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Nina Sachdev , Deputy Director of External Affairs

Nina Sachdev

Nina Sachdev brings more than 20 years of experience in journalism, news editing, and marketing to her role as Deputy Director of External Affairs at Media Impact Funders (MIF). Since joining MIF in 2016 as the organization’s first full-time Director of Communications, Nina has been leading efforts to showcase the power of media, journalism, and storytelling to the philanthropic community. Through strategic communications, member engagement, research initiatives, and high-profile speaking events, Nina works to educate and inspire funders to make more strategic decisions about their media funding. In 2026, Nina was promoted to Deputy Director of External Affairs. 

Nina’s experience as a senior leader in a philanthropy-serving organization (PSO)—combined with her unique perspective as a grantseeker and grantmaker—enables her to effectively advocate for MIF’s mission and vision and build strong relationships with donors and key stakeholders in media philanthropy. Nina also brings from her journalism days a special focus on sexual assault and reproductive health. She is a tireless advocate for the importance of quality, impactful storytelling, and journalism on these topics.

Nina cut her teeth in journalism at The Dallas Morning News, where—as an intern on the copy desk—she was tasked with editing the obituaries of famous people who hadn’t yet died. Since then, Nina has worked at The Santa Rosa Press Democrat, The Philadelphia Daily News, and The Philadelphia Weekly in almost every editorial capacity imaginable, including senior editor, A1 editor (when that used to be a thing), and slot (does anyone remember that being a thing?).

Nina is the creator and editor of the award-winning The Survivors Project: Telling the Truth About Life After Sexual Abuse, which exposes the reality of healing from the effects of sexual abuse. Nina holds an M.A. in journalism from Temple University. She lives in Philadelphia with her family.

Featured Articles

When journalism fundraising falls short, it’s often because you’re answering the wrong questions

Journalists and funders are often talking past each other. It shows up most clearly when fundraising falls short. The three of us came together at ONA in March to lead a session for news leaders on fundraising and philanthropy and answer some of the questions we hear over and over again: How do we get grant support? What are funders actually looking for? Why does this process feel so opaque? The answer, we think, is this: It’s not just that journalists and funders are speaking different languages; they’re often working from different mental models. And it’s that difference in approach that accounts for a lot of the frustration from newsrooms. It’s easy to assume that philanthropy is just one more revenue stream—another way to pay for the work you’re already doing. But philanthropic dollars tend to support the very kinds of journalism that the market alone won’t sustain and that earned revenue won’t justify. That context matters because it changes how you show up in these conversations. Here are seven tips we’ve found helpful in closing the gap. Don’t start with a pitch A lot of news organizations approach philanthropy like a transaction: You have an idea, you pitch it,… Read More
May 14, 2026  –
  • Nina Sachdev ,
  • Megan Griffith-Greene ,
  • Jake Hylton
When journalism fundraising falls short, it’s often because you’re answering the wrong questions

What Comes Next? The Conversation Emerging Around “Rebuilding Local Journalism at Scale”

Earlier this month, we published “Rebuilding Local Journalism at Scale,” a new report by Elizabeth Hansen Shapiro analyzing nearly 560 proposals submitted to Press Forward’s infrastructure open call. The response was immediate—and intense. One interview Elizabeth did with Dick Tofel became his most-read post, generating more than 70 comments. We saw record attendance on our network call exploring the findings. Across the field, funders, publishers and journalists began weighing in—on LinkedIn, at Nieman Lab and elsewhere. All of it points to something important: This report is less a conclusion and more a starting point for a much larger conversation about what comes next. And it’s a reminder of something we don’t say out loud often enough: There is real demand in this field for more candid, outcome-oriented conversations—not for their own sake, but to actually move the work forward. For all the attention on media right now, there still aren’t enough spaces where funders can wrestle with these questions together. That’s part of what we’re trying to build at Media Impact Funders. In some ways, it’s always been the work. But this moment is asking more of all of us—and we’re trying to… Read More
March 24, 2026  –
  • Nina Sachdev
What Comes Next? The Conversation Emerging Around “Rebuilding Local Journalism at Scale”
Jessica Clark

Remembering Jessica Clark, Founder of Dot Connector Studio

We are so heartbroken by the sudden passing of Jessica Clark, a longtime consultant, collaborator and friend to Media Impact Funders, and the founder and director of Dot Connector Studio. Jessica passed away on Oct. 28. Jessica’s work helped shape much of how we—and the broader field—think about media impact. As MIF’s former Director of Research and Strategy, she brought extraordinary insight and creativity to our collective efforts to help funders and practitioners better understand how storytelling drives change. In addition to the rigorous quality of her research and analysis, Jessica brought a whimsical style to her work—always balancing complex ideas with humor and imagination. She delivered lessons about media impact on laminated place mats, on brightly designed decks of cards, and even with a spinning dial, Twister-style—anything to bring ideas to life in a creative, joyful way. Jessica was instrumental in shaping MIF’s programming, including the relaunch of the Media Impact Festival in 2013/14, which celebrated storytelling’s capacity to strengthen communities and transform society. Her frameworks, tools and curiosity helped build a shared language for understanding how media moves people and inspires change. In the 12 years Jessica spearheaded Dot Connector Studio,… Read More
November 5, 2025  –
  • Nina Sachdev
Remembering Jessica Clark, Founder of Dot Connector Studio
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