What happened to the “racial reckoning” in journalism? We want to know too.
After the summer of 2020, a slew of journalism organizations committed to change in terms of how they cover historically underrepresented communities, as well as how they treated and hired staff from those same communities.
But their failures were not new. Despite holding themselves up as “objective” and “impartial” for generations, mainstream American newsrooms have almost always been defined by homogenous teams that fail to account for race, gender, class, disability, and sexuality.
We founded The Objective in June of 2020 as a volunteer collective of journalists concerned with that lack of spaces for diverse media criticism and newsroom accountability. We’ve come a long way since, but we’re still a small newsroom and we rely on donations to hold journalism institutions accountable and advocate for journalism that’s understanding of power dynamics and intersections of identity.
Donate to help us sustain our work. Your donation goes to paying our contributors equitably and ensuring we can continue to publish independent reporting and criticism.
The Objective is a fiscally sponsored project of and a member publication of the Institute for Nonprofit News. All donations are tax-deductible.
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Have a question? Check out our FAQ or contact us here.
What does The Objective do?
We publish reporting, criticism, and Q&As with the goal of building collective and narrative power for communities (and journalists) that have been misrepresented or dismissed in order to change the way journalism is practiced in the U.S.
To us this means two things:
- An expanding number of media reporters and critics, primarily from demographics historically marginalized by the journalism field, are visible to the journalism field. Beyond that, we want all journalists feel more comfortable offering public, fair, and well intentioned feedback to the newsrooms they work for and read.
- People historically marginalized, distorted, and misquoted have a forum to read about and express their own concerns about journalism’s production in the U.S.
Here’s what that looks like in practice:
Smart Brevity: Who suffers when information is oversimplified?
Meet our new Democracy Correspondents!
Q&A: Rebuild Local News
Who supports The Objective?
The Objective is supported by our readers, as well as charitable foundations and organizations. You can view a list of our founding supporters here.
Here are just a few of the organizations that have supported our work:
We maintain a public list of all donors that give more than $5,000 in a year and do not accept donations from political parties. If you would like to discuss a major gift, please contact us at [email protected]
Frequently Asked Questions
Will my contribution be considered a charitable donation for tax purposes?
The Objective is a fiscally sponsored project of the Institute for Nonprofit News, a 501(c) (3) charitable organization, EIN 27-2614911. deemed tax-deductible absent any limitations on deductibility applicable to a particular taxpayer.
Can I send you a check in the mail?
Yes! And please feel free to let us know if you do, so we can confirm with you when we receive it.
Donation Checks should be made out to INN (our fiscal sponsor) with “The Objective” listed on the memo line and mailed to:
Institute for Nonprofit News
8549 Wilshire Blvd #2294
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
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I already contribute. How do I cancel my subscription?
If you would like to cancel your monthly or yearly support, please log into the website here. Once logged in, click on the icon at the bottom right of the page and click “Subscriptions”, then select “Cancel” subscription. If you don’t know your password, you can reset your password here. Still having trouble? Get in touch by selecting “Customer Service” on our contact page.
I already contribute. How can I update my credit card?
If you would like to update your credit card information, please log into the website here. Once logged in, click on the icon at the bottom right of the page and click “Payment cards” and edit your credit card. If you don’t know your password, you can reset your password here. Still having trouble? Get in touch by selecting “Customer Service” on our contact page.
What if I have a different question?
Get in touch on our contact page.
The Objective is a nonprofit newsroom holding journalism accountable for past and current systemic biases in reporting and newsroom practices. We are written by and for those underrepresented in journalism.
