American Journalism Project supports three news outlets

NEW YORK — The American Journalism Project said Thursday that it was awarding $2 million in grants to three nonprofit newsrooms, including one based in New York City that targets the immigrant community.

The site Documented, founded in 2018 by Mazin Sidahmed and Max Siegelbaum, will use the grant to expand newsgathering for Spanish-speaking immigrants. Documented has been praised for innovations in reaching readers, including through Semanal, a Spanish-language newsletter delivered through WhatsApp.

The venture philanthropy fund, begun by the founders of Texas Tribune and Chalkbeat, is also giving grants to the Montana Free Press in Helena, Montana, and the Beacon in Kansas City, Missouri.

The Free Press was founded in 2016 by former Great Falls Tribune capital bureau chief John Adams, whose reporting was featured in the documentary “Dark Money.” The organization hopes to use it to expand operations across the state.

The Beacon covers Kansas and Missouri, and was founded this year by Kelsey Ryan, a former investigative reporter for the Kansas City Star.

The project also provided startup money to the West Virginia-based Mountain State Spotlight and to Capital B, which will attempt to reach the Black community with its reporting.

“These pioneering news organizations give us a sense of optimism for the future of nonprofit local news,” American Journalism Project CEO Sarabeth Berman said.