Herald-Leader, CivicLex win Facebook grant to expand neighborhood-level journalism
A partnership between the Lexington Herald-Leader and CivicLex has been awarded a grant from the Facebook Journalism Project to host a series of community workshops and expand journalism that reaches more deeply into Lexington neighborhoods.
The $18,500 grant will help the partners launch the pilot project. CivicLex, a non-profit that works to build community engagement, and the Herald-Leader will host workshops in Lexington neighborhoods that focus on identifying under-covered community issues that merit more reporting.
The Lexington partnership was among 30 new recipients of Community Network grants announced Tuesday morning by the Facebook Journalism Project and the Lenfest Institute for Journalism. “News organizations will use these grants to support projects aimed at building community and new paths to sustainability in local news,” the announcement said.
“We’re thrilled to partner with CivicLex to expand the reach of community journalism deeper into Lexington neighborhoods,” said Peter Baniak, the Herald-Leader’s editor and general manager. “We believe this partnership is a great opportunity to build civic engagement and spark more solutions-focused journalism at the neighborhood, street and block level. This grant from the Facebook Journalism Project Community Network will kick-start that effort.”
“CivicLex is excited to be partnering with the Herald-Leader on this pilot project,” said Richard Young, executive director of CivicLex. “This initiative will tie in integrally with this year’s On the Table, which is focused on bringing light to neighborhood issues. Our partnership with the Herald-Leader will give us an opportunity to reach deeper into communities and talk about the issues that are directly impacting residents on a daily basis. We’re excited to get started.”
