March 25, 1999 | Read Time: 5 minutes
Next month the Council on Foundations will celebrate its 50th anniversary with a conference whose theme is “Communicating Philanthropy.” That the key organization of grant makers has recognized the importance of communications is encouraging, but it is a shame that so few philanthropies have taken full advantage of the potential of communications media to advance their goals. Most foundations seem not to realize that film, video, and other media projects can change attitudes and lead to major social and policy improvements.
Part of the reluctance to support media projects comes from “the media’s” reputation for gross, funhouse-style distortion. To be sure, the commercial underpinning of our media system has endowed it with a sense of neglect and indifference to the human condition. The entertainment media’s maladjusted message leads to inaccurate depictions of minorities, women, youth, the elderly, inner cities, health care, and people with disabilities — all areas of great interest to grant makers.
Good media, on the other hand — that is, film, video, and radio with a purpose beyond salesmanship and entertainment — have the power to enliven public debate, create motivation for personal change, and develop our common aspirations for social improvement. It also remains woefully underfinanced.
According to the Foundation Center’s Foundation Grant Index, support for media and communications showed a slight decline in 1997, slipping to 1.2 per cent of total grant dollars and 9.4 per cent of grant dollars spent on the arts. Only three grants of at least $2.5-million were made in media and communications in 1997, compared with seven the previous year.
That is not to say that some foundations don’t deserve immense credit for their work in the field. Pioneers like the Ford Foundation’s Media Program, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Rockefeller Foundation, and a few other daring programs seek to support film and video projects directly — and they have been extremely successful at it. Most of the research, production, and distribution projects supported by those prominent grant makers have had a positive effect on many communities, and their successes, and those of others who are looking deeper into the field, might point the way for foundations that remain reluctant to support such projects.
Take the example of the W. K. Kellogg Foundation. Recently the foundation made a grant to the producers of “Generation Hope,” a video project with which I am involved as a consultant. The video follows a team of 18- to 26-year-olds of diverse backgrounds during a one-year tour of duty in an AmeriCorps program in Richmond, Cal. While the foundation had a long history of focusing on issues related to youth and education, its forays into media had not been as prominent, nor as frequent.
Kellogg supported the documentary, however, because it came to realize that the constant barrage in the mass media of images of youths — especially urban youths — as malcontents and underachievers flew directly in the face of every dollar that it invested in support of American youth. “Generation Hope” and projects like it provide an antidote: a picture of kids serving their country and acting as mentors to their peers.
Yet even if more grant makers do decide to support media projects, the question of how to go about it remains. A lack of knowledge of the field, lack of experience in methods of distribution of finished products (an important arena that shouldn’t be underestimated), and the general myth that the impact of media projects isn’t quantifiable may steer program officers quickly in another direction.
Just as there are experts in the field of child development, the environment, and criminal justice, there are media experts who would relish the opportunity to speak with a foundation’s staff or board in the hopes of developing effective grant-making strategies. Some of the recommendations they might make in that effort include:
* Finance efforts to train grantees to use film and video to get their messages across. Several local and national organizations exist solely to train groups on effective use of media, and supporting them is one step toward helping charities achieve media literacy.
* Make grants to support scholars, institutions, and journalists who investigate and write about issues related to media, including the concentration of established media outlets in the hands of the few, the rise of commercialism, and the need for changes in policy that would allow more film and video makers to get their projects produced and shown.
* Support independent documentary production, either directly or through programs at organizations like the Film Arts Foundation, Women Make Movies, Third World Newsreel, the Robeson Fund, or Frameline. Those organizations have distinct expertise on the financing of film, video, and radio projects and can help foundations find good grant-making opportunities.
* Support public television, public radio, public-access TV, and community radio stations. Those are among the last venues for non-commercial information and news with a local focus. Preserving and perhaps refocusing the efforts of those venues would be less expensive than having to re-establish them sometime in the future.
* Form partnerships with broadcast organizations such as the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, American Documentary, and the Independent Television Service to develop joint projects and productions. By pooling their resources with those organizations — which possess a wealth of knowledge and skill in the development and distribution of documentaries, dramas, and innovative new forms of media — grant makers could have a greater impact than they could alone.
* Stimulate the interest of new grant makers by forming or supporting collaboratives, donor circles, or working groups with a special interest in media projects.
* Work with colleagues or hire professionals in the field to learn about media production, distribution, and how to best evaluate a media proposal.
* Watch TV, check out World-Wide Web sites on the Internet, and attend screenings. That is the best way to see the important film and video works being produced and to begin to imagine the ways that such projects could be integrated into foundations’ work.
Some of the most compelling and important stories of our time are reflected in independent media. Yet for every story or worthy project that receives widespread attention, there are dozens upon dozens of others that will remain untold for lack of funds or adequate distribution. By supporting media projects and focusing on those that affirm a foundation’s mission, grant makers might find that they can reinforce their support for direct services and increase their programs’ effectiveness.
Suzanne Stenson Harmon is a writer and media consultant in Minneapolis. She can be reached by e-mail at sstenson@bitstream.net.
