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· Public charity

American Press Institute Inc

American press institute acts as a scout on the frontier of technology and audience behavior to identify where change is occurring and helps news organizations learn how to implement and scale that change successfully so they have a sustainable future.

$468k
Granted FY2024still arriving
5
Grants FY2024still arriving
5
States reached
$192k
Largest
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2024.

Public Benefit$880kArts & Culture$395kScience & Tech$33kRecreation & Sports$30kEducation$6k
02FY2024 · 5 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 5 grants below total $224,218, the rows itemized in this filing. The $468,123 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $243,905 is giving the schedule does not break out (grants under the $5,000 itemization floor, grants to individuals, grants on other schedules). Every figure below describes the itemized rows only.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k3 grants · $22k
  • $10k–50k1 grant · $10k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $192k
$8,500
Median grant
5
States reached
$51M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
TRUSTING NEWS$191,768
CHARLOTTESVILLE TOMORROW$10,000
ENLACE LATINO NC$8,500
BEACON MEDIA INC$7,000
OHIO LOCAL NEWS INITIATIVE$6,950
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY17–24) land where the poverty rate runs at 12%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 66% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%PHOENIX NEWSPAPERS INC: $15k → 11%NATIONAL TRUST FOR LOCAL NEWS: $25k → 8%PUBLICSOURCE INC: $7k → 11%THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER LLC: $15k → 22%CITYSIDE JOURNALISM INITIATIVE: $8k → 10%KALW PUBLIC MEDIA INC: $10k → 10%SANTA CRUZ LOCAL LLC: $7k → 13%THE RED HOOK DAILY CATCH INC: $6k → 9%URL MEDIA HOLDINGS INC: $37k → 13%RADIO AMBULANTE STUDIOS INC: $6k → 17%THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS: $6k → 10%KOSU: $7k → 19%NEW DIGITAL PRESS: $9k → 12%TRUSTING NEWS: $192k → 9%WDET-FM: $10k → 21%BEACON MEDIA INC: $7k → 15%ISTHMUS COMMUNITY MEDIA INC: $10k → 10%THE MCCLATCHY COMPANY LLC: $15k → 8%UNIVERSITY RADIO FOUNDATION: $10k → 10%THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE INC: $8k → 8%COX ENTERPRISES INC: $15k → 13%GANNETT CO: $10k → 5%OHIO LOCAL NEWS INITIATIVE: $7k → 15%BLACK GIRL MEDIA: $7k → 17%SEATTLE TIMES COMPANY: $15k → 9%CHICAGO STANDARD LLC: $35k → 14%MISSISSIPPI JOURNALISM AND EDUCATION GROUP: $8k → 23%HAITINEX MEDIA GROUP: $11k → 16%PIEDMONT JOURNALISM FOUNDATION: $56k → 6%CHARLOTTESVILLE TOMORROW: $10k → 8%CARDINAL PRODUCTIONS INC: $6k → 20%NEVADA NEWS BUREAU INC: $9k → 13%NEW HAMPSHIRE PUBLIC RADIO INC: $8k → 7%KEENE PUBLISHING CORPORATION: $30k → 9%ACCION LATINA: $11k → 10%CITY LIMITS NEWS INC: $6k → 17%ANNETTE STRAUSS INSTITUTE FOR CIVIC LIFE AT THE UNIV OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN: $48k → 10%MEDIA NEWS NC LLC: $10k → 8%GLENNOAKS MEDIA: $10k → 10%THE ATLANTA VOICE NEWSPAPER: $11k → 13%HEARKEN: $411k → 14%PIEDMONT JOURNALISM FOUNDATION: $18k → 6%VINEGAR HILL VINTAGE: $8k → 8%KEENE PUBLISHING CORPORATION: $7k → 9%AUTOMATTIC INC: $10k → 10%ENLACE LATINO NC: $9k → 8%HEARKEN INC: $55k → 14%CICERO INDEPENDIENTE: $11k → 14%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.

Which US states its grants reach

ME
NH
WA
IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
NV
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CA
UT
MO
VA
AZ
NC
SC
OK
GA
TX
FL
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

49%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$663k · 6 repeat orgs$680k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +252% since the first grant, against +31% for those funded once.

6 repeat relationships: 1 still active in FY2024, 5 since wound down; 4 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

6
43

Total granted

$663k
$466k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+252%
+31%

Still filing today

33%
44%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 4% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $214k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
Arts & CultureEducationCommunity ImprovementPublic BenefitOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • H
    HEARKEN
    2× · 2022–2023 · $466k
  • PJ
    PIEDMONT JOURNALISM FOUNDATION
    2× · 2018–2019 · $75k · revenue +252%
  • UO
    UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS
    2× · 2017–2019 · $54k

Funded once

  • UM
    URL Media Holdings Inc
    one grant, 2022 · $37k
  • CS
    CHICAGO STANDARD LLC
    one grant, 2020 · $35k
  • NT
    NATIONAL TRUST FOR LOCAL NEWS
    one grant, 2023 · $25k · revenue +15%
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Press Watch

To educate journalists and the public, and foster public debate, about improving political journalism to reflect public needs and hold the powerful accountable.

—
2
Nc Local Inc

Expands local news across North Carolina

Civil Rights
3
Texas Tribune Inc

The texas tribune promotes civic engagement and public education across the state by producing and sharing for free public data interactives, statewide events and intensive and daily reporting on texas public policy, politics and current…

Education
4
Journalism New England

The organization is non-profit organization working to build and sustain local news and ensure that local news organizations across new england are supported with the kinds of tailored problem-solving, training and partnerships they need…

Civil Rights
5
Citizens News Guild Inc

Citizens news guild educates the public by publishing non-partisan state and local news.

Community Improvement
6
Independence Public Media of Philadelphia Inc
Arts & Culture
7
Rebuild Local News

To advance public policies to counter the collapse of local news, revitalize community journalism, and strengthen democracy.

Education
8
Springfield Daily Citizen Inc

The mission of the springfield daily citizen is to inform our community and be a catalyst for good.

Arts & Culture
9
San Francisco Public Press

The mission of the San Francisco Public Press is to enrich civic life by publishing investigative and solutions journalism that engages diverse audiences and promotes public accountability. The San Francisco Public Press…

Education
10
City Report Inc

CITY REPORT, INC. serves the people of New York through independent journalism that answers their information needs and holds the powerful to account.

Arts & Culture
11
CalMatters

Our team of experienced journalists, with the time and resources to dig deep, is committed to meaningfully informing Californians about the players, politics, and interests that shape the issues that affect their lives.

Civil Rights
12
Southern Newspaper Publishers Association Foundation Inc
Arts & Culture
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is City Limits News Inc; the most unlike its peers is Voice News Network. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

25 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 25 of the 53 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
7
Early backer (in before they grew)
25/25
Grantees still filing
18/25
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

HEARKEN: $465,500 · OtherHEARKENUNIVERSITY OF TEXAS: $54,095 · OtherUNIVERSITY OF TEXASKEENE PUBLISHING CORPORATION: $36,500 · OtherURL Media Holdings Inc: $36,500 · OtherCHICAGO STANDARD LLC: $35,000 · Other+24 more: $251,150 · Other+24 moreTrusting News Inc: $191,768 · Arts & CultureTrusting News IncNATIONAL TRUST FOR LOCAL NEWS: $25,000 · Arts & CultureNATIONAL TRUST FOR LOCAL NEW…+15 more: $124,134 · Arts & Culture+15 morePIEDMONT JOURNALISM FOUNDATION: $74,895 · Community ImprovementCHARLOTTESVILLE TOMORROW: $15,500 · Community ImprovementNEVADA NEWS BUREAU INC: $8,500 · EducationOklahoma State University Foundation: $7,000 · EducationScalawag: $6,000 · EducationCITY LIMITS NEWS INC: $6,000 · Public BenefitCARDINAL PRODUCTIONS INC: $6,000 · Public Benefit
Other$878,745Arts & Culture$340,902Community Improvement$90,395Education$21,500Public Benefit$12,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetTrusting News Inc: $191,768 over 1y, 32% of budgetPIEDMONT JOURNALISM FOUNDATION: $74,895 over 2y, 12% of budgetNATIONAL TRUST FOR LOCAL NEWS: $25,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCHARLOTTESVILLE TOMORROW: $15,500 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetACCION LATINA: $11,000 over 1y, 2.0% of budgetVOICE NEWS NETWORK: $11,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetISTHMUS COMMUNITY MEDIA INC: $10,000 over 1y, 9.9% of budgetIndependent Arts & Media: $10,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetUNIVERSITY RADIO FOUNDATION INC: $9,984 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetNEVADA NEWS BUREAU INC: $8,500 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetENLACE LATINO NC INC: $8,500 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetTHE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE INC: $8,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCITYSIDE JOURNALISM INITIATIVE: $8,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetMISSISSIPPI JOURNALISM AND EDUCATION GROUP: $8,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetNEW HAMPSHIRE PUBLIC RADIO INC: $7,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPUBLICSOURCE: $7,200 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetOklahoma State University Foundation: $7,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBEACON MEDIA INC: $7,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetOHIO LOCAL INFORMATIONAL INTIATIVE INC: $6,950 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCITY LIMITS NEWS INC: $6,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetRADIO AMBULANTE STUDIOS INC: $6,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetScalawag: $6,000 over 1y, 1.3% of budgetCARDINAL PRODUCTIONS INC: $6,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetTHE RED HOOK DAILY CATCH INC: $6,000 over 1y, 3.2% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

  • Who funds Trusting News Inc ↗
  • Who funds PIEDMONT JOURNALISM FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds NATIONAL TRUST FOR LOCAL NEWS ↗
  • Who funds CHARLOTTESVILLE TOMORROW ↗
  • Who funds ACCION LATINA ↗
  • Who funds VOICE NEWS NETWORK ↗
  • Who funds KALW PUBLIC MEDIA INC ↗
  • Who funds ISTHMUS COMMUNITY MEDIA INC ↗
  • Who funds Independent Arts & Media ↗
  • Who funds UNIVERSITY RADIO FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds NEVADA NEWS BUREAU INC ↗
  • Who funds ENLACE LATINO NC INC ↗
  • Who funds THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE INC ↗
  • Who funds CITYSIDE JOURNALISM INITIATIVE ↗
  • Who funds MISSISSIPPI JOURNALISM AND EDUCATION GROUP ↗
  • Who funds NEW HAMPSHIRE PUBLIC RADIO INC ↗
  • Who funds PUBLICSOURCE ↗

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

The Miami Foundation IncFL50.3× affinity27 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Miami Foundation Inc · Institute for Nonprofit News · Local Independent Online News Publishers Inc · The Lenfest Institute for Journalism Special Asset Fund of Tpf · The Groundtruth Project Inc · Solutions Journalism Network Inc · American Journalism Project Inc · Pro Publica Inc · Alternative Newsweekly Foundation · John D and Catherine T Macarthur Foundation · Local Media Association · The Ford Foundation

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization American Press Institute Inc funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from American Press Institute Inc. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 20%3%10%23%40%funder's share of their income ↑0%1%3%4%5%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    2get no government money at all
    4report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–5%
    typical government reliance, FY20–25
    How this is measured
    Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.

    On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 53 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

    How this is measured
    Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

    Generated from the IRS Form 990 e-file return for fiscal year 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

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