Press Forward Announces Network of Local Chapters

 A network of local Press Forward chapters are springing up across the country to strengthen local news at an unprecedented level.

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Press Forward Announces Network of Local Chapters

November 3, 2023 | Press Release | Local News

A growing coalition of funders today announced the next phase of their plan to strengthen local news at an unprecedented level: Press Forward Locals. A network of local chapters across the country—starting in Alaska; Chicago; Minnesota; Philadelphia; Springfield, Illinois; and Wichita—are springing up as funders are coordinating or collaborating across states and regions to bring new donors and foundations together to expand resources for local news.

 

Trust Begins Close to Home

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As local newsrooms have disappeared across America, communities have witnessed fading civic engagement, eroding social bonds, surging misinformation, and dwindling governmental accountability. Over the last decade news organization founders and funders have stepped up to build and invest in emerging ecosystems across the country.

Press Forward Local chapters are an opportunity for funders to create place-based initiatives for local news, driven by the specific needs of their communities.

In September, a coalition of funders announced Press Forward, a national initiative to strengthen communities and democracy by supporting local news and information with an infusion of more than a half-billion dollars over the next five years. Press Forward partners committed to re-center local news as a force for community cohesion; support new models and solutions that are ready to scale; and close longstanding inequities in journalism coverage and practice.

“Our goal is to raise the next $500 million at the local level,” said John Palfrey, president of the MacArthur Foundation. “For local news to be sustainable over the long term, communities will need to stand up and support their local news providers. We will need to invest in local news the same way that we invest in arts and culture, hospitals, or our alma maters. We are building a movement.”

While each community is different, Press Forward has identified three types of local ecosystems. This could mean building on existing proven models where local funds have been started or supporting the start-up of new funds.

 

NASCENT NEWS ECOSYSTEMS

Too many Americans live in news deserts, in communities at risk of becoming news deserts, or in places where existing news sources are struggling to meet the information needs of audiences. In some of these places, a donor or group of donors are coming together to support local news and information for the first time. They are conducting landscape studies, building the case for journalism support with new donors, and creating a foundation for ongoing collaboration.

Examples:

• Press Forward Alaska will be led by the Atwood Foundation.
• Press Forward Springfield will be led by the Community Foundation for the Land of Lincoln.
• Press Forward Minnesota will be led by the McKnight Foundation.

 

EXPANDING NEWS ECOSYSTEMS

A number of communities have dynamic and diverse local news outlets, thanks in part to entrepreneurial news leaders, a decade of national programs aimed at strengthening local news, and local news champions, oftentimes the local community foundation. But underneath the impactful reporting and awards, many local newsrooms remain undercapitalized, the ecosystem as a whole requires reinforcement, and the donor community needs to be expanded to support the growing ecosystem.

Examples:

• Press Forward Chicago will be led by the MacArthur Foundation and the Chicago Community Trust.
• Press Forward Wichita will be led by the Wichita Foundation.
• Press Forward Minnesota will also apply this approach.

 

FLOURISHING NEWS ECOSYSTEMS

In some cities and states, visionary funder collaboratives have created flourishing news ecosystems that provide a roadmap for others to follow. These ecosystems have learned hard lessons along the way and have adapted over the past decade to serve the news and information needs of their communities. Leaders of these ecosystems are well positioned to provide guidance to others and serve as an inspiration for Press Forward. At the same time, these larger ecosystems require heavy ongoing investment, and this is an opportunity to widen the circle of donors to provide longer-term support.

Example:

• Press Forward Philadelphia will be led by the The Lenfest Institute for Journalism.

 

All Press Forward Local Funders Have Committed to:

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• Support local journalism beyond existing funding
• Bring new donors to the local effort
• Establish or support pooled funds or funding collaborations that build common purpose and strengthen the local news ecosystem
• Convene local stakeholders and advance mutual understanding and analysis of the local information ecosystem
• Track and report funding and metrics to Press Forward
• Share models, tools, and lessons learned with other Press Forward Locals

 In addition to Alaska; Chicago; Minnesota; Philadelphia; Springfield, IL; and Wichita, Press Forward national is incubating additional chapters around the country.

Meanwhile, Press Forward’s national donors expect to announce a first round of aligned grantmaking in December. Donors of the pooled fund will announce grantmaking guidelines in early 2024.

Organizations interested in Press Forward can sign up for updates to learn more about applying for future grants. Press Forward welcomes and continues to invite additional funders to enhance nonprofit, public, and for-profit news and information.

Edward Snowden and Jack Dorsey on Nostr

USA FACTS: Here's how much foreign aid the US gives to other countries

 

What decades of foreign aid data reveal The United States has provided more than $3.75 trillion in foreign aid since the end of World War II. That works out to $49.4 billion annually from 1946 to 2021. The wars between Ukraine and Russia and between Israel and Hamas have cast new light on US aid to other nations. USAFacts has a lot of data on this and tracks aid to dozens of countries from 2012–2021. Here are the major takeaways:     At its peak in 1949, US foreign aid reached nearly $100 billion. It was lowest in 1997, at just under $25 billion.

Since World War II, over a quarter of all US foreign aid has gone to five countries: Israel ($312.5 billion), former South Vietnam ($184.5 billion), Egypt ($183.7 billion), Afghanistan ($158.9 billion), and South Korea ($120.7 billion). The US spent more than $550 billion on foreign aid between 2012 and 2021. The 2021 amount was $50.1 billion, down from $57.3 billion in 2020. Sub-Saharan African countries received the largest portion of aid of any region in 2021. Track US foreign aid over the years and across the globe.

Teen drug use is declining High school students are trying and using alcohol and certain drugs less than they did a decade ago. This data comes from a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey that tracks substance abuse among teens — including how often they seek out treatment.

In 2021, 22.7% of teenagers reported drinking alcohol at least once in the past 30 days, down from 37.9% for girls and 39.5% for boys in 2011. Marijuana use is also down; 27.9% of high school students reported trying it in 2021, down from 42.5% of boys and 37.2% of girls in 2011. According to the US Surgeon General, e-cigarettes have been the most popular tobacco product among the nation’s youth since 2014. Teen vaping rates peaked in 2019 at 50.1%. By 2021, this had declined to 36.5%. As vaping grew in popularity with teens, cigarette smoking — which peaked in the 1990s — dropped. By 2021, 17.7% of girls and 17.8% of boys reported having ever smoked cigarettes. The number of teens admitted to recovery treatment centers for substance abuse fell from 177,916 admissions in 2011 to 44,290 in 2020. Get more charts on changing trends in teen drug abuse.

Data behind the news A wildfire forced thousands of people to evacuate a rural area southeast of Los Angeles last week. Explore wildfire data in this article. General Motors has reached a tentative deal with the United Auto Workers. Tentative agreements still have to be ratified, but this could mean the end of the autoworkers strike. But how common are labor strikes in the US? Take the weekly fact quiz and test your data smarts.

One last fact

Seventeen states have passed laws to observe permanent daylight saving time, while Kentucky and Ohio have passed resolutions supporting it. If Congress were to change daylight-saving-time laws, these resolutions could take effect. The Senate unanimously passed the Sunshine Protection Act in 2022, which would move the nation to permanent daylight saving time. The bill has not received a vote in the House of Representatives.

US media reports that the White House is planning a multi-million transf...

COMMUTE SOLUTIONS/WEEKLY AIR QUALITY FORECASTS: November 6 - 10, 2023

 

Weekly Air Quality Forecast - November 6 - 10, 2023

FORECAST FOR THE PHOENIX METROPOLITAN AREA November 6 - 10, 2023 The following is this week's air quality forecast. OZONE Moderate (Monday - Friday) PM-2.5 (Smoke/Fine Particles) Moderate (Monday - Friday) PM-10 (Dust/Coarse Particles) Moderate (Monday - Friday)   Learn more at Maricopa County's Air Quality page. *Learn what defines the air quality category colors. Please note that a High Pollution Advisory (HPA) occurs when air quality is in danger of exceeding the Federal standard. Find a list of recent HPA dates here.

This information may be shared as needed to keep your employees and driving-age students updated.  Feel free to forward it to those who may have an interest. Sponsored by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality,  Maricopa Association of Governments, Maricopa County Air Quality Department and Valley Metro.

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SICUREZZA 2023

 

Security of Artistic Heritage and Museum Assets

by Editorial Staff - 11 October 2023

“The Security of the National Artistic Heritage and Museum Assets” is the theme at the center of the event organized by S News in collaboration with Professor Umberto Saccone, EY Leader (Ernst & Young) and Adjunct Professor at Luiss Business School.  
The event will be held on Thursday 16 November starting at 11:00 and ending at 12:30 on the S News television set, in pavilion 5, R11-S14 at SICUREZZA 2023, the international trade fair dedicated to Security and Fire of Fiera Milano, which will take place from 15 to 17 November in the exhibition pavilions of Fieramilano Rho.
Why, today more than ever, is it important to address the issue of the security of national artistic heritage and museum assets?
The large growth in cultural tourism, recorded not only in the summer period but also in the autumn one and already expected for 2024, will bring huge flows of tourists to Italy to visit its artistic heritage and museum assets.
In addition, natural disasters, which are increasing and increasingly devastating, also put the Italian cultural heritage in serious danger.
 “What drives us – underlines Professor Saccone – is the idea that the beauty of our cities and the cultural heritage inherited over the centuries from the genius of our artists and our writers impose on us a duty of protection for us, our children and the generations to come. Not just a duty, above all a moral commitment that we have undertaken as citizens.
On this basis and in view of the unpleasant episodes recorded in Florence, London and the territories of Emilia Romagna, we are working towards the definition of a new professional figure: the Art Security Manager, specifically dedicated to the Security Risk Management of museums and places of culture.”

The contents of the event

The new vision, the first results of the project relating to the professional figure of the Art Security Manager and the new methodology for museum security will be presented on 16 November within the prestigious setting of the international event on Security at Fiera Milano.

#Events#EY#Fiera Sicurezza#Public Security & Safety#Security Management