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We make grants to help transform journalism and communities.

MEDIA INNOVATION INITIATIVES
Media
 Media Innovation Contest:

Innovators worldwide compete with digital ideas.

USA
 National Media Policy:

A high-level commission explores society’s information needs.

Knight Center of Digital Excellence
 Digital Access for All:

Pro-bono consultants help communities create universal access.

 Local Information Experiments:

Community foundations join Knight in a matching challenge.

A strategy of experimentation is at the core of the media innovation initiatives above. Read more.

Now at Knight


Applications for the News Challenge are open until November 1, 2008.

Worldwide Contest Reopens With $5 Million for Digital Media Experiments

Knight Foundation has launched the third year of the Knight News Challenge, a contest awarding as much as $5 million for innovative ideas using digital experiments to transform community news and information exchange. The deadline for applications is Nov. 1, 2008. Apply Now

 

Message from the President

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Progress Report 2007-08



Managing Change Through Experimentation, Innovation

With an essay and four video stories, our new progress report describes our continuing transformation into a 21st-century organization. Three years ago we introduced the concept of transformation. We continue to refine the concept, welcoming experimentation and innovation as a way to manage change. Read it online now.

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News Challenge Screener Training Day (Yesterday at 12:35 PM)
Part of the yearly News Challenge contest (the $5 million Knight initiative to fund digitally innovative ideas in local news delivery) is to train the esteemed panel of screeners, who will vet applications for the contest. This year, leading digital innovation thinkers such as Chris Messina, Debbie (Mobile) Jones, Jay Dedman, Ryanne Hodson, Brian Oberkirch, [...] (Sat, 06 Sep 2008 12:35:02 +0000)More...
Video of Palin on Paul, Party Machinery, and Natural Resources (Thursday at 6:24 PM)
One of the News Challenge projects (the Knight contest that funds $5 million a year in innovative digital news delivery ideas) is the MTV News Street Team, where young journalists publish mobile phone video about the 2008 presidential election cycle. Ian Rowe, vice president of Strategic Partnerships and Public Affairs for MTV, recently [...] (Thu, 04 Sep 2008 18:24:09 +0000)More...
News Challenge Mentors and First Meetup in NYC Announced (Tuesday at 6:08 PM)
Today, the Knight News Challenge, a $5 million annual contest funding innovative digital ideas for local news delivery, begins officially accepting applications. You can apply here. If you would like to work through your idea before applying and have expert mentors help, the News Challenge Garage is a new site dedicated to improving your idea [...] (Tue, 02 Sep 2008 18:08:05 +0000)More...
Mario Garcia and Everyblock (Fri., August 29, 2:07 PM)
Spurred by recent comments on our July 31st Knight Blog entry about his work, Mario Garcia posted on the Garcia Media blog yesterday asking readers what they think about four organizations Knight Blog commenter Robert Ivan cited as innovative: - Rob Curley and The Las Vegas Sun - Adrian Holovaty and Everyblock - Alan Taylor and The [...] (Fri, 29 Aug 2008 14:07:16 +0000)More...
International Journalists' Network Web Site Relaunches (Fri., August 29, 11:57 AM)
On Wednesday, the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) Web site, ijnet.org, relaunched with new tools for their global group of journalists. Site users are now able to set up a profile and use tools in Arabic, English, Persian, Portuguese, and Spanish. Knight sponsors ICFJ and funds the Knight International Journalism Fellowships; you can apply here [...] (Fri, 29 Aug 2008 11:57:34 +0000)More...
Spot.Us and Crowdfunding in the NYTimes (Sun., August 24, 11:31 AM)
The New York Times writes about Knight News Challenge (the ~$5 million yearly contest to fund innovative news delivery ideas) winner David Cohn’s Spot.Us project today: “Spot Us would give a new sense of editorial power to the public,” said David Cohn, a 26-year-old Web journalist who received a $340,000, two-year grant from the Knight [...] (Sun, 24 Aug 2008 11:31:04 +0000)More...
Milledgeville Municipal WiMax Network (Fri., August 22, 7:07 PM)
The Milledgeville Union-Recorder ran a story yesterday about the new Milledgeville Municipal WiMax Network, part of a universal access initiative at Knight Foundation. Milledgeville Program Director Beverly Blake made clear Knight’s commitment to connect individuals in physical communities through this initiative: “The Knight Foundation does not come into a community, say we have this great [...] (Fri, 22 Aug 2008 19:07:38 +0000)More...