Modesto Bee receives grant for new reporter to cover economic development
For the second consecutive year, The Modesto Bee has been awarded a grant from Report for America, which will help fund a full-time reporter in the newsroom to cover economic development in Stanislaus County.
The new reporting position comes at a critical time in the area as city and county leaders look for ways to attract new business and industry. As the Bay Area gets squeezed on land and housing, a focus on potential for growth in the Northern San Joaquin Valley — and its impact on employment, transportation, education, the environment, healthcare and land-use — grows more vital.
The grant announced Monday comes from Report for America, a collaborative partnership between nonprofit media outlet the GroundTruth Project, Google News Lab and other foundations. The initiative helps place reporters at newsrooms across the country, funding up to half of their annual salaries. The rest is paid for by the hosting news outlet and local donors.
The Bee secured a similar grant earlier this year through Report for America to partially fund a reporter covering children’s health.
That position began this summer with the hiring of ChrisAnna Mink, who now will be extended for a second year, as announced Monday by Report for America.
Half of Mink’s salary is funded by Report for America, while the other half is supported generously by the Stanislaus County Office of Education and the Stanislaus Community Foundation. Their commitment lasts through May 2021.
“It’s a critical time in our industry as we look to a new business model that can support local news,” said The Bee’s editor, Brian Clark. “Our city and county leaders also are facing an important time. Their decisions are going to have a big impact on our future, and we as a news organization have to be there every step of the way.
“Our partnership with Report for America will go a long way toward making that happen. The program has been great for us and our readers.”
Applications for the new economic development reporter at The Bee are now open on the Report for America website. Candidates will be interviewed by The Bee early next year.
The Report for America initiative is relatively new. The first group of reporters sponsored entered their respective news outlets in 2018. For the 2019 cohort, Report for America placed 60 reporters in newsrooms across 28 states and Puerto Rico.
In a blog post published last year, Report for America co-founder and President Steven Waldman said the initiative is “focused on plugging the gaps in ‘news deserts.’”
The Sacramento Bee and The Fresno Bee have also secured new grants from Report for America for the second year in a row. Their reporters will focus on their Latino communities.
The Sacramento Bee’as Alexandra Yoon-Hendricks contributed to this report.