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Analysis

The Power of Capacity in Community Newsrooms

By Haeven Gibbons

September 5, 2025

Black woman wearing a Black By God tshirt and a Black man wearing a BBG tshirt dancing and smiling at each other

Across the country, community-centered newsrooms are proving something that’s critical for funders to understand: when you invest in capacity, you unlock sustainability.

These outlets—led by and for communities long overlooked by traditional media—are trusted in ways few institutions can match. But trust alone doesn’t pay salaries or keep the lights on. What we’ve learned through supporting Pivot grantees is that turning cultural trust into revenue requires the right internal infrastructure.

Why Capacity Is the Difference

Consider Underscore Native News. Early Pivot support helped raise their visibility, but a transformational Pivot grant enabled them to hire key staff: an audience engagement manager to connect content with membership revenue, and their first Indigenous managing editor to strengthen editorial leadership.

That investment freed up the executive director to focus on major gifts—and led to a $20,000 individual gift—their largest yet—and a leap from a modest operating budget to $1 million-plus in 2026.

“For the first time, I’m not the point person on our year-end fundraising,” said Myers Reece, executive director of Underscore. “That’s huge. We now have the staff and systems to carry it.”

As Pivot’s Assistant Director of Research Eric Ortiz puts it:

“They didn’t just hire a development director. They invested in community engagement and audience. That’s what unlocked revenue.”

Engagement Is Revenue—But Only With People to Capture It

Grantees like BeeTV, Black By God, and NotiVisión Georgia are already building community trust through livestreams, cultural events, and business directories. These efforts attract attention and participation—but without dedicated staff to manage sponsorships, cultivate donors, or scale events, the financial potential goes untapped.

The lesson is clear: audience trust becomes revenue only when someone has the time and skills to translate it.

Innovation Requires Infrastructure

Some of the most inspiring grantees are blending journalism, organizing, and community power:

But none of these innovations happen without staff. Pivot support has allowed outlets to bring on managing editors, development leads, and engagement coordinators—roles that create space for founders to think big and grow.

What Funders Should Take Away

For funders interested in social impact and equity, the message is simple: sustainability isn’t just about money, it’s about structure.

Investing in people—audience engagement leads, event coordinators, development staff—ensures that trusted community outlets can convert their deep relationships into the resources needed to thrive. These roles don’t just support journalism. They create the systems that allow publishers to:

  • Diversify revenue streams.
  • Adapt to shifting political and economic pressures.
  • Protect editorial independence.
  • Continue serving as trusted anchors in vulnerable communities.

Why This Matters

Community media outlets are uniquely positioned to build belonging, trust, and resilience—key drivers of healthy democracies and equitable societies. But without capacity, even the most trusted newsroom risks burnout or collapse.

When funders invest in capacity, they aren’t just supporting journalism. They’re building the foundation for long-term sustainability, community power, and lasting social impact.

The bottom line: Hire the right people. Build the right systems. And create the space for these outlets to grow.