A group of philanthropists last year pledged to donate an eye-popping $20 million to support a nonprofit newsroom that will offer quality journalism to everyone in the Houston region, with no paywalls and no subscription fees.
Now that digital newsroom has a name, a website and a growing roster of journalists — including yours truly.
The name of this ambitious news operation is the Houston Landing, a nod to the Bayou City’s origins at Allen’s Landing in 1836 and NASA’s mission to the moon more than a century later. Our full website will launch later this spring, but you can visit the early version of the site to sign up for updates, search for job openings, get to know our growing team of award-winning journalists and read the types of stories we’re going to be digging into.
Longtime readers of this blog (hi, Mom!) know that I’ve always been a fan of newspapers. That hasn’t changed. I worked for three years at the Houston Chronicle and for more than two decades at its sister paper in San Antonio, the Express-News. I still believe if you don’t subscribe to your friendly neighborhood local newspaper, you’re simply missing out.
But I’m also a fan of good journalism wherever it exists. And these days, nonprofit newsrooms are emerging across the country to fill the void created by budget cuts and layoffs plaguing the media industry.
A not-so-new revenue model
Ever since the Texas Tribune announced it was hiring a team of veteran reporters in 2009 to launch a digital, nonprofit news operation, I’ve watched from afar, maybe a little enviously, as it tried new things and got people excited about the civic importance of journalism. So when the yet-to-be-named nonprofit newsroom in Houston hired my boss at the Chronicle to be its first editor in chief in August after a national job search, my interest piqued.
Mizanur Rahman was a longtime editor at the Chronicle, most recently leading the investigations team where I worked. He’s a thoughtful journalist who always made our stories better and he’s simply an incredible human being.
After he left the paper, Miz and I met at Campesino Coffee House and I thought we’d talk about all the things I should be doing as I desperately tried to fill his shoes as his temporary replacement on the I-Team. Instead, he told me about his vision for the nonprofit and asked whether I wanted to join him and help build something new as his second in command.
A focus on local news
We both agree the greater Houston area has no shortage of media outlets producing exceptional journalism. But Miz said there is a shortage of in-depth local news that’s accessible to everyone. You can read about our goals for the Landing and the problems we want to fix in his announcement letter to the community:
The American Journalism Project, which helps build nonprofit newsrooms, conducted surveys, interviews and focus groups with residents of Greater Houston. The message was clear: People do not feel they have access to the trustworthy, local and deeply reported stories they need for their daily lives.
We’re trying to fix that.
The Houston Landing will provide trusted reporting about local issues important to our region, stories that offer solutions to pressing problems and investigative journalism that keeps the powerful accountable.
I trust Miz and decided to join him as the Landing’s managing editor. Our full site will launch later this spring as we grow into one of the largest nonprofit newsrooms in the U.S. that’s devoted to local news. We hope to collaborate with other media outlets in the Houston area and share their top stories.
Meanwhile, you can check out our preliminary site and learn more about our founding team of award-winning journalists: investigative reporter Alex Stuckey; columnist Maggie Gordon; diverse communities reporter Monique Welch; and our photo editor, Marie D. De Jesús.
I hope you’ll join us on this journey. If you have any questions or ideas about our next moves, we’re listening. I’ve always believed journalism should be a two-way conversation. The Houston Landing is making good on that promise.
