Eyewitness Program - League of Women Voters of Colorado

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A New Model of Civic Journalism

The Eyewitness Corps is our answer to a question we hear all the time:

“How can I actually know what’s happening at my local government meetings?”

So we're trying something different.

Traditional newsrooms often can’t cover every city council or school board meeting, and most people aren’t able to attend them in person, so important decisions slip by unnoticed. This project brings together neighbors who care about their communities and want to help others stay informed, with media outlets who need trusted, accurate, and accessible coverage of public meetings.

Whether you're someone who wants to show up, take notes, and share what happened, or a newsroom stretched thin that could use reliable civic coverage, Eyewitness Corps is here to help!

LEARN MORE ABOUT BECOMING AN EYEWITNESS

W H E R E W E S T A R T E D

Eyewitness Corps began as a pilot in Larimer County under the name Colorado Citizen Observers Corps.

Those reports are now live on Substack and used in Larimer County Snapchat News, showing what’s possible when people who care get trained, show up, and share what they saw.

FOR NEWSROOMS: Let's Partner

“We’d love to cover more public meetings but we just don’t have the capacity.” If you're in a newsroom, you’ve probably said some version of this lately.

We get it. That’s where Eyewitness Corps comes in. We work with trained community observers to produce short, accurate, and bilingual reports you can publish, shaped to your style and format.

Ready-to-run coverage from real people in real communities.
No cost to participate.
Support for bilingual stories and reaching audiences that often get left out

Let’s make it easier to cover the stories that impact your readers’ everyday lives.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE EYEWITNESS PROGRAM

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FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS:
Become An Eyewitness

You don’t need to be a journalist. You just need to care.

Maybe you’ve sat through a school board meeting wondering why more people weren’t paying attention. Maybe you know folks who’d want to know what happened if someone just took the time to break it down.

That’s where you come in.

Learn how your local government works
Get trained to observe and report – No experience needed!
Receive a stipend for every meeting you cover
Share what matters, especially for folks who speak Spanish or can’t attend in person
Help your neighbors feel informed and empowered

LEARN MORE ABOUT BECOMING AN EYEWITNESS

A B O U T T H E P R O G R A M M A N A G E R

Linda Carpio Shapley leads the Eyewitness Corps initiative with decades of experience in journalism and community engagement, plus experience in nonprofit leadership. She is a transformational leader in Colorado’s local news landscape and is deeply committed to equity, civic participation and storytelling that reflects the full spectrum of community voices.

Linda has worked in both English- and Spanish-language media, and she brings a journalist’s curiosity and a connector’s heart to everything she does. Her work focuses on building bridges between local government, media and the people they serve.

C O N T A C T L I N D A : eyewitness@lwvcolorado.org

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