Meet Justin Rushing, Pivot’s New Chief Revenue Officer

February marks the second anniversary of The Pivot Fund, and what a journey it has been! In two years, we’ve committed $2 million to news outlets reaching Black, Hispanic, and Asian American audiences in Georgia, invested in Baltimore and expanded into the Midwest. 

To support this growth, we have also expanded our staff from a two-person operation to a team of eight—most recently tapping Justin Rushing to serve as our first Chief Revenue Officer. Rushing is a seasoned multimedia professional with 15 years of experience working across traditional, local, and emerging media companies. 

During his career, he has worked in many capacities across the industry with focuses specific to business development, digital advertising, and audience engagement. Notable chapters of his professional journey include roles at ESPN, EW Scripps, and Cars.com and working across non-profit news media for the Memphis-based Daily Memphian and the San Diego investigative-focused inewsource. 

In his most recent position as Director of Growth and Partnerships at inewsource, Justin led a collaborative team dedicated to audience development, brand strategies, product optimization, and revenue attainment. He led in fostering community and brand engagement, showcasing a steadfast commitment to the organization’s editorial coverage and mission.

In senior leadership roles over the past eight years, Justin has consistently demonstrated a strong passion for innovation and collaboration, leading to new organizational initiatives, job creation, and enhanced work culture. His diverse background uniquely positions him to navigate the dynamic landscape of revenue generation, ensuring continued success for the organization.

At The Pivot Fund, Rushing combines leadership, strategic vision, and a proven track record to guide the organization’s sustainable growth and success. Rushing works with our grantees to develop revenue strategies that fuel their growth and lead to sustainability, leveraging his experience and cultural competency. He will also help expand The Pivot Fund’s consulting arm, whose landscape analyses regularly surface hyperlocal news outlets that are serving communities of color and aren’t yet on philanthropy’s radar screen.

Meet Justin Rushing

Tell me about your professional background and interests.

My professional background consists of 14 years of multimedia experience dating back to 2009 during my time at ESPN. Since that role, I settled into news media, working in advertising media sales for the E.W. Scripps Commercial Appeal and the alternative newsweekly, the Memphis Flyer.

From there, I transitioned from the traditional legacy media world and began a new journey at Cars.com as a Digital Media Specialist.

This role was transformational for me as a professional, as the vibrant culture and resources at this organization really allowed me to grow and expand in a lot of areas and skills that I still leverage to this day.

Since that experience, I’ve gone on to work in senior leadership over the last eight years, focused on revenue generation through advertising, events, and partnerships working as an Advertising Director for the Memphis Flyer and the Daily Memphian. And most recently, as the Director of Growth and Partnerships with inewsource.

Why did you want to join the Pivot Fund?

My relationship with Tracie Powell led me to The Pivot Fund. I’ve admired her passion and work from afar these past few years since meeting her in 2021. Well before this opportunity was presented to me, I really believed in the mission of the work Tracie was spearheading, as well as believed in her leadership. 

So, when this role was created, and she shared her overall vision with me, I instantly knew this was something I wanted to be a part of.

What kind of impact are you hoping to make?

As the Chief Revenue Officer, I’m hoping to impact the overall growth of the organization and the work we do in service of BIPOC publishers. In doing so, I plan to assert myself in identifying creative and strategic ways we can build revenue opportunities across our brand, as well as working to do the same with our publishing partners by helping them optimize their product and content strategies that lead to revenue growth.