Hi Reader,
Every community, big and small, deserves answers and accountability. But since 2005, more than 3,200 local newspapers across the U.S. have vanished.* The ones that remain are often underfunded and overstretched — stripped of the resources needed to pursue the kind of in-depth, time-intensive investigations that hold power to account.
But ProPublica is helping, thanks to readers like you. As a nonprofit newsroom, we don’t depend on advertising or short-term investors. Our work is supported largely by donations from individuals, and over the past few years, we’ve grown significantly. For us, that growth comes with a responsibility: to help fill undeniable gaps in deep-dive journalism all over the country.
ProPublica has spent the past eight years refining our approach to local journalism. We’ve opened reporting hubs in the Midwest, South, Southwest, Northwest and Texas, in partnership with The Texas Tribune. We created the Local Reporting Network to empower underresourced outlets to pursue accountability reporting, underwriting local reporters’ salaries and providing them with key editorial resources through every step of the investigative process. And we’ve committed to support at least 10 new local projects a year through the end of 2029, launching investigations in all 50 states. We can’t fill all of the gaps created by the withering media landscape, but we are making a very real difference in small towns and regions across the country.
For example: In April, a Louisiana judge set aside the first-degree murder conviction and death sentence of Jimmie Chris Duncan, whose 1998 conviction for killing his girlfriend’s 23-month-old daughter was based in part on evidence that experts now say is junk science. The decision came after a Verite News and ProPublica investigation in March examined the questions surrounding Duncan’s conviction as Gov. Jeff Landry, a staunch death penalty advocate, made moves to expedite executions after a 15-year pause.
Alaska’s Supreme Court placed new limits on how long criminal cases can be postponed, following an investigation by ProPublica and the Anchorage Daily News that found some cases have taken as long as a decade to reach juries, potentially violating the rights of victims and defendants alike. The time to resolve Alaska’s most serious felony cases, such as murder and sexual assault, has nearly tripled over the past decade. Victims’ rights advocates had long complained that judges rubber-stamped delays, particularly in Anchorage, where about half of the cases impacted by the Supreme Court order are pending. Some cases dragged on so long that victims or witnesses had died in the meantime. The court’s order directs state judges to allow no more than 270 days of new delays for criminal cases filed in 2022 or before. Court system data shows that about 800 active cases fall into that category, making each one more than 800 days old and counting.
There are critical stories worth telling in communities across the U.S., and we need to continue investing in the infrastructure supporting this work. ProPublica can help fill the gap in local investigative reporting, catalyzing ambitious, community-driven journalism that sparks change. And we need your help, too. Help us strengthen the ability of investigative journalism to right wrongs in every corner of this country by making a donation of any amount right now.
As a reader of ProPublica, you know how important it is for journalists everywhere to have the freedom, resources and ability to pursue stories that shine a light on corruption, miscarriages of justice and other wrongdoing. We’re so grateful to our supporters for giving us the ability to make a difference where it’s most needed. I’m asking you to join us today with your donation of any amount and help power one of the largest teams of investigative journalists in the country.
Thanks so much,
Jill Shepherd
Proud ProPublican
