Introducing the 14 "Voices for Democracy Fund" Recipients

New Media Ventures’ Voices for Democracy Fund Provides Grants to Local, Mostly BIPOC Media Organizations Located in Key Battleground States

WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES, October 18, 2023 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Today New Media Ventures, the first national network of early stage investors supporting startups that create progressive political change, has announced the recipients of its Voices for Democracy (V4D) Fund – a pooled fund and open call to support trusted, community-centric media and messengers in states on the front lines of the battle for American democracy.

The Voices for Democracy Fund aims to identify innovative groups that are countering disinformation and serving their communities with culturally resonant messages and messengers in seven key states: Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Texas. Each organization received either a for-profit investment or an unrestricted grant and will continue working closely with New Media Ventures over the next year to get connected to fellow cohort members and NMV’s broader network, while also gaining assistance with additional fundraising, resources, and other forms of support.

The V4D recipients – 78% of which are BIPOC-led – were selected from a review of over 350 applications and interviews with dozens of candidates during the Fall of 2023. Additionally, New Media Ventures enlisted an Advisory Committee of over 20 journalists, media funders, leaders from its investment portfolio, and other experts in local media and democracy to help narrow down the applicant pool.

The 14 organizations represented in the V4D cohort are:

ARIZONA:
-Protect the Sacred
-Conecta Arizona

FLORIDA:
-Black Miami-Dade
-Miami Freedom Project

GEORGIA:
-Canopy Atlanta

NORTH CAROLINA:
-Refugee Community Partnership
-Triad City Beat
-Dirtroad Organizing

NEVADA:
-Make the Road Action Nevada

PENNSYLVANIA:
-Impacto

TEXAS:
-Trucha RGV
-OutSmart Magazine
-The Austin Common

MULTI-STATE:
-Backbone Digital Leaders

“Given the rampant disinformation and polarization across social media and even traditional news outlets, we believe that investing in trusted messengers at the local level is essential to protecting and expanding our democracy,” said New Media Ventures President Carlissia N. Graham. “However, we are looking far beyond just the next one or two election cycles. Our long-term goal is to build trust and participation in bottom-up democracy by investing in and scaling a national ecosystem of diverse, grassroots voices and outlets where access to good information is most in jeopardy.”

For the past 13 years, New Media Ventures has been a leading early-stage investor, mobilizing over $60M into companies and organizations that are building nationwide progressive power across three verticals: Media & Narrative, Elections & Civic Engagement, and Advocacy & Organizing. NMV has built a reputation as the go-to mission-aligned investor for progressive media founders, with a track record of early-stage media investments that both scale progressive power and build multi-racial narrative ownership. These investments have grown into widely recognized brands and pillars of the pro-democracy media movement including Hearken, Blavity, Pulso, Upworthy, The Juggernaut, PushBlack, Daily Kos, Prism, Indiegraf, and many more.

“If we don’t both understand this new media landscape and invest in pro-democracy messengers and outlets, there is a very real threat of losing key pillars of our democracy and our democratic institutions,” said Jessica Salinas, New Media Ventures’ Chief Investment Officer. “Now, more than ever, we see an urgent need for NMV’s expertise in vetting, funding, and supporting pro-democracy media and innovative approaches to reaching audiences.”

To learn more about the Voices for Democracy Fund, visit newmediaventures.org. Follow New Media Ventures on social media at @newmediaventure and subscribe to their newsletter for future news and updates on the Voices for Democracy Fund.

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Janet Dickerson
Human Impact Solutions
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