Pro Publica

Pro Publica is described in a New York Times article as a non-profit group dedicated to "a new kind of investigative journalism." According to the article, "Paul E. Steiger, who was the top editor of The Wall Street Journal for 16 years, and a pair of wealthy Californians are assembling a group of investigative journalists who will give away their work to media outlets. ...  Pro Publica is the creation of Herbert M. Sandler and Marion O. Sandler, the former chief executives of the Golden West Financial Corporation (www.goldenwestworld.com), based in California, which was one of the nation’s largest mortgage lenders and savings and loans. They have committed $10 million a year to the project, while various foundations have provided smaller amounts. Mr. Sandler will serve as chairman of the group, which will begin operations early next year."

Media scholar Robert Jensen writes in February 2008 that: "Pro Publica, an initiative launched last month in the United States to help revitalize investigative journalism, is a great idea trapped by the worst aspects of the best instincts in contemporary corporate commercial journalism. The project reminds us of important values at the core of the craft of journalism, but also exposes the common political confusions of mainstream journalists that so often undermine their best efforts."

Their mission statement notes that:


 * "ProPublica is an independent, non-profit newsroom that will produce investigative journalism in the public interest. Our work will focus exclusively on truly important stories, stories with “moral force.” We will do this by producing journalism that shines a light on exploitation of the weak by the strong and on the failures of those with power to vindicate the trust placed...

Board
Accessed April 2012:


 * Herbert Sandler - chair
 * Paul Steiger
 * Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
 * Gara LaMarche
 * Paul Sagan
 * Tom Unterman

Officers (2008)
Accessed February 2008:


 * Herbert Sandler - Chairman
 * Paul Steiger - Editor-in-Chief
 * Stephen Engelberg - Managing Editor
 * Richard Tofel - General Manager

Board (2008)

 * Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
 * Alberto Ibarguen
 * James A. Leach
 * Rebecca Rimel

Supporters
Accessed February 2008:


 * Sandler Foundation (www.sandlerfoundation.org)
 * The Atlantic Philanthropies
 * JEHT Foundation
 * John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
 * Cleary Gottlieb - pro bono commercial counsel

Advisory Board
Accessed April 2012:


 * Jill Abramson, executive editor, The New York Times
 * David Boardman, executive editor, The Seattle Times
 * Raymond T. Bonner, writer living in London
 * Robert A. Caro, historian and biographer of Robert Moses and Lyndon Johnson
 * John S. Carroll, former editor of the Los Angeles Times and the Baltimore Sun
 * L. Gordon Crovitz, former publisher of The Wall Street Journal, partner, Journalism Online
 * David Gergen, professor of public service, Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and director of its Center for Public Leadership
 * Shawn McIntosh, public editor, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
 * Ellen Miller, executive director, The Sunlight Foundation
 * Priscilla Painton, executive editor, non-fiction, Simon & Schuster
 * Allan Sloan, senior editor at large, Fortune magazine
 * Kerry Smith, senior vice president for editorial quality, ABC News
 * Cynthia A. Tucker, visiting professor, University of Georgia Journalism School

Business Advisory Council
 * Mark Colodny, Chair, Managing Director, Warburg Pincus LLC
 * Joanna Stone Herman, Vice Chair
 * Justin Blake, Managing Director, Edelman
 * Theodore J. Boutrous, Jr., Partner, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP
 * David Coulter, Managing Director, Warburg Pincus LLC
 * Sean Fieler, General Partner, Equinox Partners
 * Maria Gotsch, President & CEO, NYC Investment Fund
 * Dave Goldberg, CEO, SurveyMonkey
 * Jack Griffin, CEO, Empirical Strategic Advisors
 * Michael Hansen, CEO, Elsevier Health Sciences
 * Mellody Hobson, President, Ariel Investments
 * Lori E. Lesser, Partner, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP
 * Gary Mueller, CEO & Chairman, Institutional Investor
 * Reed Phillips III, Managing Partner, DeSilva+Phillips
 * William Pollak, Board Chair, Pro Bono Net
 * Andrew Prozes, Senior Advisor, Warburg Pincus LLC
 * Lawrence Rand, President and CEO, Kekst and Company
 * Davia Temin, President and CEO, Temin & Company
 * Gregory Waldorf, CEO-in-Residence, Accel Partners

Advisory Board (2008)
Accessed February 2008:


 * Jill Abramson, a managing editor of The New York Times
 * Martin D. Baron, the editor of The Boston Globe
 * David Boardman, the executive editor of the Seattle Times
 * Robert A. Caro, historian and biographer of Robert Moses and Lyndon Johnson
 * John S. Carroll, the former editor of the Los Angeles Times and the Baltimore Sun
 * L. Gordon Crovitz, a former publisher of The Wall Street Journal
 * David Gergen, professor of public service at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and director of its Center for Public Leadership
 * Shawn McIntosh, the director of culture and change at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
 * Gregory L. Moore, the editor of The Denver Post
 * Priscilla Painton, the new editor-in-chief of Simon & Schuster
 * Allan Sloan, a senior editor at large for Fortune magazine
 * Cynthia A. Tucker, the editor of the editorial page of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Other
Their website provides links to the following other media groups:


 * Center for Investigative Reporting
 * Center for Media and Democracy
 * The Center for Public Integrity
 * Investigative Reporters and Editors
 * The Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism

Critical Articles

 * Jack Shafer, "What Do Herbert and Marion Sandler Want? Investigating the funders of ProPublica, the new investigative journalism outfit," Slate, October 15, 2007.
 * Michael Barker, "Investigating the Investigators: A Critical Look at Pro Publica" (Part 1), (Part 2), (Part 3), Spinwatch, February 29, 2008.
 * "ProPublica and NYT seek $1M to put everyone’s documents online", The Nieman Journalism Lab, November 2, 2008.
 * Harry Browne, "Foundation-Funded Journalism: Reasons to be Wary of Charitable Support", Journalism Studies, 11(6): 889-903.

Contact
ProPublica One Exchange Plaza, 55 Broadway, 23rd floor New York, NY 10006 Phone: 1-212-514-5250 Web: http://www.propublica.org

Related Sourcewatch articles

 * Investigative Reporters and Editors
 * Joaquin Sapien
 * DocumentCloud