MLK50: Justice Through Journalism

MLK50: Justice Through Journalism is an award-winning nonprofit digital newsroom, and focused on the intersection of poverty, power and policy. Its vision echoes Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream: a nation where all residents, especially workers, have enough resources to thrive, and where public and private policy supports their success.

TucsonSentinel.com

The Tucson Sentinel is a nonprofit independent digital newsroom that informs southern Arizonans about the community challenges and unique culture of this area. It is the only locally-owned source for watchdog reporting. This award-winning newsroom serves readers in Tucson and rural stretches of Pima County, along with the other border counties of Santa Cruz and Cochise.

Dallas Free Press

Dallas Free Press, a nonprofit news site, launched in January 2020 with the mission of amplifying voices and exploring solutions to the city’s systemic inequities. It focuses community journalism efforts on three zip codes in South Dallas and West Dallas, which are predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods, respectively.

Ouray County Plaindealer

The Ouray County Plaindealer is a weekly newspaper. It’s been operating since 1877, since miners and other settlers came to this mountainous area of Colorado to seek their fortunes and make a living. Today, the Plaindealer’s readership includes locals whose families have been in the area for just as long as the newspaper, as well as newcomers who have moved to Ouray County after retiring or to work in the tourism industry. One of the notable things about the Plaindealer’s circulation is we deliver to 41 states—and are discovering that many of these subscribers are part-time residents or folks who wish to move here someday. The Plaindealer is the paper of record for Ouray County, and it’s what people rely on to know what happened at city and town council meetings, who said what at the school board retreat, and what happened to that bear that was wandering around town breaking into people’s houses. The goal is to provide The Plaindealer’s publishers, a couple who bought the newspaper in April 2019, are longtime Colorado journalists who left the largest newspaper in the western half of the state to purchase the weekly and bring quality journalism to the publication. They believe that even small, rural places deserve good journalism.

The Mitchell Republic/Forum News Service

The Mitchell Republic covers 17 mostly rural counties in central South Dakota. The website and twice-weekly print edition are the primary source of community news in the region. This news organization is part of Forum Communications, a network of community-driven newsrooms, broadcast stations and new media services.

Albany Herald

The Albany Herald is Albany’s longest-serving news organization, covering news, sports and features in the metro area and southwest Georgia, and providing commentary forums with its editorial page and social media sites. Founded in 1891 and located in the heart of Albany, The Herald and its website, albanyherald.com, combine to provide a widely read and seen forum for news, advertising and entertainment.

New York Focus

New York Focus unmasks power in the Empire State. As the only nonprofit publication with an emphasis on state-level coverage, we produce deeply reported, investigative stories on the systems, decisions and actors that affect communities throughout New York. While most local accountability coverage is directed at New York City, we keep an eye on Albany — the notoriously corrupt and quietly impactful center of power throughout the state.

WVIA Public Media

WVIA News is invested in local journalism and provides news coverage across television, radio and digital platforms as a joint-licensee station. WVIA is committed to ensuring a positive impact on the region and giving a powerful voice to the citizens in our twenty-two counties of northeastern and central Pennsylvania. With our mission-driven approach, WVIA educates, inspires, entertains and fosters citizenship, diverse cultures and perspectives to nurture community.

The Baltimore Banner

The Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism is a nonprofit organization founded in the summer of 2021 to bring high-quality local news to the Baltimore metro area. The news landscape has witnessed fundamental transformations resulting in a dramatic loss of capacity in local news. In June 2022, it launched The Baltimore Banner with a mission to be an indispensable resource that strengthens, unites and inspires our communities. We will accomplish this through trustworthy quality journalism that tells the varied stories of our people, holds our leaders accountable, and delivers local news that readers are willing to support.

The People-Sentinel

The People-Sentinel is a for-profit news organization that has served Barnwell County since 1852. We are now expanding into two neighboring rural South Carolina counties, Allendale and Bamberg counties. Our mission is to provide factual, unbiased and accurate reporting to keep our communities informed while holding public officials accountable. In addition to our weekly print newspaper, our website, videos, social media and podcasts keep our community informed.