With strong donor support, former CNN host Campbell Brown created a nonprofit news site in 2015 focused on reporting and analysis about public-school reform. “Less than half of our students can read or do math at grade-level, yet the education debate is dominated by misinformation and political spin,” announced the Seventy Four, as the outlet calls itself in reference to the 74 million school-age children in the U.S. It promised to produce a stream of challenging fact-based journalism that would hold the education establishment accountable.
The publication launched with 13 employees, thanks to strong backing from Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Walton Family Foundation, Jonathan Sackler, and the Buck Foundation. Its website will not sell advertising, but instead rely entirely on philanthropic donations to fund operations. “Education is one of the most important issues facing this country—and it should be on the front page every day,” stated Marc Sternberg of Walton’s K-12 program, explaining his foundation’s support.
- Website, the74million.org