Program

Applications now open for Fundraising for Community Media

A three-month, free, virtual program to equip Asian, Black, and Latine newsroom teams with the tools to build fundraising strategies

January 17, 2024

Philanthropy has become an important revenue stream for news organizations and journalists in the U.S. since the 2008 recession. It gained higher relevance when the industry saw its business strategies severely affected during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is also true that these philanthropic funds have not been distributed equitably among industry players, whether they are for-profit or nonprofit newsrooms.

As philanthropic spending continues to grow in the journalism industry, The Lenfest Institute for Journalism’s News Philanthropy Network is partnering with the Center for Community Media at CUNY Newmark Graduate School of Journalism for the Fundraising for Community Media program. The tuition-free, online program will train teams from Asian, Black, and Latino newsrooms across the U.S. and its territories and freely associated states to develop business strategies and new revenue streams around fundraising.

Applications are open from now through Monday, February 19 at 11:59 pm EST.

The Fundraising for Community Media program is set to train both for-profit and nonprofit newsroom teams in tools and skills in fundraising including grant writing, revenue planning, and the philanthropic landscape as a whole. Participants will also participate in a workshop on examining their relationships with money and philanthropic institutional cultures as leaders of color, and will receive coaching and mentorship from other community media leaders of color who have successfully built fundraising strategies.

This program is designed for journalists and media professionals working in newsrooms in the U.S. that serve audiences on the mainland and its territories and freely associated states, and is based on the expertise and curricula created by The Lenfest Institute’s News Philanthropy Network. Participants will meet biweekly, be mentored and coached by other community news media publishers in the industry, and obtain practical experience over the course of three months in late spring.

Visit the Center for Community Media website for a full FAQ and course timeline.