Philanthropy has long been critical in sustaining public interest media through the various stages of landscape shifts. Now as the country faces unprecedented polarization, rampant disinformation, and the overall erosion of trust in media, philanthropy must again shift – this time, to target investment in sustainable, scalable media companies and organizations.
Across the board, media in the public interest is losing critical ground on emerging social platforms. Meanwhile, an insidious media infrastructure rooted in disinformation is gaining traction on emerging platforms such as TikTok, Twitch, and Discord. These efforts are building massive audiences while also misleading them with completely evidence-free narratives.
The pathway is clear and the time is now – in order to protect democracy, we need a decentralized, innovative media ecosystem able to meet targeted audiences where they are and with messengers they trust at the local, state, and national level. This path requires investment and acquisition of digital media properties, accounts, and networks with strong cultural/identity audience relationships, solid revenue streams, and potential for growth, profitability, and impact.
These properties exist and philanthropic capital can play a major role in sourcing, seeding, and growing them to impact.
Join experts from industry leaders New Media Ventures and Accelerate Change for a discussion around how the media landscape is shifting, why philanthropic investment is necessary, and opportunities for collaboration.
During this briefing, attendees will:
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- Learn about innovative media opportunities ripe for investment and acquisition
- Gain insight into how New Media Ventures and Accelerate Change evaluate for-profit media investments vs nonprofit media with examples of impact
- Hear how Accelerate Change is expanding its nonprofit media lab to pursue acquisitions of culturally-resonant digital properties
- Get a first look at New Media Venture’s state-based media fund, an initiative designed to empower a more representative democracy
Speakers:
- Carlissia Graham, President, New Media Ventures
- Peter Murray, President, Accelerate Change
- Phillip Sanders – Partner, New Media Ventures
- Darrell Scott, VP of Media Investments & Acquisition, Accelerate Change