The top problem facing public service journalism has been the same for over a decade: the collapse of outmoded business models and the search for a sustainable path. At first it seemed that as readers moved online and the news went digital, the ad dollars would follow. Now we see that the big digital platforms – Facebook and Google – are capturing most of that money, because they own the data that allows for better targeting. Clickbait, ad blocking, invasive tracking, and fake news only add to the misery – and all take their toll on reader trust.
So where is the sustainable path? It seems increasingly likely that readers who value a public service press are going to have to sustain it themselves – by contributing money, sharing knowledge, and spreading the word. A good term for this is membership. But membership won't work if it's just begging for cash. There has to be a social contract between journalists and members. Working out what that contract should say is the core challenge of the Membership Puzzle Project.
This is a public research project that runs from May 2017 through August 2021. We will publish our findings here throughout the year. Sign up for our newsletter to receive updates directly.
What does the project do?
The Membership Puzzle Project:
Studies the needs of news organizations and their members.
Collects what's already known about making membership work by seeking out the people who have deep experience with membership models (including members themselves).
Researches all the ways that community members can contribute, not just their money, but their knowledge and expertise.
Funds innovative membership models that are being tested at news sites as part of a global experiment to identify best practices for sustaining independent journalism in the 21st century.
Synthesizes the key membership lessons learned by journalism organizations around the world.
You can find coverage of our work on our media page.
Who are the founders?
The Membership Puzzle Project was founded by NYU professor Jay Rosen’s Studio 20 program and De Correspondent. In September 2020, the Membership Puzzle Project moved from NYU to the Media Development Investment Fund.
Professor Jay Rosen’s Studio 20 is a digital first graduate program (MA) at New York University with a focus on innovation and adapting journalism to the technology we use today. The curriculum emphasizes project-based learning. Students, faculty, and visiting talent work on editorial and web development projects together – such as the Membership Puzzle Project.
De Correspondent is a member-funded Dutch news organization. Members follow correspondents who have self-defined beats or obsessions, varying from climate change to the future of education. Correspondents bring readers into the journalism process by sharing what they are reporting on and involving their knowledge during their reporting.
The Media Development Investment Fund is a not-for-profit investment fund for independent media in countries where access to free and independent media is under threat. They provide affordable debt and equity financing supported by technical assistance to media companies that provide the news, information and debate that people need to build free, thriving societies. Jay Rosen remains the strategic director of Membership Puzzle Project at MDIF.
Who are the funders?
The Membership Puzzle Project is funded by Knight Foundation, Democracy Fund, and Luminate.
Knight Foundation is a national foundation with strong local roots. It invests in journalism, in the arts, and in the success of cities where brothers John S. and James L. Knight once published newspapers. The goal is to foster informed and engaged communities, which we believe are essential for a healthy democracy.
Democracy Fund is a bipartisan foundation that invests in organizations working to ensure our political system is able to withstand new challenges and deliver on its promise to the American people. Today, modern challenges – such as hyper partisanship, money in politics, and struggling media – threaten the health of American democracy. Democracy Fund invests in change makers who advocate for solutions that can bring lasting improvements to our political system and build bridges that help people come together to serve our nation.
Luminate is a global philanthropic organisation focused on empowering people and institutions to work together to build just and fair societies. It was established in 2018 by Pierre Omidyar, the founder of eBay. Luminate works with its investees and partners to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to participate in, and shape, the issues affecting their societies, and to make government, corporations, media, and those in positions of power more responsive and more accountable. Luminate does this by funding and supporting innovative and courageous organisations and entrepreneurs around the world, and by advocating for the policies and actions that will drive change across four impact areas: Civic Empowerment, Data & Digital Rights, Financial Transparency, and Independent Media. Luminate was previously the Governance & Citizen Engagement initiative at Omidyar Network and is now part of The Omidyar Group. To date it has supported 236 organisations in 18 countries with $314 million in funding.
Recently asked questions
In the past, people who use our work — or support that work — have had questions for us about the Membership Puzzle Project’s connection to decorrespondent.nl and to its English-language extension, The Correspondent. The Correspondent ceased publishing on Dec. 31, 2020.
What is the exact relationship between The Correspondent in Amsterdam and the Membership Puzzle Project in New York at NYU? The Correspondent is an institutional co-founder of the Project, along with @Studio20NYU, a graduate program at New York University focused on innovation in journalism, which Jay Rosen directs.
Who funds the Membership Puzzle Project? Knight Foundation and Democracy Fund are the original funders. In 2018, they were joined by Luminate, a third funder, who is now the sole funder for MPP’s Year 4 work at MDIF. De Correspondent provides no funding to MPP, and MPP doesn’t fund De Correspondent. NYU professor Jay Rosen is project director. He has what a professional newsroom would call editorial control.
Has anything about that relationship changed now that The Correspondent’s has ceased publishing? Yes. After three years of research, we have many more examples of member-driven and member-supported newsrooms. This is a growing field, into which The Correspondent fits as one (rocky) example. There are hundreds more. The explosion of interest in membership programs as one possible way to a sustainable path in journalism has given MPP more “customers” for its research (which is free and open source) and many more cases to examine.
Membership trials and membership errors have greatly expanded since De Correspondent launched in 2013. Today there is a whole ecosystem of sites learning from other sites, with projects like ours trying to keep track of it all and, when possible, assist. It’s an exciting time.
Membership as a sustainable path in journalism does not depend on the fortunes of any one company or campaign. It’s becoming a professional practice. MPP’s research is pitched to that practice, and to the wider ecosystem of membership tries.
How much of the research agenda is driven by De Correspondent? Zero. Jay Rosen as project director has complete editorial control of the Membership Puzzle Project, and our former research director, Emily Goligoski, previously set the research agenda, often informed by questions others in the industry bring to us.
Does De Correspondent suggest topics? No, but we sometimes collaborate in our research. De Correspondent remains an inspiring example of member-driven journalism, so we have studied them, as well as others. Many of the sites showing progress with membership have been inspired by what De Correspondent has been able to do in the Netherlands.
Public radio proved a long time ago that you could use a broadcast signal to sustain a membership that supported your local station. De Correspondent showed you could use the internet to sustain a membership that supports a newsroom of full-time correspondents working in partnership with members. That is how it inspired others.
What is the exact legal and contractual nature of the relationship between MPP and De Correspondent? There isn’t one. Just open consultations about what the other is doing, and some co-branding on the website.
Why do De Correspondent and Membership Puzzle Project’s aesthetics so closely resemble each other? Do they do your web design? MPP has contracted the Dutch design agency Momkai to design our digital and print assets. We pay them for this work. De Correspondent is also a Momkai client and they share a co-founder.
How can I be involved? We will need all the help we can get in documenting successful membership strategies. You can share your experiences in our comments section or by emailing us at ideas@membershippuzzle.org. If you have special expertise that would benefit this project, please let us know.
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