The Minnesota Star Tribune and Foundry North Launch New Brand Campaign: “Because the world is watching.”

‘Strib Livestream: Because the world is watching’ debuts Tuesday, Feb. 3 

Minneapolis, Minn. — As global attention turns toward Minnesota, the Minnesota Star Tribune is launching a new brand campaign, “Because the world is watching,” developed in partnership with its in-house, full-service agency Foundry North. 

The campaign underscores the essential role of trusted local journalism when audiences across the world are seeking clarity, context, and credible information. It positions the Minnesota Star Tribune not just as a news source for Minnesotans, but as a critical window for the world to understand potential national and global implications of the current surge of immigration enforcement activities in the state. 

As part of the campaign launch, the Minnesota Star Tribune will host Strib Livestream: Because the world is watching, a behind the scenes conversation with Minnesota Star Tribune reporters Jeff Day and Sofia Barnett, and photojournalist Richard Tsong-Taatari. Moderated by media veteran Allison Kaplan, the group will discuss the unprecedented events occurring in Minnesota, while fielding questions from Strib subscribers and donors. The event takes place Tuesday, Feb. 3 from 12:15 to 12:45 p.m. CST and more information is available at startribune.com/livestream. 

“At moments like this, people everywhere are paying attention. And they’re asking why they should care, where to turn, and who they can trust,” said Chris Iles, vice president of communications and brand marketing for the Minnesota Star Tribune. “This campaign answers those questions simply and powerfully: because the world is watching, and local journalism matters.” 

The brand effort builds on a series of public-facing initiatives the Minnesota Star Tribune has rolled out to meet the moment, including: 

• • • Making its live breaking-news blog available outside the paywall to ensure broad public access to verified reporting 

• • • Allowing subscribers to gift unlimited articles, expanding the reach of its journalism beyond state borders 

• • • Launching a discounted multi-user family plan to make trusted news more accessible to households 

• • • Calling on readers to support frontline reporting through donations to the Local News Fund 

“Because the world is watching” is being rolled out across the Minnesota Star Tribune’s vast ecosystem of owned and operated media products including digital and print inventory to promote subscriptions to non-subscribers and donations to the Strib’s Local News Fund to existing subscribers. 

A paid media campaign targeting three core audience segment starts this week and will include video pre-roll on news-adjacent content, out-of-home (including a highly visible billboard on Target Center in downtown Minneapolis, where the protests on Friday, Jan. 23 culminated and adjacent to the Tom Morello/Bruce Springsteen concert on Friday, Jan. 30), a paid social campaign and targeted email marketing. 

Media strategy is being led by one of Minnesota’s largest digital marketing agencies, Foundry North, which operates as a full-service, standalone agency, drawing on the Minnesota Star Tribune’s deep audience insights and newsroom proximity. 

“This work reflects Foundry North’s belief that the strongest brands are built at the intersection of purpose and performance,” said Paul Kasbohm, chief revenue officer for the Minnesota Star Tribune. “This campaign is timely, direct, and grounded in a clear truth: what happens here matters far beyond our borders.” 

The campaign arrives as news organizations nationwide grapple with how to reaffirm trust, demonstrate value, and articulate the importance of local journalism in moments of national and international focus.