What is Mirror Indy?

Mirror Indy is the first newsroom of Free Press Indiana, is a new effort by a coalition of Indiana-based organizations and the American Journalism Project. The organization is on a mission to ensure all residents of Indiana have access to the local news and information they need.

Who is supporting Free Press Indiana and Mirror Indy?

Free Press Indiana and Mirror Indy are made possible by an unprecedented coalition of local organizations including the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust, Herbert Simon Family Foundation, Myrta Pulliam, Lumina Foundation, Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation, John Mutz, Ferguson Fuson Family Fund, Michael Arnolt, the Robert R. and Gayle T. Meyer Family Fund, Gene D’Adamo, Joyce Foundation, the Indianapolis Foundation, an affiliate of the Central Indiana Community Foundation, and the American Journalism Project, which is providing incubation support to build and launch the organization and its network of newsrooms. 

Mirror Indy and Free Press Indiana will continue to rely on support from neighborhood and community members who know from experience where the information needs are the greatest. It will continue the work that sparked this project, through conversations and listening to what people say they want.

How did Free Press Indiana get started?

In 2021, a steering committee that included local journalism, community and business leaders Tamara Winfrey-Harris, president of the Women’s Fund of Central Indiana, Mark Miles, chief executive officer of Penske Entertainment Corp., Rafael Sanchez, chief impact officer at Old National Bank, Myrta Pulliam, journalist and community leader, Kevin Corcoran, veteran Indiana journalist and strategy director at Lumina Foundation, and Karen Ferguson Fuson, former publisher of the Indianapolis Star, worked with the American Journalism Project (AJP) to conduct a comprehensive statewide research study. 

AJP worked with a team of 27 community ambassadors to get input from over 1,000 Hoosiers across 79 counties, representing a wide range of experiences and backgrounds across the state. Residents noted decreases in information focused on local issues, said they felt their perspectives weren’t represented in the media, and that they wanted more information they could use immediately in their daily lives.

After seeing the outcomes of the study, a coalition of organizations decided there was a need for a new news organization that was big enough to add a large amount of original, local reporting and information, in a way that is relevant and accessible to residents, and that  supports the local media ecosystem, as well as the people who are working to serve their communities every day.

How can I get involved in Free Press Indiana and support Mirror Indy?

The initiative is just getting started, but there are already many ways to get involved! You can share your perspective on what you’d like to see covered, by taking this survey. You can also help by spreading the word and getting talented nonprofit and journalism leaders to apply for open roles on the founding team. We’ll be sharing updates along the way, so share your e-mail with us if you’d like to hear about the initiative occasionally. And if you feel your region of Indiana is ready to join the network and build a movement for local news as well, reach out to us at partnerships@freepressindiana.org.

What’s next for Free Press Indiana and Mirror Indy?

Free Press Indiana has three core areas of focus that we’ll be working on as we get started: 

• Fill gaps by creating new, independent newsrooms with innovative community journalism programs;
• Facilitate investment in partner news organizations to strengthen their news and their impact;
• Foster collaboration with a growing list of local news partners to amplify quality, independent journalism for all Hoosiers, especially underserved communities.