Journalist Jaeah Lee spent 17 months with the mother of a man killed by police in a fusillade of more than 40 shots after he allegedly refused to drop a knife. Ms. Lee documented the mother’s quest for answers, her efforts to educate herself about police shootings, and the emotional toll of her son’s death.
It’s the kind of reporting that many traditional media outlets with shrinking budgets can no longer afford. And it’s not easy for freelance journalists, either, whose work often comes with long hours, no benefits, and an uncertain income stream.
But Ms. Lee and another freelance reporter got a big boost of recognition — and $100,000 each — when they were named the first winners of a Heising-Simons Foundation prize for telling the stories of people often overlooked or neglected by the news media.
The work of the other winner, Valeria Fernández, included a deeply reported investigation into how a new immigrant struggled with mental-health issues.
Brian Eule, who oversees journalism grant making at the foundation, said the Heising-Simons American Mosaic Journalism Prize rewards freelancers who provide valuable, deeply reported stories that staff writers at news outlets often can’t devote enough time to complete.
“These journalists often don’t know where their next paycheck is going to come from,” he said. “It’s a risk to go out there and do this kind of reporting. It takes courage.”
Track Record of Media Support
The foundation, which awarded more than $75 million in grants last year, was founded by computer-chip innovator Mark Heising and his wife, Liz Simons, who founded Stretch to Kindergarten, an early-childhood education nonprofit. The couple have signed the Giving Pledge, a commitment made by 173 superrich individuals and couples to give most of their wealth away during their lifetimes.
Heising-Simons devotes its grant making to climate change, education, scientific research, human rights, and local community support.
While the Mosaic prize is its first foray into a separate journalism funding stream, the foundation has supported a number of media nonprofits connected with its established program areas and through funds earmarked for “emerging opportunities.”
Last year, for instance, it gave $100,000 each to the Marshall Project, which reports on criminal justice, and Futuro Media Group, which produces Latino USA, an English-language radio program.
Wobbly Industry
Foundation support of the media is necessary given the precarious financial state of the news industry, Mr. Eule said.
Other foundations have poured support into journalism projects, often providing cash to established news organizations, reporting projects, and academic centers.
This week, for example, four donors introduced a $650,000 Community Listening and Engagement Fund. The pooled money, provided by the Democracy Fund, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Lenfest Institute for Journalism, and the News Integrity Initiative, is designed to help reporters and editors engage in “public-powered journalism” by better listening to the attitudes of their readers, listeners, or viewers.
And the MacArthur Foundation in 2016 made a five-year, $25 million commitment to journalism and will make grants to the Global Press Institute, National Public Radio, the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, and other news organizations.
Ms. Fernández and Ms. Lee were among 50 reporters considered for the prize. To choose the winners, the foundation turned to a panel of 10 judges, including print, digital, and broadcast journalists as well as journalism professors.
Neither winner is under any obligation to produce additional work related to the prize.
“We don’t want to tie the hands of these reporters,” Mr. Eule said. We want to recognize them, empower them, and give them freedom.”
