What other people  say about me: 

“Nanna is competent, efficient, creative, flexible, and highly professional – and at the same time, very present, attentive, and empathetic. It was a great pleasure to collaborate with Nanna, and she has my warmest recommendations.”

Malene Siwmark Høffer

“I worked as an external producer with Nanna Holst on a documentary for TV 2 Lorry about a family with children during the COVID-19 quarantine. And I must say that I was truly impressed by Nanna’s incredibly sympathetic demeanor right from the first email, even before the idea was fully pitched. She was friendly, interested, and above all, respectful in her approach to my inquiries.” 

Henriette Skov Andersen

Thank you for your great work for journalism and for the democratic conversation!

Signe H. Damkjær

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The Better Listening Metod

Shortcut to a more listening mindset

The Better Listening method was developed during my fellowship in the academic year 2022-2023 at the Constructive Institute at Aarhus University, supported by a grant from TrygFonden. 

The Better Listening method aims to make it easier for journalists, editors, and media leaders to engage in more meaningful and effective listening. 

The methodology facilitates the necessary cultural change, perseverance, and patience.

But. Maintaining focus is more challenging than one might think – even when intentions are good.                 

Many traditional media claim to listen to and involve their target audience in their journalism. However, this often does not translate effectively on most news websites, where the majority of stories are still driven by journalists’ and media outlets’ own agendas.

Journalists traditionally find it difficult to relinquish control and are typically most comfortable with their own ideas.

The Better Listening Method helps media organizations democratize the power of questioning and maintain focus on the target audience’s reality and expectations of the media.

The method consists of four values that together foster a more listening and collaborative mindset within the media organization:

The data foundation of Better Listening

The method is built upon three main data tracks that I have worked on during my fellowship at the Constructive Institute:

1. Studies of practice
2. Academic research
3. Practical experience

The Better Listening Method Short

Get a quick overview of the Better Listening Method in this summary, which I have published as the conclusion of my fellowship at the Constructive Institute.

Contact me for a free e-book sent via email. Quotes from the book can be used with proper attribution.

Better Listening Method Fellowship Project

Dive deeper into the Better Listening Method in my Fellowship Project from the Constructive Institute at Aarhus University, supported by a scholarship from TrygFonden. Contact me to receive the study via email. Quotes from the research can be used with proper attribution.

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Workshop

I offer a workshop that helps you with a cultural change that creates value from day 1. We will do a planning meeting together, and then we will finalize a program that takes your participants from curiosity and interest to understanding and a desire to get started.

Contact me here for a conversation about how we can tailor a workshop to your organization and needs.

You may be wondering how a workshop can make a difference. Let me provide you with a practical example:

LISTEN: A single day can make a difference

‘NRK – the Norwegian equivalent of BBC – is undergoing a profound cultural change towards a more listening and constructive approach to their journalism.

There is no fundamental resistance to the development among the employees, in fact quite the opposite. Nevertheless, it requires effort to change habits and perspectives in the daily routines of the newsrooms.

Chris Carlsen is District Editor for NRK Oslo and Viken and one of the driving forces behind the more listening and collaborative approach. He formulates the paradigm shift and the difficulty of the cultural change as follows:

• We desire a cycle of constructive dialogue and editorial decisions that includes ideas and input from the audience. It is different from the traditional way of working, where we receive and seek tips but hold closed editorial meetings and have exclusive rights to journalism.
• Audience dialogue has been announced as strategically important at NRK, but it is a bigger challenge to convince journalists and editors internally than it is to get the audience on board with the idea.
• Journalists and editors can easily see the meaning and value of citizen-generated journalism. The challenge lies in changing the journalistic process and the way journalists work, says Chris Carlsen.

In the spring of 2023 I was invited to introduce the Better Listening Method at a two-day workshop with journalists and leaders from NRK’s Region Sør-Øst in the small town of Drammen, north of Oslo.

Everyone around the table has significant contact with listeners, readers, and local sources, but there is no system or common language for what it means to listen and actively and systematically engage. There is a slight reservation in the room: Is this even more that we have to do in an already busy everyday life? 

Day one I introduce the Better Listening model and the underlaying values for the participants, and they continue by working with their own ideas for listening and involving their audiences.

Already when we reconvene the next morning, it becomes clear that the participants have fully grasped what a listening approach means, what value it brings, and how they will approach the task of involving their different target audiences in their journalism. Not as something extra, but instead of something else.

Examples of the participants’ observations that morning:

– I am inspired that it is not about platforms but about a way of thinking. Just grab the bird while it’s flying. It’s fine to start small. You can always progress.

– I am fascinated that the audience is willing to participate to such an extent, and that it can turn into good journalism. It’s clever that you don’t have to chase cases.

– It is an exciting difference between asking people about their opinion, which is one-way communication, and creating something meaningful together. We need to move away from ‘them and us.’ We are only an ‘us.’

– I particularly take with me that you can be conscious of audience dialogue in everyday life without overcomplicating it. Now I am confident.

After lunch, the group, both together and individually, has created concepts that they can go home and implement immediately. They have a plan for how they will engage in dialogue and make it easy for the public to get involved. 

The cultural change towards a more active and systematic listening and engaging mindset is in full swing – less than a day since the group met.

 “Now it’s about maintaining momentum in everyday life,” as Benedikte Fjelly, Head of Audience Dialogue in NRK Region Sør-Øst, puts it. 

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Keynotes

I am regularly invited to deliver keynotes and lectures to a wide range of audiences, from executive teams to conferences and educational settings. These presentations are tailored to the specific relevance for the participants, drawing on my concrete experiences from nearly three decades as a constructive, attentive, and engaging journalist and editor.

Contact me for a conversation about your needs and desires.

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Contact me