Just last month, trailblazer Andrea Faye Hart was promoted to MLK50’s top leadership team as the newsroom’s Chief Strategy Officer. I first met her in Chicago when she was building out City Bureau, a journalism lab helping to reimagine our approach to local media, as a co-founder. It’s been a pleasure to witness Andrea’s leadershipContinue reading “Four fast facts with MLK50’s new Chief Strategy Officer”
Author Archives: support
Ethnic Media is Local News
How does the intervention of philanthropic funding impact the health and sustainability of BIPOC-founded news organizations? And what do we even mean when we use the term “sustainability?“ Those questions were at the core of my keynote speech last week alongside Dr. Meredith Clark, founding director of the Center for Communication, Media Innovation and Social ChangeContinue reading “Ethnic Media is Local News”
Why Journalism in Spanish Matters
One of the best parts about running the Pivot Fund is the successes we see in the BIPOC-led organizations we support. Pasa La Voz in Savannah, GA, is no exception. Pasa La Voz’s story is incredible. Elizabeth Galarza, its founder, has no formal training in journalism but recognized the gap traditional media in the region left whenContinue reading “Why Journalism in Spanish Matters”
Dear Sunnylands, Make More Room for BIPOC, LGBTQ, and Rural Media Leaders at the Table
Donors looking to support journalism as “civic information” need to hear directly from leaders of news outlets serving these communities. Read the Article
What a difference six months can make
It has been six months since The Pivot Fund announced its inaugural cohort of grantee newsrooms. We’re already seeing significant impacts within our partner organizations and the communities they serve. In a nation dotted with news deserts and plagued by disinformation, the lessons we’re learning from these investments are critically important in tackling the crisisContinue reading “What a difference six months can make”
2023 Media ChangeMaker of the Year
Tracie Powell to be Awarded Media Changemaker Prize from Mercer’s Center for Collaborative Journalism
Mercer University’s Center for Collaborative Journalism (CCJ) will recognize Tracie Powell, a leader in philanthropic efforts to increase racial equity and diversity in the news media, with its Media Changemaker Prize on Feb. 3 at the center’s National Journalism Advisory Board meeting.
Youth Sports Coverage is Fueling Big Revenue and Audience Growth
LaGrange, Georgia, is a big sports town. “Whether it’s T-ball, high school football…that’s where you can see the unity in the community,” said BeeTV owner April Ross. So when The Pivot Fund decided to invest in BeeTV, Ross knew she wanted to use some of that funding to make sports a big part of theContinue reading “Youth Sports Coverage is Fueling Big Revenue and Audience Growth”
Fighting News Deserts for Spanish Speakers in Georgia
Monica Pirela knows how it feels to be on the outside. Pirela runs Notivision Georgia. Each week, she broadcasts a 12-minute Spanish-language newscast aimed at her area. Pirela reports and her husband, Jay Cruz, runs the camera. That’s all that keeps the Spanish-speaking community in Warner Robins, Georgia, from being on the outside in aContinue reading “Fighting News Deserts for Spanish Speakers in Georgia”
Seven Steps To Recession-Proof Your News Business
This week I attended a webinar hosted by Bank of America at the Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs (of which I am a stakeholder), where bankers delivered advice on how small businesses and nonprofits can prepare for an economic downturn. Their conversation echoed an earlier discussion The Pivot Fund hosted last month with news leaders about actions they areContinue reading “Seven Steps To Recession-Proof Your News Business”