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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

Last month in Charlotte, N.C., Media Impact Funders co-hosted a keynote conversation with Press Forward on the future of public media in a moment of profound change. With the federal government eliminating funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for the first time in more than 50 years, local public radio and television stations—especially those in rural, Tribal, and under-resourced communities—are facing immediate threats to their sustainability. Yet the conversation made clear: This moment is not only a crisis. It is also an opportunity to reimagine what public media can be. Moderated by MIF Board Chair Kayce Ataiyero, the panelists clearly articulated the value of public media and explored several questions around how to rebuild a system that can keep serving communities for generations to come. Luis Patiño, CEO of Austin PBS, noted, stations have always served entire communities across a lifetime, providing trusted journalism, educational children’s programming, music and arts coverage, and independent documentary film. “Public media serves the whole person,” he said. “Our value comes from our deep relationship with community, and that’s what makes new models possible.” For Ju-Don Marshall, Chief Content Officer at WFAE in… Read More

During our latest Safeguarding Media and Journalism meeting, we discussed the complex questions funders face about what is—and isn’t—permissible when supporting media and journalism in today’s shifting legal and policy landscape. We heard from Maya Raghu—Director of the Protecting and Advancing Diversity Equity, and Inclusion Initiative at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law—who offered guidance on funding initiatives related to DEI and Abby Levine—Associate General Counsel and Senior Policy Counsel at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation—who offered guidance on funding advocacy efforts.  … Read More