Rebuild Local News Awarded Significant Funding from Press Forward, Knight Foundation and MacArthur Foundation to Accelerate Nonpartisan Journalism Policy

Rebuild Local News has received a transformative $5.25 million in funding over three years from leading philanthropic organizations: Press Forward, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Beyond funding, this investment reflects the funders’ support for the organization’s commitment to nonpartisan policy solutions and local coalition-building to rebuild local news.

“Local news is a public resource that all communities need to thrive,” said Dale Anglin, director of Press Forward. “This investment reflects our deep belief in the power of local communities to organize and advocate on behalf of their right to access reliable, trustworthy local news and information about issues that impact their daily lives. We are honored to support both grassroots and grasstops coalitions that will advocate for First Amendment-friendly policies that reimagine and rebuild community media.”

Since Rebuild Local News began, several states have taken action to support the economic sustainability of local newsrooms, including employment subsidies for newsrooms in Illinois and New York and multi-year fellowships for local reporters in New Mexico and Washington. State legislative efforts, including California, Illinois, New Jersey, and New York, have established programs to direct more than $280 million to local newsrooms. 

While nonpartisan, the organization has found success by building bipartisan support and collaborating with lawmakers across the political spectrum. The momentum has continued this year, as 12 states have introduced legislation that addresses critical challenges facing local news, marking a surge in activity to support community journalism. 

The new funding will help Rebuild Local News deepen its work in developing policies and organizing on the community level, allowing the organization to add more states to its target list. It will also strengthen the organization’s fundraising and outreach efforts to ensure this work can grow over time. 

“Knight is proud to be an early supporter in Rebuild Local News and its efforts to advance policies that support local journalism as a public good,” said Maribel Pérez Wadsworth, president and CEO of Knight Foundation. “Rebuild Local News has a strong track record of championing bipartisan policies that ensure communities have access to the trusted, reliable information they need to participate fully in civic life.”

This funding comes at a critical time for local journalism. Since 2005, as the U.S. population has grown, the number of newsroom employees has dropped by more than 60 percent. An average of 2.5 newspapers shut down each week, and nearly 55 million Americans now have little to no access to local news. The decline of local news weakens civic life, fueling more corruption, lower civic engagement, increased polarization, reduced voter turnout, more misinformation, and higher costs for local government.

“A healthy democracy depends on informed communities, and local news is essential to that equation,” said Silvia Rivera, director of local news at MacArthur Foundation. “This investment reflects our belief that policy change can be a powerful lever to reverse the decline in local journalism and ensure that people—especially those in underserved communities—have access to the trustworthy information they need to participate fully in civic life.”

As momentum grows nationwide for policy solutions to support local news, Rebuild Local News continues to collaborate with local outlets, policymakers, and community leaders to move these efforts forward. All of the organization’s policy initiatives are grounded in its core principles: they are nonpartisan, content-neutral, and protect editorial independence while supporting sustainable business models, embracing innovation, and prioritizing community-grounded outlets. The ultimate goal is to ensure all communities have access to reliable, robust reporting on local issues.

“This is more than an investment. It is a powerful affirmation that bold, nonpartisan, First-Amendment-friendly policy solutions are essential to the future of local news,” said Steven Waldman, president of Rebuild Local News. “We are grateful these foundations recognize the momentum building across the country. With this support, we can help local newsrooms in more and more states to serve their communities with trusted civic information.”

For more information, please contact the organization’s Marketing, Communications and Coalition Manager, Ray Garcia, at: raygarcia@rebuildlocalnews.org.

Rebuild Local News is the leading nonpartisan, nonprofit coalition developing and advancing effective public policies designed to strengthen community news and information. The broad-based organization brings together the largest alliance of local publishers and labor unions, civic organizations and newsrooms representing both rural and urban communities. Together, these 50 organizations represent over 3,000 newsrooms and 15,000 journalists working together to revive local news.