April 16, 2024
Democracy Fund invests in the power of communities of color. We have long included BAMEMSA communities (Black, African, Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian)…
Ideas
Explore insights, lessons, and resources from our work
Democracy Fund staff — alongside grantees, researchers, and other field experts — regularly develops resources and shares lessons on strengthening democracy. Here you will find guides, reports, and insights from our team and network.
September 8, 2023
A national coalition of 20 funders announced an exciting new initiative on September 7th. Press Forward plans to invest more than $500 million into local…
October 3, 2022
In April 2022, Democracy Fund announced our new organizational strategy with a commitment to investing in the power and leadership of communities of color to…
September 15, 2022
At Democracy Fund, we see every day how local news strengthens democracy. People rely on local news to figure out who to vote for, how…
November 16, 2021
First the good news: Philanthropy is starting to respond to the demise of local journalism with the urgency it deserves. In the past few years,…
April 13, 2020
As businesses close, revenue from advertising is drying up and journalists are facing layoffs, furloughs, and the possibility of their newsrooms closing down—just when we…
May 14, 2019
There are almost-weekly reminders about the struggles facing local news. Last week the entire staff of the New Orleans Times-Picayune were laid off when the…
February 12, 2019
The last month has been a difficult one for journalism in America. In a span of just two weeks roughly 2,000 journalists have lost their…
November 1, 2018
Something remarkable starts today. Across the country 155 newsrooms are banding together for a year-end campaign to stand up for journalism that strengthens democracy. Today…
June 27, 2018
As trusted information providers, local and nonprofit journalism organizations play an essential role in providing news that communities rely on to stay informed, make decisions…
June 18, 2018
The ability of journalism to serve as our Fourth Estate—to be a check and balance on government and powerful interests—is under increasing threat. Journalism today…
April 24, 2018
Journalism plays many roles in our democracy. At its best, it informs people about critical issues in ways that builds agency; it reflects the diverse…
February 14, 2018
We launched NewsMatch — a $3 million fund to match donations to nonprofit newsrooms — because we believe that strengthening local and investigative journalism is…
November 20, 2017
News Match is already the largest grassroots fundraising campaign for nonprofit journalism ever. More than 100 newsrooms across the United States are working together to…
October 17, 2017
Democracy Fund believes that strong local news and a vibrant public square are critical to a healthy democracy. That is why our local news strategy…
October 2, 2017
Today three foundations are putting up $3 million in matching dollars and inviting the nation to stand up and support local news and investigative reporting.…
September 27, 2017
In August, my colleague Srik Gopal wrote about the work Democracy Fund has been doing to understand the contours of trust in democratic institutions from…
June 22, 2017
The Knight Foundation, Democracy Fund, and Rita Allen Foundation announced today that twenty projects seeking to improve the flow of accurate information will split $1…
March 28, 2017
Rebuilding trust in journalism means rethinking the relationship between readers, revenue and reporting. That idea is at the heart of a new project launching today.…
January 18, 2017
It might be tempting for national newsrooms, most of which are headquartered on the coasts, to boost their travel budget in the wake of the…