For 5 years I've run a successful, sustained, local, factual, online news operation @eastlansinginfo. Yesterday I was told I'm ineligible for a Knight Foundation fellowship meant for "senior leadership of new journalism organizations and projects based in the Midwest." 1/2
@eastlansinginfo The reason I'm not eligible? Because journalism has not been my "primary" source of income for 6 years or more. I resigned my job at Northwestern in 2015, over censorship. So I'm ineligible for wallacehouse.umich.edu/knight-wallace… 2/n
@eastlansinginfo At @eastlansinginfo I've engaged 150 members of the community as reporters of high-quality news. I have personally reported over 1,000 articles including breaking some of the biggest stories in our city steadily for 5 years. My community loves us & supports us. 3/n
@eastlansinginfo My personal bylines include @nytimes @washingtonpost @WSJ @TheAtlantic @WIRED etc. My investigative historical work (who/what/when/where/why) on 3 major national controversies were all covered in @nytimes. But journalism hasn't been my primary source of income for 6+ years. 4/n
@eastlansinginfo @nytimes @washingtonpost @WSJ @TheAtlantic @WIRED Journalism hasn't been my primary source of income b/c journalism is economically crashing. I've done my work @eastlansinginfo as a volunteer, making money for myself via other writing/speaking, while fundraising about $350K to pay my staff at ELi. 5/n
@eastlansinginfo @nytimes @washingtonpost @WSJ @TheAtlantic @WIRED My volunteerism in the service of rescuing local journalism, in the service of my city, disqualifies me as a legit member of journalism by the fellowship rules. I'm not real in their eyes. I'm not a real local news publisher or real journalist. 6/n
@eastlansinginfo @nytimes @washingtonpost @WSJ @TheAtlantic @WIRED I would like to say this doesn't affect me. In fact, it's bringing on clinical depression as I think - "well, my would-be peers tell me I'm not real." I suppose I shouldn't have tried to join this tribe. 7/n
@eastlansinginfo @nytimes @washingtonpost @WSJ @TheAtlantic @WIRED I'm reminding myself of two things: Tom Giery's research into "boundary work" - what professions do to try to make themselves feel good by keeping "others" out. And how much I absolutely love my ELi team and our work. It has been phenomenal as an experience. 8/n
@eastlansinginfo @nytimes @washingtonpost @WSJ @TheAtlantic @WIRED I honestly believe the model I've set up could save local journalism for small cities around the world. The beauty is that it doesn't just produce news. It makes those involved (reporters, tipsters, donors) come to know why factual news is necessary. It can save journalism. 9/n
@eastlansinginfo @nytimes @washingtonpost @WSJ @TheAtlantic @WIRED But I seem to be perpetually seen as a werido and a threat to "professional" journalism, where I see myself as a wiling helper. I'm constantly asked to fill out industry surveys that judge not what we produce but how much money we bring in and use up. 10/n
@eastlansinginfo @nytimes @washingtonpost @WSJ @TheAtlantic @WIRED Here's where I'm supposed to say something about how they can't keep me down. In fact, they can and they do. So I'm going to go do the things I do to try to stop the descent of clinical depression. Be good to each other, please. 11/n
