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Steven Waldman

Rebuild Local News & Report for America

Steven Waldman is a prominent journalist and media executive, currently serving as the CEO and Founder of Rebuild Local News, a nonprofit organization dedicated to revitalizing local journalism and strengthening democracy. He co-founded Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms across the United States to cover underreported issues.

Career Highlights

  • Rebuild Local News: Founded in January 2023, this organization focuses on creating policies that support a vibrant local press. It represents over 3,000 local newsrooms and advocates for diverse, community-oriented journalism.12
  • Report for America: Waldman co-founded this initiative in August 2017, which has successfully placed hundreds of journalists in newsrooms to address local issues.24
  • Journalism Background: He has extensive experience as a journalist, having worked for notable publications such as Newsweek, U.S. News & World Report, and Washington Monthly. His early career included covering national politics and social issues.13

Notable Achievements

  • Beliefnet: In 1998, Waldman founded Beliefnet.com, a multifaith website that became one of the largest in its category. He served as both CEO and Editor-in-Chief until its acquisition by News Corp in 2007.24
  • Publications: Waldman authored significant reports for the Federal Communications Commission on the information needs of communities and has written several books, including "Founding Faith" and "The Bill" .24

Advocacy

Waldman is a vocal advocate for the importance of local news in fostering community engagement and democracy. He emphasizes that without robust local journalism, communities face increased polarization and misinformation.35

Highlights

Aug 30 · linkedin

New report from Rebuild Local News's Lori Henson: "Federal Government Advertising Spending Has Doubled to $1.8 billion since 2018." Let's require the gov't to disclose where the spending goes, and push more of it to community news outlets. We're also releasing model bills for state legislatures to require more disclosure. This is money they're spending already so if more could go to local media instead of national or social, that could be a big boost. https://lnkd.in/e_t9KF2i

Jul 8 · linkedin

“The national League of Women Voters today overwhelmingly approved a Washington state position advocating for support for local news providers. The decision enables League of Women Voters members nationwide to lobby for legislation that would help local news organizations survive.”

The local news crisis is not mostly about harms to journalists – it’s about the erosion of the civic health of communities. To have 1 of the preeminent nonpartisan civic groups in American history take the lead on this cause is important news. Thank you WA league

Related Questions

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Steven Waldman
Steven Waldman, photo 1
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Location

New York, New York, United States