Together We Can
Transform 500+ community-focused publishers, positively impacting and sustaining local communities and the news their readers rely on.
Because Equity in News is Always Good News.
Local media faces an economic crisis that has hit BIPOC- and locally-owned outlets hardest. When these outlets downsize or close, communities lose a vital source of information, connections, and equity.
The Fund for Equity in Local News aims to stabilize and fast-track innovation for over 500 BIPOC- and locally-owned newsrooms. The funds raised will provide emergency grants to select newsrooms, scale existing peer learning networks, and hire core technology and revenue specialists to build infrastructure and spread best practices. We’re seeking funders with a focus on strengthening local communities and promoting racial equity. If we do not act now, the diversity of our local media ecosystem will continue to erode at the expense of community health and democracy.
Our Strategy at a Glance
As a coalition representing 500+ Black and Latino-owned newspapers, and local alternative and online news sites, we plan to use the funds we raise to do three things:
Create.
Create a targeted grantmaking program with a racial equity lens.
Scale.
Adapt and scale our already-strong peer learning networks to help local media survive the current crisis, prepare for the next one, and thrive for the long term.
Thrive.
Hire technology and revenue specialists for our member associations, to ensure the long-term health of diverse, local, independent media.
Why Local Media Matters
Local media plays a pivotal role in countless BIPOC and low-income communities across the country, often in spite of racial discrimination and chronic underinvestment.
Black-Owned
Black-owned newspapers have played a central role in working toward civil rights since the country’s founding, and remain a critical and trusted voice for Black communities in the ongoing efforts for racial equality.
Latino-Owned
Latino-owned newspapers are a critical and trusted source of accurate information for multilingual communities, especially in times of crisis.
Local Alternative and Online News
Local alternative and online news tells consequential stories that too often go untold by mainstream outlets. Local alternative and online news journalists are deeply embedded in the communities they serve.
Who We Represent
"It’s imperative that we sustain the trusted newspapers embedded and connected in Black and Latino communities. If we don’t tell our story, who will?”
Dr. Benjamin Chavis, President & CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association