We are joining forces with another storied nonprofit, The Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR), to become a stronger and more impactful newsroom that can deliver great, in-depth reporting on more platforms to millions more people.
MoJo Reader,
Most of the news about the journalism business right now is grim.
Just this year, the United States has lost more than 2,600 journalism jobs, and more than 20,000 media jobs altogether; since the Great Recession in 2008, newsrooms have shrunk by at least half. It’s no coincidence that during this same time, disinformation and propaganda have come to dominate our politics, to the point where next year’s presidential election…well, honestly, we don’t need to tell you what’s at stake.
So it’s pretty urgent that we get some good news about holding the powerful and corrupt accountable. Today, we have some, and we wanted to be sure our community of readers hears it first: Mother Jones is growing!
We are joining forces with another storied nonprofit, The Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR), to become a stronger and more impactful newsroom that can deliver great, in-depth reporting on more platforms to millions more people.
You may well have encountered CIR through their terrific investigative radio show and podcast, Reveal, which is heard on 520 public radio stations nationwide. If you haven’t, you’re in for a treat—and for a sample, may we recommend the recent investigation our two newsrooms released together, where Mother Jones reporter Julia Lurie exposed how for-profit hospitals turn foster kids into cash cows. Being able to not only read what she found, but directly hear the former foster kids who bravely spoke up about these abuses, is incredibly compelling.
The work that MoJo and CIR produce is somewhat different but highly complementary—they do radio and podcasting; we are great at digital and print publishing and social media. They do documentary films that appear on Netflix; we tell video stories on TikTok and Instagram. But we share the most important thing: our mission to do deep, investigative, and revelatory journalism that reaches audiences everywhere in the country, in every age and demographic group, so that those who abuse their power can’t get away with it.
And let’s be clear: Neither Mother Jones nor Reveal is going away.
We’re getting stronger. We’ll continue to publish Mother Jones magazine and its website and social channels that together reach up to 8 million each month. We’ll keep producing Reveal, which is heard by more than 1 million people each week over the air, and via nearly 1 million podcast downloads each month. These two great brands complement each other; by putting them together, we can do more reporting, with less overhead.
And that’s critical right now. The digital revolution has forever changed how news is created, delivered, and paid for, and investigative journalism is at greatest risk. The few commercial news organizations that can still afford to produce this kind of in-depth, investigative reporting are increasingly turning to paywalls to make ends meet—an important business model, but one that makes the news harder to access for many people. Meanwhile, disinformation is plentiful and free.
Combined, Mother Jones and Reveal directly reach a monthly audience of 10 million, and millions more through partnerships around the country. Our goal is to keep growing that number, and especially to reach audiences who have not always been served by the nation’s traditional media. Young people, communities of color, and lower-income people have often not been well served by the news business. Because we’re a nonprofit, accountable to our readers and supporters and not to corporate owners or advertisers, we can put public service front and center.
So what does this mean in practice?
We will merge our two newsrooms into one, which can then put out great journalism through multiple platforms. Mother Jones magazine stays Mother Jones magazine, and the Reveal podcast and radio show remain Reveal. We also hope to build on Mother Jones’ video capability and CIR’s track record of making powerful television and documentaries (their most recent one, Victim/Suspect, about how police often bully rape victims into retracting their charges, was the most watched documentary on Netflix when it launched last spring). Our expansive web and social media presence will bring it all to people no matter where they get their news.
Bottom line: We will continue doing journalism that you can’t find anywhere else—deep dives and investigations that are all too rare in today’s media landscape; coverage of underreported beats and overlooked stories; sharing unique perspectives and compelling voices that add something to the day’s news.
But we’re not just strengthening our own work.
Journalism everywhere is in crisis, especially as local news is collapsing, and a key part of our mission is to help other newsrooms build capacity for investigative reporting that can make a big impact. We will partner with local news organizations to help important stories get told, and share their work with a bigger audience.
It won’t be easy—nothing is in journalism! Over the last several months we have been poring over the numbers and working hard to raise the additional funds needed to make this transformation a reality. A lot of people and foundations stepped up, which gives us immense hope. And just like our journalistic strengths complement each other so well, so do our revenue models: With Mother Jones’ 50,000 donors and CIR’s long-standing support from foundations, it leads to more resilient and diverse funding.
It’s still going to be hard as hell to make it all work. But we are so excited, so grateful, so encouraged, and so ready to join forces with CIR, and with you, to strengthen journalism and democracy at this immensely consequential moment.
There will be much to keep you updated on as we go, but we wanted to be sure you heard the big news from us first. You can read more in our full post, where you can also drop us a line with your thoughts, questions, or whatever’s on your mind—because none of this works without an engaged and awesome community of readers and listeners.
Thanks for reading, and for everything you do to make Mother Jones what it is—and what it’s becoming!
Onward,
Monika Bauerlein, CEO
Clara Jeffery, Editor in Chief
P.S. Help us celebrate the awesome news and kick-start a new chapter in journalism that isn’t dependent on shareholders or quarterly profits, but instead a community of supporters like you. Support Mother Jones and our new combined organization on the horizon with a much-needed year-end donation today.
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