Five years ago this past June, media makers and movement shakers from across the US gathered in Detroit, MI for the Allied Media Conference. It was at this gathering that a movement journalism track took place, organized and hosted by some of our co-founders—our board chair was even there! This track, and its positive reception with over 260 attendees, led to the forming of Press On. Will you join us in celebrating 5 years of Press On by making a gift to support our work?

So much has happened in the movement journalism world since then, it’s hard to believe, and we are glad to be a part of shaping the Southern movement journalism ecosystem with you. Since Press On stepped onto the scene, we have been holding trainings, fellowships, workshops and infusing the Southern movement journalism ecosystem with hundreds of thousands of dollars. We’ve become a stand alone organization, we are engaging in the critical piece of relationship and ecosystem building, all the while continuing to navigate a pandemic. We are so grateful for each of you for being with us on this journey; you sustain us in this work.

About Press On

We are journalists, storytellers, and organizers rooted in, and practicing solidarity with, oppressed communities that birth social movements. We are based in the South, and we strive to uphold Southern traditions of storytelling that have long resisted the systems of extraction, exploitation, and colonization that have defined mainstream journalism.

By providing a diverse set of resources including trainings, fellowships and opportunities for network-building, Press On aims to help journalists and storytellers produce reporting that’s driven by communities that are building power to create transformative social change.

What is Movement Journalism?

Movement journalism is journalism in service to liberation. This does not mean turning journalists into soapboxes for activists, but fostering collaboration between journalists and grassroots movements, and supporting journalism created by oppressed and marginalized people.

Our Values

WE BELIEVE that the South is the critical site for leadership in the growing practice of movement journalism, and that Black Southern freedom struggles serve as a model for liberation.

WE BELIEVE that journalism driven by people who are building power within marginalized and oppressed communities is necessary to creating transformative social change.

WE ARE COMMITTED TO producing journalism that is transparent, accurate, and evidence-based.

WE ARE COMMITTED TO using journalism as a tool to support social justice organizing, and to use organizing as a tool to transform the field of journalism.

THROUGH THIS WORK WE HONOR the legacy and lived experiences of the communities we are a part of and in solidarity with: Black and indigenous people, immigrants, oppressed people in rural communities, queer and trans people, and all systematically oppressed Southerners, from the Delta to Appalachia, who tell stories to ensure our humanity, dignity and power.

5 Years Strong! A Press On Community FUNdraiser

By Press On

5 Years Strong! A Press On Community FUNdraiser

Sustaining Southern Movement Media & Journalism

Team Members