The American Press Institute is currently accepting applications from local and community-based news organizations throughout the United States to kickstart initiatives to strengthen civic discourse in their community.
Donor Name: American Press Institute
State: All States
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 08/21/2023
Size of the Grant: Up to $10,000
Grant Duration: 4 months 15 days
Details:
This grant opportunity is designed to empower local and community-based news organizations with funds and peer learning to begin or enhance civic discourse initiatives, paying special attention to the diversity of voices and people included in such work.
API is especially interested in civic discourse projects that deeply involve communities of color. Its also interested in projects that give voice and build bridges among other differences, such as religion, class, immigration status, language barriers, politics or more.
Funding Information
The fund will take requests of up to $10,000 to be spent during the grant period, September 15, 2023, to January 31, 2024 (approximately four months). It anticipates most awards will be for less than $10,000.
Uses of funds
The fund has seen time and again how even small grants of a few thousand dollars can help news organizations get “unstuck” from a status quo in coverage or business approaches. The goal is to provide publishers with an opportunity — and momentum — to take steps toward doing journalism differently.
Here are a few examples of how the grant funds can be used:
- In-person event costs (for example, venues, food, etc.)
- Stipends for participants (e.g. in small group dialogues, advisory boards)
- Digital tools that support constructive conversation (e.g., Local Voices Network, Poll.is)
- Funds to offset expenses in partnering with a relevant organization (e.g. a university-based survey center or conflict resolution program, facilitators, etc.)
- Time for staff or contractors to develop relationships
- Promotion of events or initiatives
Eligibility Criteria
API programming serves a range of local and community-based media in the U.S. Both nonprofit and for-profit news organizations can apply. It committed to setting aside at least 30 percent of grant funds for publishers of color and will encourage applications from local news organizations of any medium (e.g. newspaper, digital-only, public media, TV, newsletter-based, etc.). It also welcomes collaborations among local news organizations that serve similar geographic locations. Organizations must submit their tax ID and valid W9 when applying.
For more information, visit API.
