How to Recover Deleted Headlines and Cascaded Messages in Ninety
When you delete a Headline in Ninety, it isn't gone for good. Deleted Headlines — and any deleted Cascading Messages — move to your team's Trash (the Deleted Headlines page), where they stay for 90 days, giving you time to restore them or permanently remove them. Every role except Observer can open the Trash; what you can restore or permanently delete depends on your role.
This feature is available on the Essentials plan and up on the web app.
Who can recover deleted Headlines
Access to the Headlines Trash depends on your role. Every role except Observer can open the Trash and view the team's deleted Headlines, but restore and permanent-delete permissions vary by role.
Role | See deleted Headlines | Restore | Permanently delete |
Owner, Admin, Implementer | All | All | All |
Manager | All | All | Only Headlines they own |
Managee/Team Member | All | Only Headlines they own | Only Headlines they own |
Observer | No access | — | — |
For a full breakdown of what each role can do, see User Roles and Permissions.
How to view the Headlines Trash
The Trash holds the deleted Headlines and Cascading Messages for the team you're currently viewing. To open it:
Click Headlines from the left navigation.
Select a team from the Team dropdown.
Click the ellipsis (…) to open the more actions menu.
Select View Trash from the options shown.
The Deleted Headlines page opens, listing the team's recently deleted items with their type (Headline or Cascading Message), owner, and deletion date. To return to your team's Headlines page, click Back to Headlines at the top left.
How to delete a Headline
Deleting a Headline moves it to the Trash, where it stays recoverable for 90 days. To delete a Headline:
On the Headlines page, click the ellipsis (…) at the end of the Headline's row.
Select Delete from the options shown.
In the confirmation popup, click Delete to confirm.
Deleting moves the Headline to the Trash for 90 days.
Tip: If your team has already shared and discussed a Headline, consider archiving it rather than deleting it. Archived Headlines remain searchable, so your team can look back at past announcements. Delete when a Headline was created by mistake or belongs in a different tool — such as a To-Do or Issue.
How to restore a deleted Headline
Restoring a Headline returns it to your team's active Headlines page. To restore a Headline:
Open the Trash by following the steps in "How to view the Headlines Trash" above.
Click the ellipsis (…) at the end of the deleted item's row.
Select Restore from the options shown.
The Headline reappears on the team's Headlines page.
Important: Linked items are not restored with a Headline. If you created a linked Rock, To-Do, or Issue from the Headline before deleting it, those links are removed and won't return when you restore the Headline. You'll need to recreate them.
How to permanently delete a Headline
Permanently deleting a Headline removes it from the Trash. Owners, Admins, and Implementers can permanently delete any Headline; Managers and Managees/Team Members can permanently delete only Headlines they own. To permanently delete a Headline:
Open the Trash by following the steps in "How to view the Headlines Trash" above.
Click the ellipsis (…) at the end of the deleted item's row.
Select Delete forever from the options shown.
Click Delete Forever in the confirmation popup.
Once a Headline is permanently deleted, it no longer appears in the Trash and cannot be restored on your own. If you need it back, contact support.
Exporting your deleted Headlines
You can export a copy of the Deleted Headlines page for your records. From the Trash, click the ellipsis (…) to open the more actions menu, then choose one of the following:
Print to PDF to save or print the list as a PDF.
Download Excel to export the list as a spreadsheet (.csv).
The export reflects the deleted Headlines shown for the currently selected team.
Good to know about deleted Headlines
Deleted Headlines stay in the Trash for 90 days, then Ninety permanently removes them automatically.
The Trash includes both Headlines and Cascading Messages. The Type column tells you which is which.
Because Cascading Messages are shared across teams, the Owner filter is less precise for them — a team's Trash can include cascaded items owned by people on other teams.
Only Headlines deleted after this feature's release appear in the Trash. Headlines deleted earlier won't be listed.
Linked items (such as a linked Rock or To-Do) are not restored when you restore a Headline.
The Trash is specific to the selected team. Use the Team dropdown to view another team's deleted Headlines.
Troubleshooting
I don't see View Trash in the menu.
The Trash is available to every role except Observer on the Essentials plan and up, and only in the web app. Confirm that you've selected a team from the Team dropdown and that your role isn't Observer.
I restored a Headline, but its linked Rock or To-Do is missing.
Linked items aren't restored when a Headline is restored. Recreate the linked item from the restored Headline's details panel.
I can't permanently delete a Headline.
Managers and Managees/Team Members can permanently delete only the Headlines they own. Ask an Owner, Admin, or Implementer to permanently delete Headlines owned by someone else.
A deleted Headline isn't in the Trash.
Confirm you've selected the correct team from the Team dropdown. Only Headlines deleted after this feature's release appear in the Trash, and Headlines deleted more than 90 days ago are permanently removed. If a recently deleted Headline still isn't there, contact support.