Our mission is to inform and engage Delawareans with local news and information about public policy, how it affects their daily lives, and how they can advance the change they want to see.
A Local Journalism Initiative project
Over the past 30 years, local newsrooms across the country have suffered severe cuts to staffing and coverage due to economic challenges.
This decline has resulted in a loss of vital coverage for many communities throughout America – especially in Delaware.
In 2019, former journalist and nonprofit executive Allison Taylor Levine founded the Local Journalism Initiative (LJI), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, to address those impacts. The LJI has sponsored a reporter internship program in Delaware to help cover underrepresented communities and organized the Delaware Journalism Collaborative, which brought together existing newsrooms around the state.
The LJI’s latest, and biggest project, is Spotlight Delaware, a nonprofit newsroom dedicated to investigative journalism that also serves underrepresented communities in innovative ways. We’re building the future of local news and ensuring that all Delaware communities have access to the stories that impact their daily lives and a voice in its decision-making.
Philanthropists, community organizations, journalists, policymakers, business leaders, and all who are passionate about helping Delaware thrive – we invite you to build with us.
Delaware’s Local News & Information Ecosystem Assessment
In 2022, Spotlight Delaware’s parent organization, the Local Journalism Initiative, commissioned a study of Delawareans’ feelings about the state’s media ecosystem.
The results showed that Delawareans want and need better access to local news and information throughout the state, particularly in Kent, Sussex and southern New Castle counties, and in communities of color statewide.
The findings of that study, and continued conversations facilitated through a continuous Community Listening Tour, form the foundation of Spotlight Delaware’s mission.
Take a look at the study linked below: