One of our goals at Press Forward is to grow the field of journalism philanthropy. But to make real progress, local news leaders and funders need a better understanding of each other’s perspectives and needs. That’s why, when we designed the review process for our Open Call on Infrastructure, we made sure it reflected this principle, building bridges between those doing the work and those supporting it.

To help narrow down the 565 applications we received, we brought both funders and local news leaders into the process. This collaborative approach surfaced the most compelling projects while creating opportunities for deeper understanding and mutual insight across the field.

Here’s how we selected the 22 recipients:

• Reviewers from journalism and philanthropy: 53 reviewers from both fields evaluated the submissions over two phases. In the end, each application was read a minimum of five times. We are thankful for the reviewers’ expertise and insights in our rich discussions. You can find their names below.
• Local news leaders managed the process: Five news industry experts worked with Press Forward to oversee this process and ensure a “balanced portfolio of the original and practical, of innovative and ‘tried and true’ ideas, that would have a significant and broad impact on journalism,” as the consultants said. As journalists themselves, they were the applicants’ peers. Each had insight into which projects could be successful, scalable, and replicable. We are indebted to them for their help: Kim Bui, John Davidow, Kate Meyers and Alma Washington. Amanda Zamora served as a consultant on the first round.
• Grant writing experts provided feedback to second round applicants: We wanted to ensure that applicants in our second phase had a level playing field, and that they could learn how to improve their current (and future) applications for funding. So, we worked with the Lenfest Institute for Journalism to provide coaches for the 100+ submissions in the second round. Nearly all took advantage of the opportunity. We also provided project-based coaching. Select reviewers who were part of the first round were “project coaches” that helped applicants refine their ideas, discuss implementation plans and talk through risk analysis. Nearly all applicants in the second phase took advantage of the opportunity for feedback.

Relying heavily on reviewers’ appraisals, and four of our expert consultants, Press Forward’s staff made the final decision on the list of recipients and the amounts received.

Thanks to everyone who contributed to this review process!

The reviewers included: