JACKSON, Miss.—As part of a groundbreaking initiative to revitalize local news ecosystems, the MacArthur Foundation announced Monday that the Mississippi Free Press is a part of its inaugural Press Forward funding cohort. The MFP is among eight innovative newsrooms across the U.S. selected for the foundation’s first round of local-media support, as well as nine intermediary organizations that assist with newsroom growth and sustainability.
”This first set of grants includes funding for infrastructure support and shared services, along with direct support for eight local newsrooms that engage in sustained, deep listening to serve their communities with news and information,” the MacArthur Foundation said in its Dec. 18, 2023, Press Forward announcement.
This selection showcases MFP’s commitment since its March 2020 launch to community-centered and equity-driven journalism that centers people across Mississippi instead of power brokers in the capital city. “Being included in a cohort of truly exemplary organizations with such collaborative journalism colleagues means the world to our team,” MFP CEO, editor and co-founder Donna Ladd said after the foundation’s announcement. “It’s exciting to do this laser-focused work to listen to, report on and serve the people of Mississippi who are so often ignored.”
Inclusion In Staffing, Sources Key to Impact
The Mississippi Free Press is committed to filling crucial information needs in the state and helping address gaps in coverage in urban, suburban and rural areas, while ensuring that equity and inclusion are foundational principles not only in the systems-focused content produced but also in the newsroom’s makeup. With these priorities, the MFP helps foster a media landscape that better reflects the diverse perspectives and experiences of our audience. This dedication to equitable inclusion contributes to a more robust and informed public discourse where journalists seek out and listen to Mississippians across 82 counties directly and through solutions circles the MFP convenes around the state.
That trust-building starts with a basic principle from which the MFP does not waver. “We have the state’s most inclusive newsroom,” Kimberly Griffin, co-founder and publisher, said. “I say it repeatedly: Our team looks like Mississippi, and that’s vital both for building trust and