Open Call for Press Forward New Mexico Program (US)

This open call focuses on the following funding priority: Closing long-standing inequalities in journalism coverage and practice.

Press Forward will move resources to newsrooms and organizations that are improving diversity of experience and thought along with the availability of accurate and responsive news and information in underserved communities.

Funding Information

• Press Forward New Mexico intends to offer $80,000 in grants of up to $20,000 each to New Mexico-based newsrooms. All grants will be unrestricted. This means all grants will be made with the intention of serving as mission-building, general operating support.
  • Grants will be awarded in two installments.
  • The expected grant period will be one year, December 1, 2024 – December 1, 2025.
  • Grantees will be required to submit a short report after 6 months in order to receive the second grant installment.
  • Press Forward New Mexico reserves the right to award amounts that fit for each newsroom.
  • Grantees will be eligible for and encouraged to participate in grantee capacity building opportunities at the New Mexico Local News Fund throughout the life of the grant.

Eligibility Criteria

• This open call will invest in small, local news outlets that provide original reporting to underserved communities. Press Forward NM understands that addressing this growing crisis in news and information will require a variety of solutions and models.
• Eligible applicants must be local news outlets focused on providing and producing original local reporting.
• Applicants must meet all of the following requirements:
  • An operating budget of less than $1 million for 2024, separate from the rest of any parent company budget for newsrooms.
  • In operation and publishing since at least January 1, 2024.
  • A commitment to editorial excellence, editorial independence, and transparency.
• Applicants can be:
  • 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations or for-profit organizations.
  • For-profits with or without an established 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor.
  • University or college student newsrooms producing original reporting that is community-facing.

Ineligibility Criteria

• The following types of organizations are not eligible to apply:
  • Outlets in which the majority of content is not focused on local news
  • Organizations with an operating budget greater than $1 million for 2024
  • Start-up organizations that have not been publishing since at least January 1, 2024
  • 501(c)(4) organizations

Evaluation Criteria

• They encourage applicants to review these criteria as they prepare their grant applications, as Press Forward NM will prioritize applications that demonstrate the following:
  • Addressing gaps in coverage: They will prioritize organizations that are producing and delivering news and information to underserved audiences, such as communities of color, linguistically diverse communities, low-wealth rural communities, and others not adequately served, reached, or represented.
  • Community-centered: They will support news outlets that can demonstrate a commitment to community listening and audience research, especially those intentionally gathering audience feedback to guide their work.
  • Collaboration: They will prioritize organizations that have evidence of strong networks and partnerships with members of their community.
  • Sustainability: Using the Local Independent Online News (LION) Publishers’ definition of sustainability as a framework, they will prioritize outlets that are intentional about their editorial impact, operational resilience, and/or financial health. They will support organizations that have a clear plan for how they will use this investment as a foundational step toward developing and maintaining a long-term business model.
  • Leadership: They will support leaders who reflect the community served, listen to the community, and have a clear vision for how to effectively serve the local news needs of the community.
  • Press Forward NM will recruit a diverse and well-informed review panel for this open call. Reviewers will provide subject matter expertise and guidance to Press Forward NM on which applicants are best positioned to have the desired community impact. Reviewers will be sourced from the Press Forward NM steering committee and/or advisory committee.

For more information, visit New Mexico Local News Fund.