New Year, New News: A letter from Board Chair, Chris Daggett
On behalf of the board and staff of the New Jersey Civic Information Consortium, we’re very excited about 2024 and the prospects of continuing to build on the momentum of the first three rounds of Consortium grant making. I’m writing to provide an update as we start the new year.
To date, we have made more than $5.5 million in grants and currently have 46 active grantees providing local news and information to residents in communities across the state. The projects range from the Civic Engagement Guide of Atlantic City Focus, to a Journalism Mentorship Program for high school and college students of Industry Media Arts, to funding of a D.C. correspondent for NJ Spotlight, among many others.
The Consortium’s first Technology and Sustainability Accelerator program, led by Blue Engine Collaborative, kicked off Jan. 23 with active and enthusiastic participation by the 21 teams selected for the program. Also, City Bureau’s Documenters program — which trains residents to attend and summarize public meetings for publication in local news outlets — will be launched shortly.
Additionally, the Consortium’s grantees are provided with assistance to track the impact of their work in the Garden State. Reception of impact measurement has been enthusiastic, but implementation will require more effort. Our hope is to instill the “impact mindset” in our grantees, so that they see the long-term benefits of such tracking, despite adding yet another task to their plates. With that in mind, all efforts have been made to keep the Consortium’s impact-tracking method as light a lift as possible.
On the internal front, the board and staff are in the process of developing a strategic plan and finalizing our 2024 grant making strategy. We have had active and robust participation in the planning meetings and anticipate completing the work in mid-March. Stay tuned for more details.
Late last year, the Consortium also announced its plans to help form a Press Forward New Jersey chapter in order to accelerate fundraising for the local news ecosystem in New Jersey. The board believes that a robust funding environment for local news includes both public and private dollars, and Press Forward will catalyze such efforts. More to come.
Finally, in January, Gov. Murphy signed into law amendments to the Consortium’s founding statute, providing more operational and organizational flexibility, including staggered terms for Consortium board members. We are very grateful for the leadership of Senator Vin Gopal, Assembly Majority Leader Lou Greenwald, and the near-unanimous bipartisan support we received during its consideration and passage. Now, we will focus on the FY2025 budget process, legislative hearings for which will begin later this month.
The Consortium’s commitment to fostering a vibrant, informed, and connected New Jersey has never been stronger. Together with you, we are shaping the future of local news. As we move forward, get ready for an inspiring year ahead as we amplify the impact of our collective efforts and continue to be a beacon of progress for our great state.
– Chris Daggett
Chris Daggett is the interim executive director and board chair of the New Jersey Civic Information Consortium. Contact him at info@njcivicinfo.org.
About the New Jersey Civic Information Consortium: The Consortium is an independent, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that funds initiatives to benefit the State’s civic life and meet the evolving information needs of New Jersey’s communities. A first-in-the-nation project, the Consortium builds on the foundation laid by public media in the United States, and reimagines how public funding can be used to address the growing problem of news deserts, misinformation, and support more informed communities.