Great news for local news: The nonprofit Venetoulis Institute, publisher of @thebaltimorebanner.com, is purchasing @post-gazette.com, saving it from a planned closure. We’re thrilled to see the ranks of nonprofit-owned newspapers grow — meaning more communities have access to quality local news.
It's #LocalNewsDay! 🗞️ Strong communities start with strong local news. We're proud to support this national day of action with 1,000+ newsrooms nationwide. The goal is simple: Find your local news. Subscribe. Help others do the same. Start with the Local News Finder:
GOOOO BLUUUUEEEEEEE
go blue
1/ Today, we’re announcing a $150K grant to @sfstandard.com to develop an AI-powered news app that reimagines how audiences interact with local information, moving beyond static articles and allowing readers to engage with local reporting in real time. www.lenfestinstitute.org/institute-ne...
Instant classic of an image via Getty
Free consulting services for local newsrooms! Apply!
As year-end giving season approaches, now is the time to inspire deeper support for local journalism. Join the Lenfest News Philanthropy Network for a workshop this Thursday, Nov. 6 at 2 p.m. EST / 11 a.m. PST to learn about a new messaging toolkit for local news created by Press Forward.
Want to level up your publication’s digital strategy? The Beyond Print Diagnostic has you covered.
Take the free survey to assess where you are in your digital transformation journey and receive personalized recommendations and resources straight from the Beyond Print Toolkit 👇
Today is a good day to support your local public media station. @michiganpublic.bsky.social
Since its April 2025 launch, @lookout-es.bsky.social has attracted over 1,200 paying members — generating $228,000 in reader revenue — and booked $212,000 in advertising. But as founder Ken Doctor notes, “This is not a story about money. It’s a story about connection and hope.”
At the 2025 Reimagining Philadelphia Journalism Summit, we brought together 150 journalists and news leaders to discuss strategies for building the future of local news 🌆💡
From AI breakthroughs to creator partnerships, one message was clear: Innovation is essential to sustainability.
Look at this picture of my dog and read my newsletter about what I've learned in the first month of my MBA program
substack.com/home/post/p-...
“I look at my job as I’m trying to help the donor have the impact they want to have on the world.” — @kimberlygriffin.bsky.social of @mississippifreepress.org at the Lenfest News Philanthropy Summit, hosted with Press Forward. We compiled lessons from the Summit on messaging, stewardship, & more ⬇️
Super exciting! ProPublica Joins Lenfest Institute AI Collaborative and Fellowship Program
And apply here to be our AI Engineering Fellow: job-boards.greenhouse.io/propublica/j...
Mallory Mitchell speaks at the Lenfest News Philanthropy Summit
Kimberly Griffin speaks at the Lenfest News Philanthropy Summit
Kimberly Spencer speaks at the Lenfest News Philanthropy Summit
Day 1 of the Lenfest News Philanthropy Summit, hosted in partnership with Press Forward, kicked off this morning with three of our keynote speakers: Mallory Mitchell of Aligned Strategy, @mississippifreepress.org's @kimberlygriffin.bsky.social, & @kspence09.bsky.social of Colorado Media Project.
Thank god—a real strike against anti-Semitism here
RIP @houstonlanding.bsky.social
Some amazing numbers in this analysis from @sewell.bsky.social:
Almost $8 million in spending last year, against just $430,000 in new revenue, of which only $25,000 in major gifts.
www.cjr.org/news/houston...
These are valuable insights into how @lenfestinstitute.org has conducted community research in Philadelphia to inform its grantmaking.
Oh this is nothing new — Michigan has consistently disappointed on a number of issues for years now. But it’s still bad news and a dangerous precedent.
The Michigan Daily has good coverage of the University of Michigan’s decision to end its diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
The University’s cowardly capitulation is antithetical to its supposed values. This is not what the leaders and best do.
www.michigandaily.com/news/news-br...
"It’s hard not to think that the American thought police have disappeared a promising student into their gulag archipelago for the alleged 'crime' of publishing their political opinion in a college newspaper." - @willbunch.bsky.social in @inquirer.com www.inquirer.com/opinion/rume...
Go Blue
“The domestic threat to U.S. public media has become even more apparent as the administration chooses to shutter American media abroad,” writes our Executive Director and CEO Jim Friedlich in response to the decision to silence Voice of America. Read his full op-ed for @inquirer.com ⬇️
I'm glad to work at @lenfestinstitute.org every day, but the news today is a good reminder of why the Institute's nonprofit structure is so valuable and important
Want to build a thriving news ecosystem in your community? We’re here to help. We’re proud of our work building a local news ecosystem here in Philadelphia, and we’re sharing tips for other cities as part of a new series from the Knight Communities Network ⬇️
"As fellow Philadelphia newspaper publisher Benjamin Franklin said, 'We must hang together, or, most assuredly, we shall hang separately.'"
my favorite @lenfestinstitute.org tradition: local news valentines
Joel Simon of @newmarkjplus.bsky.social’s Journalism Protection Initiative is sounding the alarm in @columjournreview.bsky.social: It’s time for newsrooms to band together to prepare for an onslaught of threats to the free press by the Trump administration.
All legitimate, self-respecting, White House reporters should boycott events until the Associated Press, one of our most important institutions, is allowed back in. This is outrageous.