Addressing the challenges BIPOC-led news organizations face

03/23/23 • 71 min

The Pivot Fund CEO Tracie Powell and Northeastern University associate professor Dr. Meredith Clark discuss the unique difficulties BIPOC-led news organizations and startups face.

This conversation is moderated by Melanie Sill, the founding executive director of the NC Local News Workshop at Elon University.

The Pivot Fund is a new venture philanthropy organization dedicated to investing $500 million into independent BIPOC-led community news outlets through grantmaking, development support, and strategic consulting.

For more information on The Pivot Fund, visit www.thepivotfund.org.

The Pivot Fund CEO Tracie Powell and Northeastern University associate professor Dr. Meredith Clark discuss the unique difficulties BIPOC-led news organizations and startups face.

This conversation is moderated by Melanie Sill, the founding executive director of the NC Local News Workshop at Elon University.

For more information on The Pivot Fund, visit www.thepivotfund.org.

Previous Episode

How to turn your board of directors into fundraisers

Raising funds is hard! But it doesn’t have to be. In this panel discussion, we review strategies for turning members of your board of directors into effective fundraisers by tapping into their wealth of knowledge, connections, and resources.

Panelists included:

Kyra Kyles — CEO of YR Media
Elisa Lees Muñoz — Executive Director of the International Women’s Media Foundation

Jamaal Glenn, The Pivot Fund’s board chair, moderated this discussion.

This conversation was sponsored by the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

The Pivot Fund is a new venture philanthropy organization dedicated to investing $500 million into independent BIPOC-led community news outlets through grantmaking, development support, and strategic consulting. For more information on The Pivot Fund, visit https://thepivotfund.org.

The Pivot Fund Pod is edited and produced by ZMC Podcasts.

Next Episode

Overcoming doubts and finding value-aligned funders

BIPOC news leaders have a hard time overcoming racial bias to find funding and support.

Black women are starting businesses at the fastest clip of any other racial group. Many of these startups don’t reach their full potential — or fail — in part because they can't raise the capital to start or sustain their businesses.

In that spirit, The Pivot Fund held an intimate conversation between Amethyst J. Davis, the founder and publisher of the Harvey World Herald, and Wendi C. Thomas, the founder and publisher of MLK50: Justice Through Journalism, a nonprofit based in Memphis, Tennessee. Though at different points in their journeys, Davis and Thomas discuss their difficulties and challenges as startup newsroom leaders.

Panelists included: