September 19, 2010 | Read Time: 2 minutes
When Philadelphia’s two largest newspapers went bankrupt 18 months ago, the William Penn Foundation shifted its approach to awarding journalism grants. The private fund, which works to improve the quality of life in metropolitan Philadelphia, had for more than a decade used journalism grants to advance its programs in areas like public education and municipal finance.
But with the city’s bedrock papers, the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News, mired in bankruptcy, foundation officials realized they needed a separate focus on journalism alone.
“We were concerned that there would be a loss of platforms, let alone a reduction in coverage,” says Shawn McCaney, a program officer at the fund. “We’re now trying to find ways to augment what’s out there in terms of existing media, as well as supporting new and emerging efforts.”
‘Larger Commitment’
The foundation, which has $1.9-billion in assets, has spent $3-million on journalism grants over the past decade, but will “make a much larger commitment” to such grants going forward, Mr. McCaney says. The fund will not reveal a specific amount until its board signs off on projects, he says.
This shift toward direct support of journalism is the kind of change the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation hoped to spur when it started the Knight Community Information Challenge three years ago. The Knight challenge provides matching grants to local foundations for programs that meet regional information needs.
“Part of the reason for this upswing, this movement, is that many people besides us recognize that local news sources are dwindling,” says Trabian Shorters, who oversees the Knight challenge. “The good news is that so many leaders and local foundations are willing to take up the mantle and make sure that this important democratic resource does not go away.”
In 2009, Knight gave $200,000 to the Philadelphia Public School Notebook, which was matched by a $300,000 grant from William Penn. The Notebook writes about, and advocates, improvements in Philadelphia’s public schools, in a free printed newspaper and online.
In total, William Penn has given $1.1-million to support the Notebook. The fund has also made grants totaling $800,000 to help PlanPhilly, a journalism site focused on urban land use, and $700,000 to the Daily News and a public radio and TV station for special projects.
But its latest grants are more broadly focused. Penn has given $55,000 to NJ Spotlight, a new nonprofit Web site focused on public-policy journalism. The site also won a grant in the 2009 Knight challenge, worth $350,000 over three years, that was matched by the Community Foundation of New Jersey.
The Spotlight hopes to eventually become self-sustaining. “As seed money, the foundation support is critical,” says John Mooney, the site’s editor. “But it’s not a great way to live. We want to prove that journalism can be sustainable.”
