"This research paper looks at the responsibilities of, and opportunities for, major media organisations to collaborate with regional and suburban media to break stories, cover local issues and promote democracy and asks how a collaborative model can practically work for journalists. Despite the angst over dwindling budgets, decline in the number of journalists and the digital transition in local newsrooms – and despite the competitive nature of journalists and producers who’ve ever fought for a hard-won exclusive – local collaborations are on the rise, with former rivals, legacy media, hyperlocals and new start-ups among those joining forces to deliver stories for their communities [...] This paper looks at some examples of these types of collaborations in the UK and US, ranging from some of the largest ongoing collaborative relationships to small short-term projects, from re-investment in beat reporting of councils and data investigations with shared outcomes for the partners, to solutions journalism approaches addressing a community’s economic challenges and coverage of an event like the run up to a mayoral election." (Publisher description)