month around the 2024 Election among those who did. The center plans to publish full results from the study in coming months.

The finding affirms what White has long believed: that showing up where your audience actually spends time — and creating content that meets them there — builds more than reach. It builds trust.

Offline, that same ethos is bringing in new audiences, too. White’s team recently organized a Love Is Blind–themed event after learning that a season of the show had been filmed in Minneapolis. It sold out quickly, drew an entirely new crowd — and converted 24 percent of the attendees into donors.

“The membership department was like, that’s unheard of in live events at our company,” White said.

From viral explainers to packed in-person events, the thread running through all of it is a clear, community-centered mission: meet people where they are — and make them feel like they belong.

What’s next?

The MPR News team is continuing to build audience on TikTok and Instagram around in-house talent, but also recently started experimenting with influencer partnerships to expand their reach and engagement even further.

During the Minnesota State Fair, they they hired Sam Schedler, a Minnesota-based comedian with over half a million followers, to host a video, likening it to hiring a freelancer. This approach aims to integrate influencers into their content strategy to connect with broader audiences.

“We pay photojournalists to freelance for us for a day,” said White. “Why can't we pay an influencer to freelance for us for a day?”

The collaboration resulted in a internet-funny video titled "Sam's Guide to the Fair," which performed exceptionally well, leading to further plans for influencer partnerships.

@mprnews

We asked comedian @Sam Sched to show us around the most iconic parts of the @Minnesota State Fair. While he will not engage in the pronto ... See more

White is quick to note that her team’s success hasn’t come from magic formulas, but from intentional experimentation, editorial trust and a lot of trial and error.

“If I have one strength, it’s probably a spirit of experimentation,” said White. “And ability to brainstorm.”

Her advice for other newsroom leaders who want to build something similar?

“Pick who’s gonna run it. Advise them to keep it above board. Keep it respectful. But try whatever they want. Free yourself from the shackles of the conversion.”

Kaila White’s top tips for experimenting with creator-y style social content

1. Free yourself from conversions. Focus on engagement, not click through. Social success comes from meeting audiences where they are — not trying to funnel them back to your site.

2. Try everything (at first). Start messy. Learn what resonates. Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the testable.

3. Make it make sense in platform. Don’t assume users will read the caption, click a link or know your backstory. Each post should stand on its own.

4. You don’t have to hinge everything on one star. With a good teacher, a range of newsroom voices can be trained to show up on camera authentically

5. Hire for judgment and experimentation. Your social lead should know how to play — and where to draw the line. Trust them with both.

This is part two of a two-part series on how local newsrooms are using influencer strategies to grow trust and reach. These early experiments are working. Last week: Samantha Ragland on to develop an influencer strategy.

the latest

• “Bernie’s base probably isn’t getting their news from cable news. They’re watching TikTok, live streams, and memes,” writes Liz Plank in PassionFruit, describing the scene at a massive LA “Organize for America” rally.

• Chris Matthews is the latest former TV talker to set up shop on Substack, where he’ll revive Hardball as a weekly streaming show. "There’s a bunch of either anti-Trump sentiment or pro-Trump sentiment that is driving people to look for new voices*," Hamish McKenzie told the Hollywood Reporter. (*Ed’s note: These are not "new voices.")

• Why are so many former cable TV talking heads choosing Substack? “It's an indication that audience ownership means more to them than scale,” writes Simon Owens💲.

• Taking their cues from Joe Rogan and Theo Von, tween boys are launching their own talk show-style podcasts, writes E.J. Dickson for The Cut. (Note: “Podcast” here describes the YouTube video version [the platform reports more than a billion monthly views for podcast content alone] – because what even is a podcast anymore!?!) And yes, some of these very new humans are wading into political debates.

  

know things

• In a wide-ranging interview, Tim Huelskamp of 1440 talks about how he built a $20M/year newsletter business. His advice: Keep it really simple. Fast-forward to 31:09 to hear about Tim’s first year of experimentation.

• At this year’s International Journalism Festival in Perugia, Johnny Harris talked about growing his independent YouTube channel to a thriving multi-channel business with 17 employees. “I don't think I would have ever made it as a journalist in the old way because I wouldn't have been able to fit within the norms of traditional journalism," he said.

• Speaking of Perugia. ICYMI, you can watch recordings of many of the panels here.

do something cool

• 🏆️ I mentioned last week that nominations are open for the 2025 Online Journalism Awards and called out three categories (Digital Video Storytelling, Excellence in Newsletters and even a new category for Innovation in Revenue Strategy) perfect for creators. But it gets even better. Yesterday, ONA’s Hanaa Rifey told me the OJA eligibility rules have been rewritten to allow for more submissions from solopreneur creators or those working with super small teams. Make sure when you submit your nomination, you check the category for “micro newsroom.” And, Rifey added, in categories that do not include a specific option to enter as a micro newsroom, creators may submit under the small newsroom category. Nominations are open now through May 15!

• Join me in Boston on May 1 for a panel about what newsrooms can learn from influencers at the GBH Media Summit. There’s tons of great programming, with speakers including Jelani Cobb, Maria Ressa, Julia Angwin, Carmella Boykin and many more.

• Vidcon unveiled the first round of programming for its creator track. The journo-adjacent folks at VidCon so far: Taylor Lorenz, Aaron Parnas, V Spehar. The speaker list does include lots of representation from platforms, agencies and tons of non-news creators like Hank Green and, uh, Dr. Pimple Popper.