ANNOUNCEMENTS

Facebook Journalism Project Provides $16 Million in Funding to Support More Than 200 Local Newsrooms

May 7, 2020

Today, Facebook is announcing that more than 200 news organizations will receive nearly $16 million in grants through the Facebook Journalism Project’s relief fund for local news. These grants stem from $25 million in local news relief funding announced in March as part of Facebook’s $100 million global investment in news. It includes:

  • $10.3 million being awarded to 144 US local newsrooms as part of the COVID-19 Local News Relief Fund Grant Program. The fund is supporting many publishers who are hardest hit by this crisis: nearly 80 percent of recipients are family- or independently owned and more than half are published by or for communities of color.
  • $5.4 million being awarded to 59 North American newsrooms that participated in Facebook Local News Accelerator programs focused on subscriptions and memberships.
Remaining funds will be used throughout 2020 to support projects focused on longer-term sustainability in local journalism. This includes $2.5 million for Report for America, helping the group place 225 journalists in 160 local news organizations for their 2020 reporting corps.
Partnering with leading industry organizations like The Local Media Association and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism to move quickly, the Facebook Journalism Project has awarded more than 600 grants across the US and Canada since the pandemic began. Additional grant programs have been launched to support journalism around the world.
COVID-19 Local News Relief Fund Grant Program
After receiving more than 2,000 applications for the COVID-19 Local News Relief Grant Program from newsrooms across every state in the US, all US territories and Washington, D.C., we are providing grants ranging from $25,000-$100,000 to help publishers continue serving communities during the coronavirus outbreak. These grant recipients were selected through a process led by the Local Media Association (LMA) and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism and with significant contributions from the Institute for Nonprofit News (INN), Local Independent Online News Publishers (LION), Local Media Consortium (LMC), and the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB). Thanks to these organizations’ partnership and expertise, we were able to set up a program to meet the immediate and timely needs of these newsrooms.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the critical role local news plays in our communities, while simultaneously threatening their very existence. Reviewing hundreds of applications on a tight timeline both illustrated the depth of need, but also highlighted the innovation that these small, independent publishers can provide for their communities when given the resources,” said Jonathan Kealing, INN’s chief network officer. “I’m excited to see new news products and more critical original reporting in these communities, thanks to Facebook’s support.”
The pool of grant recipients is notable in several ways:

  • Nearly four in five are family- or independently owned.
  • Half are published by or for communities of color.
  • Nearly 40 percent are digitally native publishers.
  • Just over a third are non-profits.
"We're proud to support this diverse group of publishers — many of which are family- or independently owned. Not only are these journalists working tirelessly to serve people right now — they're focused on transformation, building innovative local news businesses that can continue to serve communities beyond the current pandemic,” said Campbell Brown, VP of global news partnerships at Facebook.
The COVID-19 Local News Relief Grant Program was designed to provide support for US local news organizations serving a critical role for communities impacted by COVID-19. Funding is intended to a) respond to immediate community needs and/or b) offset some revenue shortfalls to help publishers maintain long-term sustainability during this crisis.
Facebook Journalism Project Local News Accelerator Program
Launched in 2018 to support local news businesses in their transformation to reader revenue-driven business models, the Local News Accelerator program has grown to more than 600 participants from more than 100 newsrooms worldwide. The program includes a three-month period of workshops, now fully virtual, led by the Accelerator’s executive director Tim Griggs, regular reports on best business practices and grants administered by the Lenfest Institute and the International Center for Journalists.
Accelerator participants from the US and Canada are receiving relief grants to help safeguard the transformation they’ve achieved over the last several years and to capitalize on new opportunities. As these news organizations continue to test and learn, we’ll share their progress, actionable tips and results on the Facebook Journalism Project website.
The coaches in the Facebook Accelerator went "above and beyond to help us, teaching practical concepts and tools that we could use right away and taking time to talk through problems. Our cohort members have been encouraging, collaborative and generous with their knowledge and experience," said Jennifer Napier-Pearce, editor of the Salt Lake Tribune, a participant in the 2020 Subscriptions Accelerator program. "We’re so grateful to Facebook for supporting local news at such a precarious time."
The Facebook Journalism Project recently hosted a webinar session titled “Practical Lessons to Accelerate Your Reader Revenue Strategy.” Led by Accelerator Executive Director Tim Griggs and Accelerator Program Manager David Grant, the session gave a distilled look at key tactics and strategies drawn from Accelerator publishers. View the session below.
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News reporting has never been more critical. We’re proud to support all these news organizations as they provide critical reporting to their local communities during this challenging time.
Sign up for the Facebook Journalism Project newsletter to receive updates on Facebook’s ongoing efforts to support the news industry during the COVID-19 crisis.
Click through to see the full list of relief grant and Accelerator recipients.
United States
Alabama
Latino News, LLC Trussville, AL
Grant Amount: $82,650
Selma Sun Selma, AL
Grant Amount: $35,000
WAAY-TV Huntsville, AL
Grant Amount: $37,330
Alaska
Anchorage Daily News* Anchorage, AK
Grant Amount: $75,000
KYUK Bethel, AK
Grant Amount: $99,391
Arizona
Arizona Republic (Gannett)* Phoenix, AZ
Grant Amount: $150,000
Wick Communications Co. Sierra Vista, AZ
Grant Amount: $100,000
Arkansas
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette* Little Rock, AR
Grant Amount: $75,000
The Madison County Record Huntsville, AR
Grant Amount: $49,000
California
Berkleyside* Berkley, CA
Grant Amount: $100,000
Black Voice News Riverside, CA
Grant Amount: $100,000
Brentwood Press & Publishing Brentwood, CA
Grant Amount: $40,000
CALMatters* Sacramento, CA
Grant Amount: $100,000
East County Magazine La Mesa, CA
Grant Amount: $100,000
Embarcadero Media La Mesa, CA
Publications include: PaloAltoOnline.com, AlmanacNews.com, MountainViewOnline.com, PleasantonWeekly.com, DanvilleSanRamon.com, TheSixFifty.com
Grant Amount: $100,000
Entravision Communication Corp Los Angeles, CA
Grant Amount: $89,765
L.A. Focus Newspaper Inglewood, CA
Grant Amount: $60,195
Little Saigon TV Network Westminster, CA
Grant Amount: $99,993
Long Beach Post Long Beach, CA
Grant Amount: $72,400
Los Angeles News Publishing Company / The Rafu Shimpo Los Angeles, CA
Grant Amount: $26,000
Los Angeles Wave & Independent Newspaper Group Los Angeles, CA
Grant Amount: $100,000
Nguoi Viet Daily News Westminster, CA
Grant Amount: $80,000
Nuz Inc. / The Pajaronian Santa Cruz, CA
Grant Amount: $100,000
Radio Bilingüe Fresno, CA
Grant Amount: $80,000
Redheaded Blackbelt Miranda, CA
Grant Amount: $44,215
San Francisco Chronicle* San Francisco, CA
Grant Amount: $150,000
San Jose Spotlight* San Jose, CA
Grant Amount: $40,000
The Eastsider Los Angeles, CA
Grant Amount: $94,858
The Los Angeles Sentinel Los Angeles, CA
Grant Amount: $80,000
The Los Angeles Times* Los Angeles, CA
Grant Amount: $225,000
The Mendocino Voice Willits, CA
Grant Amount: $100,000
Two Rivers Tribune Hoopa, CA
Grant Amount: $44,070
Village News, Inc. Fallbrook, CA
Publications include: Myvalleynews.com, VillageNews.com
Grant Amount: $75,000
Voice of OC* Santa Ana, CA
Grant Amount: $40,000
Voice of San Diego San Diego, CA
Grant Amount: $96,250
Colorado
Animas Del Oeste, LLC / World JournalWorld Journal Walsenburg, CO
Grant Amount: $100,000
Colorado Public Radio* Denver, CO
Grant Amount: $50,000
Denver Post (Media News Group)* Denver, CO
Grant Amount: $150,000
High Country News Paonia, CO
Grant Amount: $39,450
The Colorado Sun* Denver, CO
Grant Amount: $40,000
Connecticut
Record-Journal Meriden Meriden, CT
Grant Amount: $99,501
The Waterbury Observer Waterbury, CT
Grant Amount: $25,000
Delaware
Delaware State News Dover,DE
Grant Amount: $75,000
Florida
Miami Herald (McClatchy Company)* Miami, FL
Grant Amount: $150,000
Solmart Media, LLC Sarasota, FL
Grant Amount: $43,430
Tampa Bay Times* Tampa Bay, FL
Grant Amount: $75,000
The Weekly Challenger Newspaper Spring Hill, FL
Grant Amount: $100,000
WFSU Public Media Tallahassee, FL
Grant Amount: $60,392
Georgia
Community Newspapers, Inc. Athens, GA
Grant Amount: $80,704
Gray Television Atlanta, GA
Grant Amount: $100,000
Project Q Atlanta East Point, GA
Grant Amount: $31,636
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution* Atlanta, GA
Grant Amount: $150,000
Voice News Network, Inc. / The Atlanta VoiceAtlanta, GA
Grant Amount: $100,000
WABE* Atlanta, GA
Grant Amount: $100,000
Hawaii
Honolulu Civil Beat Honolulu, HI
Grant Amount: $50,000
Idaho
BoiseDev (Day365, LLC) Boise, ID
Grant Amount: $75,000
Illinois
Block Club Chicago Chicago, IL
Grant Amount: $100,000
Borderless Magazine NFP Chicago, IL
Grant Amount: $30,000
Chicago Crusader Newspaper Chicago, IL
Grant Amount: $30,000
Chicago Tribune* Chicago, IL
Grant Amount: $150,000
Cicero Independiente, LLC Cicero, IL
Grant Amount: $25,000
City Bureau NFP Chicago, IL
Grant Amount: $100,000
The Chicago Reporter Chicago, IL
Grant Amount: $100,000
The Triibe, Inc Chicago, IL
Grant Amount: $98,700
Indiana
Fluid Communications Gary, IN
Grant Amount: $59,496
Iowa
Carroll Times Herald* Caroll, IA
Grant Amount: $75,000
Cedar Rapids Gazette Cedar Rapids, IA
Grant Amount: $100,000
Iowa Starting Line Des Moines, IA
Grant Amount: $32,500
Kansas
TCV Publishing, Inc. / The Community Voice Wichita, KS
Grant Amount: $99,442
Kentucky
Ham Broadcasting Co., Inc. Cadiz, KY
Grant Amount: $35,000
Kentucky Public Radio Inc / Louisville Public Media Louisville, KY
Grant Amount: $75,000
Louisiana
McKenna Publishing Co. / The Orleans Tribune New Orleans, LA
Grant Amount: $100,000
The Advocate / Times-Picayune* New Orleans, LA
Grant Amount: $75,000
Maine
MaineToday Media Portland, ME
Publications include: pressherald.com, centralmaine.com
Grant Amount: $100,000
Maryland
The AFRO Newspapers Baltimore, MD
Grant Amount: $100,000
Massachusetts
Boston Globe* Boston, MA
Grant Amount: $150,000
Boxcar Media, LLC. / iBerkshires.com North Adams, MA
Grant Amount: $65,404
MuckRock on behalf of Outlier Media Somerville, MA
Grant Amount: $70,140
Michigan
Bridge* Ann Arbor, MI
Grant Amount: $100,000
Brown Impact Media Group/Flint Beat Flint, MI
Grant Amount: $100,000
Detour Detroit* Detroit, MI
Grant Amount: $40,000
Detroit Public Television* Detroit, MI
Grant Amount: $100,000
Farmington Voice/Collinwood Media LLC Farmington, MI
Grant Amount: $25,000
Indian Country Media, LLC Grand Rapids, MI
Grant Amount: $96,887
MiBiz Grand Rapids, MI
Grant Amount: $98,942
Pride Source Media Group Livonia, MI
Grant Amount: $100,000
Real Times Media Detroit, MI
Publications include: realtimesmedia.com, atlantadailyworld.com, chicagodefender.com, michiganchronicle.com, newpittsburghcourier.com
Grant Amount: $100,000
Minnesota
Sahan Journal Saint Paul, MN
Grant Amount: $100,000
Minneapolis Star Tribune* Minneapolis, MN
Grant Amount: $150,000
MinnPost* Minneapolis, MN
Grant Amount: $100,000
Mississippi
DeSoto Times-Tribune (PH Publishing, LLC) Nesbit, MS
Grant Amount: $100,000
Jackson Free Press, Inc. Jackson, MS
Grant Amount: $60,000
The Commercial Dispatch Columbus, MS
Grant Amount: $80,200
Missouri
St. Louis American St. Louis, MO
Grant Amount: $97,305
Montana
Pathfinder LLC Seeley Lake, MT
Grant Amount: $30,000
Response Media LLC Boulder, MT
Grant Amount: $34,200
Nebraska
Flood Communications of Omaha, LLC Norfolk, NE
Publications include: telemundonebraska.com, floodcomm.com
Grant Amount: $100,000
Omaha World Herald (Lee Enterprises)* Omaha, NE
Grant Amount: $150,000
Nevada
KUNR* Reno, NV
Grant Amount: $40,000
This Is Reno Reno, NV
Grant Amount: $78,000
New Hampshire
Newspapers of New England, Inc. Concord, NH
Publications include: concordmonitor.com, vnews.com, ledgertranscript.com, gazettenet.com, recorder.com, atholdailynews.com
Grant Amount: $100,000
New Hampshire Public Radio* Concord, NH
Grant Amount: $40,000
New Jersey
Montclair Local Montclair, NJ
Grant Amount: $50,550
MorristownGreen.com Morristown, NJ
Grant Amount: $25,000
Reporte Hispano Princeton, NJ
Grant Amount: $100,000
New Mexico
Searchlight New Mexico Santa Fe, NM
Grant Amount: $100,000
Albuquerque Journal* Albuquerque, NM
Grant Amount: $75,000
New York
City Limits* Brooklyn, NY
Grant Amount: $100,000
El Diario LLC Brooklyn, NY
Grant Amount: $100,000
Greenpointers Brooklyn, NY
Grant Amount: $100,000
Impacto Latin News, Inc. New York, NY
Grant Amount: $100,000
New York Amsterdam News New York, NY
Grant Amount: $96,101
New York Public Radio New York, NY
Publications include: wnyc.org, gothamist.com
Grant Amount: $99,227
Newsday New York, NY
Grant Amount: $150,000
Syracuse Post-Standard (Advance Local)* Syracuse, NY
Grant Amount: $150,000
THE CITY New York, NY
Grant Amount: $100,000
The Original Media Group, dba BK ReaderBrooklyn, NY
Grant Amount: $31,200
North Carolina
Carolina Public Press Asheville, NC
Grant Amount: $100,000
Chatham News + Record Siler City Siler City, NC
Grant Amount: $30,300
EducationNC Raleigh, NC
Grant Amount: $99,153
La Noticia* Charlotte, NC
Grant Amount: $40,000
QCity Metro Charlotte, NC
Grant Amount: $100,000
Scalawag* Durham, NC
Grant Amount: $40,000
The Smoky Mountain News Waynesville, NC
Grant Amount: $75,000
WFAE 90.7 in collaboration with Q City Metro and The Charlotte Ledger Charlotte, NC
Publications include: wfae.org; qcitymetro.com; charlotteledger.substack.com
Grant Amount: $100,000
North Dakota
Forum Communications Company Fargo, ND
Grant Amount: $95,000
Ohio
Erie Chinese Journal Cleveland, OH
Grant Amount: $64,998
Richland Source* Richland, OH
Grant Amount: $100,000
The Devil Strip* Akron, OH
Grant Amount: $40,000
The E. W. Scripps Company Cincinnati, OH
Grant Amount: $100,000
Oklahoma
KOSU* Oklahoma City, OK
Grant Amount: $100,000
Wesner Publications Cordell, OK
Grant Amount: $60,000
Oregon
Eugene Weekly Eugene, OR
Grant Amount: $25,000
Source Weekly/ Lay It Out Events Bend, OR
Grant Amount: $30,000
Pennsylvania
AL DIA News Media Philadelphia, PA
Grant Amount: $99,000
Indonesian Lantern Media LLC Philadelphia, PA
Grant Amount: $25,000
LebTown (Lebanon Publishing Company) Lebanon, PA
Grant Amount: $25,000
Philadelphia Inquirer* Philadelphia, PA
Grant Amount: $150,000
Philadelphia Public School Notebook Philadelphia, PA
Grant Amount: $25,000
Philadelphia Tribune* Philadelphia, PA
Grant Amount: $75,000
PublicSource* Pittsburgh, PA
Grant Amount: $100,000
WHYY*Philadelphia, PA
Grant Amount: $50,000
WURD Radio* Philadelphia, PA
Grant Amount: $40,000
Rhode Island
Portsmouth Press Portsmouth, RI
Grant Amount: $25,000
South Carolina
Carolina Panorama Newspaper Columbia, SC
Grant Amount: $93,705
Charleston Post & Courier* Charleston, SC
Grant Amount: $75,000
El Informador LLC Mount Pleasant, SC
Grant Amount: $88,500
The Sumter Item Sumter, SC
Grant Amount: $100,000
South Dakota
South Dakota News Watch Sioux Falls, SD
Grant Amount: $25,000
Tennessee
Daily Memphian* Memphis, TN
Grant Amount: $75,000
Nashville Public Radio Nashville, TN
Grant Amount: $100,000
Out & About Nashville, Inc. Nashville, TN
Grant Amount: $69,358
The New Tri-State Defender Memphis, TN
Grant Amount: $50,000
Texas
Dallas Morning News* Dallas, TX
Grant Amount: $150,000
El Paso Herald Post El Paso, TX
Grant Amount: $25,000
El Paso Inc. El Paso, TX
Grant Amount: $100,000
Houston Defender Newspaper Inc. Houston, TX
Grant Amount: $100,000
KUT Radio – The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX
Grant Amount: $100,000
Rivard Report* San Antonio, TX
Grant Amount: $100,000
Texas Public Radio San Antonio, TX
Grant Amount: $100,000
The Austin Chronicle Austin, TX
Grant Amount: $33,540
Wilson County News Floresville, TX
Grant Amount: $25,000
Utah
KUER* Salt Lake City, UT
Grant Amount: $100,000
Salt Lake Tribune* Salt Lake City, UT
Grant Amount: $75,000
Vermont
Telegraph Publishing Chester, VT
Grant Amount: $35,600
VT Digger* Montpelier, VT
Grant Amount: $100,000
Virginia
Charlottesville Tomorrow Charlottesville, VA
Grant Amount: $35,000
Richmond Free Press Richmond, VA
Grant Amount: $100,000
T3 Media / Henrico Citizen Henrico, VA
Grant Amount: $34,350
Washington
Cascade Public Media/Crosscut Seattle, WA
Grant Amount: $46,000
InvestigateWest Seattle, WA
Grant Amount: $32,545
Nguoi Viet Tay Bac/Northwest Vietnamese News Seattle, WA
Grant Amount: $73,000
Seattle Times* Seattle, WA
Grant Amount: $150,000
The Wahkiakum County Eagle Cathlamet, WA
Grant Amount: $35,000
Yakima Herald-Republic Yakima, WA
Grant Amount: $100,000
Washington, D.C.
DCist (WAMU 88.5) Washington, DC
Grant Amount: $100,000
Washington City Paper* Washington, DC
Grant Amount: $40,000
The Washington Informer Washington, DC
Grant Amount: $100,000
West Virginia
100 Days in Appalachia, WVU Foundation Morgantown, WV
Grant Amount: $75,000
Wisconsin
365 Media Foundation / Madison365 Madison, WI
Grant Amount: $99,953
The Capital Times Madison, WI
Grant Amount: $99,144
Volume One Eau Claire, WI
Grant Amount: $57,000
Wisconsin Watch* Madison, WI
Grant Amount: $100,000
Wausau Pilot and Review* Wausau, WI
Grant Amount: $40,000
Wyoming
Jackson Hole Community Radio Incorporated Jackson, WY
Grant Amount: $50,000
WyoFile Lander, WY
Grant Amount: $29,783
Multi-State
Chalkbeat*
Grant Amount: $40,000
Patch*
Grant Amount: $100,000


Guam
The Guam Daily Post Tamuning, Guam
Grant Amount: $83,940

Puerto Rico
CENTRO DE PERIODISMO INVESTIGATIVO San Juan, Puerto Rico
Grant Amount: $100,000
GFR Media, LLC (El Nuevo Día Newspaper) San Juan, Puerto Rico
Grant Amount: $100,000

Canada
Alberta
The Sprawl* Calgary
Grant amount: $40,000
British Columbia
The Narwhal* Vancouver
Grant amount: $40,000
Ontario
Globe and Mail* Toronto
Grant amount: $75,000
Quebec
La Presse* Montreal
Grant amount: $75,000

*Asterisk denotes Accelerator participants who are receiving grants.
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