MIF releases new report on global media philanthropy

As the world faces extraordinary challenges and ever more interconnected economic, social and communications systems, we know that media plays a key role in addressing and shaping the most pressing issues of our time—making global media philanthropy increasingly important. From supporting local reporting and protecting freedom of expression to improving health through public service radio campaigns and ensuring equitable internet access, media philanthropy impacts which communities have a voice, the quality of available information, and the kinds of stories we share. Understanding this global media funding landscape is critical for the philanthropic sector. While the funding landscape for U.S.-based philanthropies investing in media is well-documented, the picture for international philanthropy is far less clear. To help shed some light, we are pleased to share our new report, Global Media Philanthropy: What Funders Need to Know About Data, Trends and Pressing Issues Facing the Field. Written by Sarah Armour-Jones and Jessica Clark, consultants to Media Impact Funders, the research draws on data from our media grants data map, results from a survey of leading organizations engaged in funding media-related projects around the world, analyses of existing literature and reports, and insights offered by experts across a range of media funding… Read More

Parachuting in is out. That’s one key takeaway from a new report from Media Impact Funders that we’re excited to release this week: Global Media Philanthropy: What Funders Need to Know About Data, Trends and Pressing Issues Facing the Field. Produced with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, this scan of global media philanthropy synthesizes many months of interviews, surveys and analyses on our part, as well as offering trenchant perspectives from experts working across the globe. Read More

The global media funding ecosystem has evolved dramatically over the last 20 years, largely in response to tectonic shifts in how people around the world consume, produce and share information. Revolutions in information and communication technologies have enabled the rise of new platforms that are competing with legacy media and threatening the business models of established media institutions. Around the globe, philanthropy plays a crucial role in supporting a variety of diverse media-related initiatives, including strengthening media institutions, improving democratic processes, raising awareness and advocacy through public service radio campaigns addressing health issues, ensuring equitable access to communication technologies, and protecting freedom of expression. Read More

The recent violence in Charlottesville, Va., has thrust racist ideas into the national conversation in ways Americans haven't experienced before. Of course, tensions around race relations in the U.S. have been steadily building over the past few years, with high-profile protests around police shootings and a resurgence in hate groups. Intolerance in the streets has mirrored a spike in divisive rhetoric online, where trolls "drown out the voices of women, ethnic and religious minorities, gays—anyone who might feel vulnerable," observes Joel Stein in Time. But most disturbingly, these same sentiments can now be heard in the highest corridors of power. Read More

By Lisa Niedermeyer | Director of Client Development, Fractured Atlas Media Impact Funders, a network made up of philanthropists working to create social change through media, has partnered with the Foundation Center to launch a free database and mapping tool of grants and other funding opportunities. Read More

Editor's note: We invited Sarah Lutman to take our new data tool, Foundation Maps for Media Funding, for a test ride to see how it could support her work in the arts and culture fields. Sarah founded Lutman & Associates in 2012 and has worked on a wide variety of projects both independently and with clients in cultural, public media, and philanthropic organizations. She wrote Molto+Media: Digital Culture Funding for us in December 2013. Read More

Media Impact Funders and Foundation Center Announce New Mapping Tool for Media and Philanthropy Read More

Media projects are often judged primarily on their own merit. When it comes to gauging impact, however, context rather than content can be king. Mapping tools can help to reveal that context, making it easier to both design outreach and assess outcomes. Here are five mapping strategies to consider: Read More

At our June 2014 Media Impact Forum we learned about innovative public media efforts surrounding local journalism (among many other topics). In follow-up to that conversation we chatted with Bruce Theriault, Senior Vice President, Journalism and Radio at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, to get his take on local journalism efforts, and CPB’s work to support and advance local journalistic excellence. The data map on the Media Impact Funders’ website details grants of $10,000 and over made by more than 1,000 of the largest US foundations between 2009-2011. That covers a lot and highlights the growth in media-related funding (four times domestic giving in other areas) but it leaves out organizations like CPB, which aren’t foundations. Since CPB is a major funder in the public media space, can you tell me about some of the funding trends you’re seeing? CPB is funding numerous journalism initiatives at the local, regional, and national level, with special emphasis on collaborative models in TV and radio. Increasingly we are seeing public media stations collaborate with digital-first news organizations. The Rocky Mountain PBS and I-News merger is a good example. That combination allowed them to pull together a… Read More