National and local news organizations use Purple States video to show how complex social and economic issues affect individuals. Reporting anchored in people’s experience engages, informs, and challenges the public through personal stories they can relate to, and holds decision-makers accountable for the real-life consequences of their actions. For local media, stories produced with residents make coverage more relevant and inclusive. Our video storytelling also adds an important dimension to political coverage. We produce stories with individuals from different backgrounds and perspectives, and ask what's at stake for them.

Funders -- and their grantees and partners -- use Purple States stories to convey the human impact of a problem, or an approach to addressing it. Foundations may distribute the videos through their own platforms and networks -- or support a distribution partner’s use of the stories to fuel a campaign. To engage the general public in a priority issue, foundations cover production costs for stories designed to accompany news reporting, on the understanding that they have no say in editorial decisions. After stories are published, funders and their partners have repurposed them to anchor discussions with stakeholders about policy and practice.

Local, national, and global organizations use Purple States video to probe and communicate how their work influences people’s circumstances and prospects. Videos that interpret issues through the experiences of those affected can inform social change -- and empowering them to tell their own stories can activate it.

For corporations and communications firms, Purple States video brings a social issue or program strategy to life.

Data analysts and survey researchers can use our video to reveal the human story and nuance behind the numbers.

To help address the political divide, personal stories draw people into unfamiliar life experiences, challenge stereotypes, and show the possibility and the value of pragmatic conversations across difference. As governments and nonprofits seek to involve a diverse citizenry more directly in civic problem-solving and decision-making, our storytelling can help engage the broader public in the process and its outcomes.