Center for Cooperative Media

Center for Cooperative Media The mission of the Center for Cooperative Media is to grow and strengthen local journalism and, in do The Center receives core support from the Geraldine R.

The mission of the Center for Cooperative Media is to grow and strengthen local journalism and support an informed society in New Jersey and beyond. The Center was founded in 2012 in response to the downsizing of New Jersey news organizations and the changes in the ownership of regional public media. These shifts in the news and information landscape hurt the volume of local news available in a st

ate that has historically had limited news coverage, due to its proximity to the major metropolitan areas of New York City and Philadelphia. With 565 municipalities packed into a densely populated state, New Jersey was—and is—ripe for innovation in local journalism. The Center coordinates statewide and regional reporting, connecting more than 280 local news and information providers through its flagship project, the NJ News Commons. The Commons helps partners to share content and encourages them to collaborate and to support one another. The Center also conducts and publishes research on emerging ideas and best practices, focusing on local journalism, business models, and ecosystem mapping. The Center convenes national programs, including an annual national summit for journalism organizations to foster the conditions, ideas, and practices that lead to stronger collaborative journalism across the U.S. The Center’s annual reports offer a detailed history of programs and impact. The Center is a grant-funded program within the School of Communication and Media at Montclair State University. Funding from the University supports the director’s salary and benefits, office space for the Center and its staff, and infrastructure support and shared services such as IT, development, marketing, and administrative assistance. Dodge Foundation, the Democracy Fund and the Abrams Foundation, as well as project support from many other grantmaking sources and sponsors.

New Jersey is terrible when it comes to local journalism coverage, with only 5.1 journalists per 100,000 residents compa...
07/10/2025

New Jersey is terrible when it comes to local journalism coverage, with only 5.1 journalists per 100,000 residents compared to the national average of 8.97. This devastating shortage leaves entire communities without adequate local news coverage, creating journalism deserts that threaten democratic accountability for 9.5 million residents.

The crisis stems from three critical factors: New Jersey's position between major media markets that siphon away resources, massive layoffs by dominant newspaper chains like Gannett that gutted local newsrooms, and reliance on part-time startup outlets that cannot match full-time reporting capacity.

Organizations like the NJ Civic Information Consortium and the Center for Cooperative Media are fighting back with targeted funding, training programs, and innovative support systems. The Consortium has already provided grants to news outlets in 18 of the state's 21 counties and serves as a local chapter of Press Forward, which has raised over $500 million for local news nationally.

While these efforts represent progress, the scale of the crisis demands sustained investment and commitment to ensure every New Jersey community has access to the local journalism essential for informed civic participation and holding power accountable.

Read the full report: https://muckrack.com/research/local-journalist-index

NJ’s geographic position and number of start-ups contribute to the low reporter count

Big news for NJ newsrooms 📢The GNI State Sustainability Accelerator is coming to New Jersey!Led by the Google News Initi...
07/09/2025

Big news for NJ newsrooms 📢

The GNI State Sustainability Accelerator is coming to New Jersey!

Led by the Google News Initiative and Blue Engine Collaborative, this comprehesive program is designed to help local news organizations build stronger foundations for long-term success.

All size NJ newsrooms are encouraged to apply!

Applications are due July 21, 2025.

Learn more & apply through link in story!

The GNI State Sustainability Accelerator for New Jersey is a comprehensive year-long program designed to strengthen loca...
07/09/2025

The GNI State Sustainability Accelerator for New Jersey is a comprehensive year-long program designed to strengthen local news organizations. Running from Summer 2025 to Spring 2026, this intensive initiative provides personalized coaching, expert audits, and peer collaboration to help newsrooms achieve meaningful gains in audience growth and revenue diversification.

The program focuses on four key pillars: audience growth and engagement, revenue diversification, product and technology optimization, and people and processes. Participating teams receive dedicated support through monthly one-on-one coaching calls, nine virtual cohort sessions, custom strategy audits, hands-on workshops, and progress tracking tools.

New Jersey news organizations of all sizes and structures can apply—whether legacy or startup, nonprofit or for-profit—as long as they serve local communities with original journalism and demonstrate commitment to long-term sustainability. Applications are due Monday, July 21, 2025, at 5:00pm ET.

This partnership between the Center for Cooperative Media, Google News Initiative, the NJ Civic Information Consortium, and Blue Engine Collaborative offers local newsrooms a valuable opportunity to strengthen their operations and secure their future in an evolving media landscape.

Applications are due July 21! Dedicated coaching, expert audits, and peer collaboration to help local publishers build sustainable organizations.

🌱 Apply for the sustainability accelerator for New Jersey newsroomsDedicated coaching, expert audits, and peer collabora...
07/09/2025

🌱 Apply for the sustainability accelerator for New Jersey newsrooms

Dedicated coaching, expert audits, and peer collaboration to help local publishers build sustainable organizations. Applications are due July 21!

Applications are due July 21! Dedicated coaching, expert audits, and peer collaboration to help local publishers build sustainable organizations.

We're launching a statewide content-sharing and advertising network for New Jersey news organizations later this year in...
07/08/2025

We're launching a statewide content-sharing and advertising network for New Jersey news organizations later this year in partnership with NJ Spotlight News. Thanks to support from the Google News Initiative, this project will serve approximately 40 local journalism outlets by establishing systems to share content efficiently and generate revenue through coordinated advertising efforts.

The initiative addresses two critical needs consistently identified by NJ News Commons members: advertising assistance and content-sharing support. These priorities have emerged as essential for sustaining local journalism in today's challenging media landscape.

The Center seeks contractors to operate the advertising network and staff to manage content sharing, with proposals due July 25, 2025. This infrastructure project builds on previous efforts and represents a significant investment in New Jersey's local news ecosystem.

News organizations can sign up for information sessions to learn about joining either network. The Center welcomes additional funding partners to expand this support system for local journalism sustainability and audience growth across the state.

The Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University was launched in 2012 to support a news ecosystem that was contracting. Our…

🤝 NJ News Commons, NJ Spotlight News to launch content-sharing and advertising networkPeople want advertising help, and ...
07/08/2025

🤝 NJ News Commons, NJ Spotlight News to launch content-sharing and advertising network

People want advertising help, and they want an easier way to share and access content across the network.

People want advertising help, and they want an easier way to share and access content across the network.

The New Jersey Civic Information Consortium just announced more than $1 million in renewal grants to 12 news organizatio...
07/07/2025

The New Jersey Civic Information Consortium just announced more than $1 million in renewal grants to 12 news organizations. These grants power youth journalism programs, multilingual reporting for immigrant communities, accountability journalism in Trenton, and environmental coverage through universities.

The funding follows a major win for local news when New Jersey lawmakers and Governor Phil Murphy approved $2.5 million for the Consortium in the state budget. This investment brings total grantmaking to more than $10 million since the Consortium's 2021 launch.

This investment brings the Consortium’s total grantmaking to more than $10 million since launching in 2021.

Address

1 Normal Avenue
Montclair, NJ
07043

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

(973) 655-3879

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