Dear Reader,
As I was preparing this letter to you, one of our reporters forwarded me an email from a person who had just read her story that morning. The note was from a Pittsburgh therapist who had been denied the ability to accept Medicaid and, therefore, has had to turn several patients away. “I just wanted to thank you for bringing light to this mess,” the therapist wrote.
The story we published didn’t get this therapist her Medicaid credentials, but it had an impact. She felt represented. She felt she wasn’t alone in this problem. I think we all know after this last year-plus how important community can be, whether it’s formed around celebration or around a problem that must be addressed.
Impact can be measured in many ways. It can be seen in laws being changed or people getting indicted. It can also materialize in softer ways, like a mind opening or a conversation deepening.
We, at PublicSource, consider the potential outcomes of everything we do. It’s part and parcel of being a team of journalists who prioritize public service. We aim to build empathy, hope and understanding. We also inject accountability into each situation we encounter.
We’re aware that we only see the tip of the impact iceberg our journalism catalyzes, yet here are some more recent examples:
- After PublicSource was the first to make complaint data on Pittsburgh officers public, residents took to City Council meetings to ask informed questions. Following the first-of-its-kind release, police command staff said the bureau plans to regularly make the complaint and discipline data public.
- Our series on facial recognition technology led to a new city law prohibiting its use by police late last year, and as we continued to investigate, we learned it still hadn’t stopped some in the bureau. Our inquiries led to an internal investigation.
- The Allegheny County Jail Oversight Board has used PublicSource reporting to demand details from jail leadership on medical care and use of restraints. People who are or were incarcerated found an outlet for their experiences, and at least one we spoke to was offered a new connection to social services.
- After our stories on evictions, tenant-landlord relationships and criticism of aid systems, state and county leaders improved rent relief distribution and local judges began steering troubled renters to aid programs.
- Our faith and religion reporting documented the significant history of Pittsburgh’s oldest Black congregation and, in doing so, helped to forge connections among faith leaders doing anti-racist work in the region.
- Exploring how a year of virtual learning has affected Pittsburgh youth was no small task; it was emotional territory for families who worry about consequences for their children. “There hasn’t been a day without challenges,” one mother said. The Screen Test project focused on lessons arising out of the challenge and led several students and teachers to share coping mechanisms.
- Several voters let us know that our reporting on the mayoral candidates’ views on policing and the environment, along with an in-depth story on Pittsburgh Public Schools’ board candidates, helped prepare them for the polls in May.
- In a project launched one year after George Floyd’s murder, we checked to see if area colleges and universities kept their promises to address racial inequities and told the stories of students and faculty. One source wrote in: “Thank you for shedding light on the Black student experience in higher ed!”
Now you see how different impacts can be. We care about it all, from the little changes to the big ones. And you can make a difference, too. Any donation, big or small, helps PublicSource produce meaningful journalism, and until June 30, every gift is matched, dollar for dollar. Please consider supporting us today.
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Thank you.
Halle Stockton
Managing Editor
PublicSource
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