Twice As Good is a media company and driving force for mindfulness in journalism.
Our mission is to help viewers and journalists tune in to what matters by consuming mindful journalistic narratives so they can experience the news without burning out.
Mindful journalism is especially for people who face collective trauma leading them to consume more news, sacrificing their health in an effort to stay informed. Studies show that the more news you consume, the worse your physical and mental health can become. On top of that, the more collective trauma you experience, the more you're compelled to consume fast news.
That is especially true for Black people in North America, who have historically led the movement to fix journalism. Twice As Good holds that fixing journalism also means pursuing Black media reparations, as described by Black staff at Free Press who created the Media 2070 project and essay on the history of anti-Black racism in the media system.
Black people under 40 are particularly likely to get their news every day from social media, according to a report by Associated Press, The Insight Media Project et al. They're highly informed, checking news daily on all platforms more than white peers, and they experience higher rates of news fatigue.
Mindfulness ethics and practices lead to better journalism that you can actually enjoy, and media that can potentially transform your negative experience of the world as seen in the news.
At the heart of our mission is the desire to fix journalism by grounding our work in restorative practices and ethics. We bring mindfulness into journalism to make it less destructive as a medium, and as a career.
Mindful journalism is especially for people who face collective trauma leading them to consume more news, sacrificing their health in an effort to stay informed. Studies show that the more news you consume, the worse your physical and mental health can become. Additionally, the more collective trauma you experience, the more you're compelled to consume fast news.
On average, 38% of online news consumers in 46 markets covering half of the world's population said that they, "often or sometimes avoid news on certain topics... They find that kind of journalism depressing and repetitive." Mindfulness provides strong ethics for better journalism that you can actually enjoy, and restorative practices to transform our negative experience of the world as seen in the news.
They often practice community or solutions journalism, slow journalism, restorative justice, and mindfulness to bring meaningful ethics to news media. Media 2070, Canadian Journalists of Colour, The Canadian Association of Black Journalists, and the authors of Mindful Journalism and News Ethics in the Digital Era, have all brought these values into their efforts to train and support journalists.
We achieve our mission by offering journalistic narratives and mindfulness resources that are informed by the practices and ethics of mindfulness, like meditation, The Eightfold Path, the Five Mindfulness Trainings, compassion, and equanimity.
That’s why we educate on mindful journalism as a practical and ethical framework for journalists to do better, and we publish mindful narratives for the benefit of underserved audiences:
Newsletter and podcast
Supporting Black folk in creating and consuming mindful media about Black life, published specifically for Black journalists and Black audiences who want to stay tuned without burning out. It's free, and you can listen to it or read it.
Newsletter and podcast
For members who want to learn more about mindfulness and journalism from people who practice them. Some members donate part of their fees to a dedicated fund to support current and aspiring media workers, and free workshops specifically designed to help Black journalists thrive. For example, it might fund a course on trauma-informed reporting, or a Black self-care workshop.
Curiosity: an honest desire to learn through exploration and investigation
Compassion: the unconditional wish for all beings to be free from the causes and conditions of suffering
Equanimity: the effort to cultivate a balanced heart and mind through the practice of awareness, leading to wise perception and meaningful insight
Justice: exposing historical wrongs, seeking actionable solutions, and planting seeds for a better future
Sandra Hannebohm is a journalist, digital producer and founder of Twice As Good Media, a mindful journalism company that helps journalists and people who engage with the news.
She writes and narrates the Mindful Black Journalism newsletter, which demonstrates what mindful media can do for Black folk.
As a freelancer Sandra was the local housing reporter for The Coast. She covered the rise of Airbnb at the start of the housing crisis, and she covered a number of topics in social justice, from poverty and systemic racism to disability rights and gentrification. She also did work for the Halifax Examiner, Halifax Magazine, Black Business Initiative Magazine, and CBC.
Sandra has worked in nonprofit journalism and digital media start ups for 10 years. In 2013 she produced a podcast series about race and politics in the provincial legislature featuring all three Black legislators to have ever been elected at that time. She volunteered with Changing the Narrative, a Black owned podcast about navigating life as an aspiring creative, and in 2018 she produced two parts of a documentary on the under-covered issue of racism in the public school system and beyond.
She's a graduate of the Google News Initiative and LION Publishers Start Ups Bootcamp, as well as the Meta Journalism Project and CUNY Craig Newmark School of Journalism Entrepreneurial Journalism Creators Program.
She also hosts and produces The Lion's Roar Podcast from Lion's Roar magazine, featuring meditations, interviews, dharma talks and audio features to awaken your heart and mind.