This tool is designed to help editors prepare for and run an effective news meeting that results in the production of original and informative journalism.
A news meeting should be short, focused, and energetic, with every participant expected to bring original ideas and new story angles, and to leave with clear instructions and deadlines for delivery.
This tool is created using the content from two articles on Media Helping Media (MHM): ‘How to run an effective news meeting’ and ‘Getting the best out of a news meeting’, which cover all the points below in more depth. You might want to also read ‘How to be a hands-on editor’.
Scroll down to see the MHM News Meeting Checklist, or click here to have a quick look before reading the explanatory text.
Purpose of this tool
Use this self-help tool to plan, run and review your news meeting so that it:
- Engages staff and encourages contribution.
- Generates original story ideas and fresh angles, not just diary rewrites.
- Produces a clear, multi-platform news agenda that everyone owns.
Step 1: Prepare before the meeting: Ask yourself these questions and act on them before anyone enters the room.
- Vision: What do you think the news day should look like if nothing changes in the next few hours.
- Awareness: Have you read your own output, checked competitors, and identified gaps and possible new angles.
- Updating: Have you printed or shared the diary, prospects and any running orders with all who need them.
- Ideas: Do you have at least one original angle in mind for each main running story.
- Attendees: Have you invited the right mix of editorial, digital, visual and production people.
Practical tip: Set a clear start and end time for the meeting and decide in advance what a good outcome will look like.
Step 2: Set the tone at the start: Use the first two minutes to create energy, focus and expectations.
- Punctuality: Start on time, even if some are late, and set a time limit for the meeting.
- Alertness: Keep people standing or on firm chairs rather than slouched on sofas to signal pace and purpose.
- Distractions: Ban distractions such as private chats, texting and unrelated calls during the meeting.
- Expectations: State clearly that the meeting is about ideas, new angles and impact, not just reading out events.
- Involvement: Stress that all are expected to contribute and there will be no hiding places or favourites.
Check-in question: “Who has a story that, had it not been for you, the audience would never have known about.”
Step 3: Surface ideas and unique angles: Run this part of the meeting as a structured hunt for original stories and fresh perspectives.
- Originality: Start with ideas, not the diary: ask for original angles on existing stories and for exclusives in progress.
- Collaboration: Encourage people to build on each other’s suggestions so that stories become deeper, not just longer.
- Depth: Use specialists to spot links between their beats and wider themes to enrich coverage.
- Detail: Ask “what’s missing” from each story: voices, data, accountability, human impact or solutions.
- Inclusion: Draw quieter colleagues into the conversation and prevent anyone from dominating.
Prompt questions to use repeatedly:
- “What is the next step in this story that our audience really needs to know about?”
- “Where is the tension or conflict that has not been explored yet.”
- “What human experience would make this story more powerful and relatable.”
Step 4: Use the diary as a map, not a script: Turn routine events into distinctive journalism rather than allowing them to dictate your agenda.
- Flexibility: Treat the diary as a map of possibilities, not a fixed running order.
- Angles: For each event, ask what angles, accountability questions and human stories lie beneath the surface.
- Originality: Decide what you will do differently from competitors at the same events.
- Focus: Agree which events you will ignore or downplay so that you can focus resources on stronger stories.
Simple filter: “If we only had half the staff today, which events and stories would still make our agenda.”
Step 5: Build the agenda and set priorities: Turn ideas into a clear, shared plan that covers all platforms and audiences.
- Priorities: Identify the lead stories and explain why they matter for your audience.
- Treatment: Decide how each story will appear across text, audio, video, graphics and social media.
- Ranking: Agree which stories are quick hits, which are in-depth pieces, and which are longer investigations. See our ‘Story Weighting’ tool.
- Diversity: Check that community, diversity and multiple perspectives are reflected in the mix of stories. See our ‘Content Value Matrix’ tool.
One-sentence test: “Can each section editor present the day’s agenda in one clear sentence that everyone understands.”
Step 6: Clarify roles, deadlines and delivery: End the discussion part with unambiguous instructions and mutual accountability.
- Responsibility: For every story, confirm who is responsible, what they will deliver and when.
- Clarity: Ask each person to repeat back their task in their own words to confirm understanding.
- Dependencies: Highlight dependencies so people know who is waiting on their work and why it matters.
- Ethics: Note any ethical, safety or legal checks needed and who will handle them. See our training articles ‘Why editorial ethics matter’.
Micro-briefs: Allow 10–15 minutes after the meeting for one‑to‑one clarifications where needed.
Step 7: Keep the meeting fast, focused and fair: Use these checks during the meeting to maintain momentum and trust.
- Pace: Watch the clock and move on once a decision is made; avoid endless debate.
- Distractions: Stop side conversations and bring any useful point into the main discussion.
- Positivity: Use humour where appropriate to keep the atmosphere positive without undermining the task.
- Appreciation: Thank people for strong ideas and good collaboration to reinforce the behaviour you want.
Note: If discussion drifts into details that do not need the whole team, park it for after the meeting.
Step 8: Close with a shared picture of the day: Finish with a short recap so everyone leaves with confidence and purpose.
- Recap: Summarise the top stories, their angles and their planned treatment on each platform.
- Deadlines: Restate the key deadlines and any critical risks or gaps to watch during the day.
- Next steps: Confirm that people know when the next check‑in or follow‑up meeting will be.
- Thanks: End by thanking everyone sincerely for their contribution and ideas.
Final question: “Is anyone unclear about what they are doing or worried about delivering on time.”
Step 9: Review and improve after each cycle: Use a short review to make every news meeting better than the last.
- Review: Spend five minutes asking what worked well and what could have been better in the last shift.
- Issues: Note any repeated problems with planning, communication or delivery and set simple actions to fix them.
- Responsibility: Encourage a culture where mistakes are acknowledged, shared and learned from, not hidden.
- Originality: Track whether meetings are consistently producing original angles and valuable follow‑ups.
Overview: Keep a simple record of decisions and outcomes so you can see patterns over time.
News meeting checklist
Below is a checklist for editors to consider before calling a news meeting. You might want to print it out as you go through the steps.
News Meeting Checklist |
||
Stage / time |
Question / prompt for the editor |
Check |
| Before (5 mins) | Have I reviewed yesterday’s output, today’s diary and the output of our competitors? | ☐ |
| Have I decided what are the most important decisions needed today (leads, angles, responsibilities, deadlines)? | ☐ | |
| Has everyone seen the day’s diary and the forward planning diary before they enter? | ☐ | |
| Do I have someone ready to note decisions and action items? | ☐ | |
| 0–3 mins: opening | Did I start on time and state the 30-minute limit? | ☐ |
| Did I explain that the meeting is about ideas and original angles, not just diary items? | ☐ | |
| Did I state the main objective: agree leads, angles and who is doing what by when? | ☐ | |
| 3–10 mins: ideas | Have I asked each key reporter/producer for their strongest idea or exclusive? | ☐ |
| For each idea, have I asked what is new, who is accountable, and where the human impact is? | ☐ | |
| Have I noted any investigations or follow-ups that need priority? | ☐ | |
| 10–18 mins: diary | Have we gone through the diary briefly and decided: strong, light or ignore for each item? See: Story Weighting | ☐ |
| For the most important events, have we agreed what we will do differently from competitors? | ☐ | |
| Have we cut weaker items to free resources for stronger stories? See Content Value Matrix. | ☐ | |
| 18–25 mins: agenda | Have we agreed the running order: leads, second-level stories, shorts, longer-term projects? | ☐ |
| For each lead, have we agreed the main angle and any explainer, data or human element? | ☐ | |
| Does the mix reflect our audiences and include a range of voices and communities? | ☐ | |
| Have we agreed how each main story will appear on each platform? | ☐ | |
| 25–28 mins: actions | For every important story, is there a named owner, a clear task and a deadline? | ☐ |
| Have I asked each person to repeat back their task in their own words? | ☐ | |
| Have we noted any legal, ethical or safety checks and who will handle them? | ☐ | |
| 28–30 mins: recap | Have I read out the list of actions quickly: who will do what by when? | ☐ |
| Have I asked if anyone is unclear or worried about delivery? | ☐ | |
| Did I finish on time and thank people for their ideas and contribution? | ☐ | |
| After (5–10 mins) | Have I sent a short written recap of actions to all relevant staff within 10–15 minutes? | ☐ |
| Have I logged key actions and deadlines in the planning or convergence tool? | ☐ | |
Capturing meeting decisions
The fastest way to capture and distribute action items is to record them in a simple, standard format during the meeting, confirm them verbally at the end, and send a short written recap within minutes while everything is still fresh.
- Accurate note taking
- Nominate one person (or yourself) to note only decisions, action items, owners and deadlines, not a verbatim transcript.
- Use a fixed structure for every item: task, owner, deadline, any key dependency or risk.
- Capture actions as they are agreed, not afterwards, so nothing is lost when the meeting moves on.
- Confirm before people leave
- In the final two minutes, read out the list of actions quickly: “X will do Y by Z time” for each item.
- Check that each person accepts and understands their task; change the wording if they need clarification.
- Signpost any follow‑up one‑to‑ones for more detailed briefing so you do not overrun the main meeting.
- Use a simple shared format
- Put actions into a short list or table with columns for task, owner, deadline and status (“new”, “in progress”).
- Use plain language and keep descriptions short so people can scan quickly during a busy news day.
- If you already work around a converged superdesk or planning grid, log each action against the relevant story or platform there.
- Distribute within minutes
- Send the recap as soon as the meeting ends, ideally within 10–15 minutes, while people are still at their desks.
- Address it to everyone who was in the meeting and anyone affected by the actions (such as planning or digital teams).
- Put the most important actions at the top and highlight the names and deadlines so they stand out.
- Keep the loop tight
- Add key deadlines to your planning tool or diary and set reminders so you can check progress mid‑shift.
- Use quick stand‑ups or superdesk huddles to revisit the main actions, especially when priorities shift.
- At the next news meeting, start by checking a few major actions from the previous session so people see that follow‑up is real.
Related material
https://mediahelpingmedia.org/management/how-to-get-the-most-from-a-news-meeting/
