Community is our great unifier. It transcends political trends, thriving on what we have in common rather than accentuating our differences. Community helps us build trust. That’s the foundation of the nonprofit Comma Community Journalism Lab. Comma is committed to telling the stories that matter most to local readers.

The Spokane Spokesman-Review will be owned and operated by a local 501(c)(3) nonprofit, building a “hybrid” funding strategy different from most other news nonprofits . Comma is joining forces with nonprofit newsrooms, universities and public school districts across the region, while partnering with the Black Lens and reviving small-town weekly newspapers that readers have sorely missed.

Most local and national news nonprofits rely mostly on philanthropic dollars. The “hybrid” funding model Comma will adopt allows the paper to continue generating advertising revenue and income from subscriptions and complement them with nonprofit fundraising. Like other community papers, we’ve seen ad revenues decline, but they remain substantial. Having multiple funding streams is key to making community journalism in Spokane sustainable for the long run.

Comma builds on Spokane’s strong support for the Spokesman’s Northwest Passages Book Club and Community Forum, the foundation of the newspaper’s reader engagement and grants programs. Over the past eight years Northwest Passages has brought readers together to talk books and ideas with bestselling authors and thought leaders, including Jess Walter, Tara Westover, Craig Johnson, Stephanie Land, Luis Alberto Urrea, Sharma Shields and Eli Saslow. It has hosted a wide range of community conversations and civic forums. Northwest Passages has funded 30% of the newsroom’s payroll and its live journalism programs are a vital part of Comma’s future.

The best part is the Comma model can be replicated in other communities.

Comma's goal is to help local journalism survive and thrive.

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