Program Co-Director Claudio Martinez & Local Journalist Awarded Funding for News Outlet Serving Communities of Color
Claudio Martinez, a program co-director at BU School of Social Work (BUSSW), is teaming up with journalist Yawu Miller to develop a news outlet that fills a critical information gap for communities of color in the Greater Boston area. Their outlet will focus on community issues including politics, public policy, community development and race, as well as economic, social and criminal justice.
The pair is one of only four teams selected for the inaugural cohort of the American Journalism Project’s Local News Incubator, an initiative launched last year with support from the Google News Initiative. The incubator aims to kickstart news operations that directly address community needs and lower barriers to entry for prospective founders of news organizations.
As grant recipients, Martinez and Miller will receive $400,000 in funding and participate in an 18-month program that will help make their plans a reality, coaching them through research and assessment, editorial strategy, finance and operations, business development, and more. By the end of the 18 months, the team will be ready to launch their outlet.
Claudio Martinez is the co-director of BUSSW’s BRIDGE and MSW Pathway programs which help advance equity and accessibility in social work education by providing free master’s-level pre-admission support. In addition to his roles at the School of Social Work, Martinez is executive director of Zero Debt Massachusetts and founder and CEO of Tomorrow’s Equity Now which provides support services to nonprofit leadership teams.
Yawu Miller is the former senior editor of the Bay State Banner, New England’s longest running Black-owned newspaper, where he has been a writer since 1988.