NewsMatch

Nonprofit newsrooms tell the stories about communities, issues, and solutions that might otherwise go untold. They empower each of us with trusted information to make decisions in our own best interest. Nonprofit news can’t survive without community support.

NewsMatch is a unique collaboration between newsrooms, funders, and news industry experts that is designed to strengthen the fundraising capabilities of nonprofit newsrooms and promote giving to journalism in the U.S.

Through NewsMatch, individual donations made to nonprofit newsrooms between November 1 and December 31 are matched by a coalition of national funders.

Since 2016, the campaign has helped raise over $100 million for nonprofit journalism, helping jumpstart small, emerging newsrooms, supporting newsrooms that serve or are led by underrepresented communities, and strengthening mission-based organizations.


How NewsMatch Works

Throughout the year, local and national foundations provide gifts to the Fund for Nonprofit News, hosted at The Miami Foundation. The fund then matches individual donations made to a select group of nonprofit newsrooms during the year-end NewsMatch campaign, up to a predetermined cap.

The newsrooms that receive matching funds are required to be active members of the Institute for Nonprofit News. We work with the News Revenue Hub to provide training resources and support in order to expand fundraising capacity and capabilities at participating news organizations.

The result of these activities is a surge of unrestricted financial support for independent, nonprofit news and fact-based reporting, new skills and tools for newsrooms to deepen their sustainability, and engagement with communities all over the country who care about quality news.

Foundations and donors who want a simple and powerful way to support local news and investigative journalism can learn more about the advantages of participating in NewsMatch here.


NewsMatch 2020

In 2020, more than 260 nonprofit newsrooms participated in the fifth annual NewsMatch fundraising campaign. To receive updates about the campaign and announcements of future activity, subscribe to INN's INNovation newsletter

NewsMatch 2020 is supported by Democracy Fund, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Facebook Journalism Project, the Bernard and Anne Spitzer Charitable Trust, the Inasmuch Foundation, the Independence Public Media Foundation, the Jonathan Logan Family Foundation, Natasha and Dirk Ziff, the Present Progressive Fund at Schwab Charitable, the S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation, the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation, and the Wyncote Foundation. Dozens of matches from local and issue-based funders are also secured by newsrooms themselves, increasing the pool of match funds during their year-end campaign.

Resources

To learn more, contact hello@newsmatch.org.

Make a donation to the next NewsMatch fund at newsmatch.org.


Program Impact

NewsMatch is transforming how nonprofit news is funded and sustained, leveraging philanthropic support to generate a swell of support from individuals around the country.

Since 2016, NewsMatch helped 200+ newsrooms across the country raise more than $100 million from hundreds of thousands of people — many of whom were first-time donors to nonprofit news.

In 2019, NewsMatch turned $3.7 million in philanthropic investments into $43.5 million in support for local news in just two months, a more than 1200% return on investment. This is in addition to hundreds of hours invested in developing training materials, coaching, and coaching in fundraising training and other capacity-building across hundreds of newsrooms.

*Robust data collection on giving to newsrooms did not begin until 2017.

*Matching Grants of up to $20,000 for participating newsrooms come from the Main NewsMatch Fund, which in 2019 was supported by Knight Foundation, Democracy Fund, Facebook Journalism Project, Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation, Jonathan Logan Family Foundation, Natasha and Dirk Ziff, Present Progressive Fund at Schwab Charitable, and Spitzer Charitable Trust.

*Partner Funds provide additional matching grants for newsrooms working in specific geographic regions or issue areas. 2019 Partner Funds: S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation (California), REI Co-Op (Local Environmental Reporting), Jonathan Logan Family Foundation (The American South), Wyncote Foundation (Philadelphia and New Jersey), Hewlett Foundation (Education), Rita Allen Foundation (Science), and Independence Public Media Foundation (Philadelphia).

*N/A indicates this program feature was not yet created.

*Local Matches are matching grants newsrooms secure from local foundations, major donors, or businesses.

*Goal-Based Bonus grants are issued to newsrooms for hitting specific metrics, like bringing in 100 new donors during the campaign.