Introducing Today in OpenGov, our new morning newsletter

by and
This is a screenshot of the new Today in OpenGov newsletter

Today in OpenGov, inbox edition

Great news, opengov fans: Now there’s a new way to wake up with the news you care about most.

Beginning Monday, Sunlight will start delivering a regular digest of open government news and information each morning to subscribers’ inboxes. We’re calling it “Today in OpenGov,” and it’s Sunlight’s first-ever daily newsletter. (Click here to subscribe.)

Longtime Sunlight readers will probably recognize the name. The concept of publishing a regular roundup of open government news has been a constant feature of the Sunlight blog for nearly two years. Readers should notice a few other similarities too: The format will remain largely the same as the blog posts, which have been pretty successful in driving steady morning traffic. And Matt, who has been the digest’s main author since Day One, is staying on as lead author. If you’ve been reading Today in OpenGov on the blog on any regular basis, you already know he does a terrific job scouring the web to find open government news from across the globe each morning. (And, of course, he’ll also continue his standard practice of linking directly to those sources and providing all the credit that’s due — an editorial standard that we take seriously at Sunlight.)

But why the change over to email to begin with? A few reasons.

First, email is where our readers currently live, plain and simple. The importance of the inbox as a vehicle for gaining readers’ attention has been well documented. Some are calling it a comeback. Whatever it is, the fundamental truth as we understand is that that most of our readers are like us: They wake up, check their email and read the morning news while on their way to the office, or maybe during those first few minutes while enjoying that cup of coffee (or tea!). A morning newsletter delivered to that same inbox just makes sense.

Oh, and speaking of commuting, did we mention Today in OpenGov will also be responsive to your mobile device? We’re lucky enough to have an incredibly talented design staff here at Sunlight, who bring a comprehensive approach to projects. So not only will you see a lovely new layout for TIOG, but you’ll also be able to read it in any number of formats suitable to the opengov reader who is on the go. That’s a flexibility we just don’t have on Sunlight’s blog.

Finally, Today in OpenGov is part of a larger experiment at Sunlight to overhaul our entire email strategy. The last few years alone have brought a lot of change around here — an expanded policy focus, a bigger Labs department and a more robust reporting group. Sunlight’s blog has traditionally been the voice of Sunlight’s messaging and output, and that will largely remain the same. But as the production has hit new levels, we’re working on new ways to curate our content to the segments of audiences who care about it most. Newsletters are just one way we know we can reach diverse streams of readers more effectively — expect to see more options in 2015.

In the meantime, be sure to sign up to get the first edition of Today in OpenGov, landing in inboxes this Monday! We’re pretty pumped about it, and we can’t wait to see what you think.