MEDIA JUSTICE FUND

Purpose

The Appalachian Community Fund, as part of the Funding Exchange’s Media Justice Fund, seeks proposals for Media Justice Toolkits Grants and Community Media Collaboration Grants. These grants will support organizing efforts to reform media policies, establish community media infrastructure and promote accountability by corporate media.

What is a Media Justice Toolkit?

A media justice toolkit is comprised of materials in print, audio, video, digital, web-based or PowerPoint formats that provide language and understanding around media policy and advocacy. A toolkit can introduce social justice activists to the basic tools and resources that are necessary to change existing media policy as well as present ways in which community groups can use media to promote issues related to social justice.

What is a Community Media Collaborations?

Community Media Collaboration (CMC) grants support campaigns that change the structure of the media and a community’s right to use and be fairly represented within it. Specifically, the CMC supports projects that work within communities to increase community access to media; promote corporate media accountability, and/or to change the regulations that govern media. Projects must include substantive collaborations between media advocacy groups and community activists organizing for social justice. This grant is not intended for the creation of specific pieces of media unless these pieces are part of a larger community organizing effort.

To Apply

Please download and review the grant guidelines and application forms below. These Requests for Proposals (RFPs) describe this Media Justice Fund’s criteria and funding priorities, and give instructions on how to apply, prepare, and submit your application.

>> Media Justice Toolkit Grant Guidelines and Application Form

>> Community Media Collaboration Grant Guidelines and Application Form

General Eligibility

Media Justice-Media Toolkit and Community Media Collaboration grants are open to any organization working for media and/or social justice located within Central Appalachia: East Tennessee, Eastern Kentucky, Southwest Virginia and West Virginia.

Organizations must have a 501(c)(3) tax exempt status, or a 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor, in order to receive ACF funding.
The organization or project must be in Appalachian counties of Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, or West Virginia. If you are based outside the region, the proposal must include a specific work plan for the Appalachian portion of the work.
The organization or project must show evidence of working for social change through one or more of the following:

Organizing and action led by people working to control their own lives.
Educating communities about the root causes of oppression and injustice.
Eliminating barriers to full participation in society (i e. racism, sexism, classism, homophobia, ageism, able-ism, and exclusion from decision-making processes).
Focusing on efforts to change cultural, social, political, and economic systems and institutions that accommodate and perpetuate social injustice.
Creating and modeling democratic cultural, social, political and economic systems.
Connecting local issues with national and global concerns.
Networking, collaborating, and cooperating with other change agents working toward similar goals.

ACF Does Not Fund:

Profit-making organizations
Electoral lobbying for initiatives or public office
Individual efforts
Major capital projects
Social services organizations unless they demonstrate some analysis and strategies to challenge the systems that lead to the problem

Grant Amount

Organizations may apply for funding in one of two categories:

Media Justice Toolkits - at least $5,000 for one year
Community Media Collaborations – at least $5,000 for one year

Deadline

Media Justice Fund grant applications must be received by ACF or postmarked by January 15, 2008.

Questions?

Please review our grantmaking FAQ’s, definition of social change, and anti-racism FAQ’s as you prepare your grant application. If you have additional questions or need more information, please contact Gaye Evans at 865-523-5783 or gaye@appalachiancommunityfund.org