Support Local Journalism in Northwest Montana
Strong communities depend on strong local journalism.
Local independent newspapers. Local reporters embedded in the communities they serve.
Across the country, more than two local newpapers disappear every week.
While others shrink, we have expanded coverage across Northwest Montana.
Daily Inter Lake
Whitefish Pilot
Hungry Horse News
Bigfork Eagle
Lake County Leader
Clark Fork Valley Press
Mineral Independent
The Western News
Support Local Journalism in Northwest Montana
Help sustain the reporters who cover your communities, hold institutions accountable, and tell the stories that matter across Northwest Montana
Local Journalism is Essential to Strong Communities
Every day, reporters from Hagadone Media Montana newspapers cover city halls, county commissions, schools, businesses, and the issues shaping life across Northwest Montana. That reporting helps residents stay informed, strengthens civic participation, and ensures that public institutions remain transparent and accountable.
This campaign invites community members to help sustain the local journalism that serves our region. Our mission is to pursue the truth wherever it leads and report it with accuracy, fairness, and a deep commitment to the communities we serve. Please donate if you support that mission.
Donations are made through the Inland Northwest Journalism Foundation, a nonprofit partner that helps communities support and strengthen local journalism. The fund is administered by Innovia Foundation, a community foundation serving the Inland Northwest.
Campaign Goal
We are launching a 100-day fundraising campaign to raise $100,000 in community support for local journalism.
This work requires ongoing investment. With your support, we can fortify our newsroom, expand our reporting, and ensure that strong, independent local journalism continues to serve our communities for years and decades to come.
These funds will help sustain reporting across Hagadone Media Montana newspapers serving Northwest Montana, including:
Daily Inter Lake, Whitefish Pilot, Hungry Horse News, Bigfork Eagle, Lake County Leader, The Western News, Mineral Independent and Clark Fork Valley Press.
Community support helps ensure that experienced local journalists continue covering the issues that affect our communities every day. Please donate and help bolster our mission.
Matching Challenge
Thanks to a partnership with Report for America, the first $25,000 raised will be matched.
Early donations will double their impact and help expand reporting capacity in Northwest Montana.
Your support helps sustain journalism that keeps communities informed and engaged. Please donate early to double your impact!
The Impact of Local Reporting
Community support sustains the reporters who cover the issues that matter most across Northwest Montana. Their work ensures local residents stay informed, public institutions remain accountable, and important community stories are not overlooked.
INFORMING PUBLIC DECISIONS
Reporting Inside the Flathead County Jail Ahead of a Major Public Vote which Provided an Upgraded Facility
To better inform voters ahead of a major public decision, reporters documented overcrowding, flooding and infrastructure problems inside the Flathead County jail.
The reporting helped residents better understand the issue before the bond measure ultimately passed.
“Representatives said they got lots
of calls from constituents after the
reporting, and it impacted how they
voted.”
– Hannah Shields, Rural Government Reporter
COMMUNITY RESPONSE
Rebuilding Lost Cemetary Records
After reporting on missing records at Conrad Cemetery, community
members stepped forward with receipts and documentation to help restore decades of lost information for local families.
The coverage ultimately helped locate the missing records and restore order for the community.
“They received hundreds of calls from people in the community offering records and receipts tohelp rebuild what was lost.”
– Jack Underhill, City Government, Housing and Transportation Reporter
SHARED UNDERSTANDING
Stories that Connect Northwest Montana
Every week, our reporters and photographers capture stories that help residents better understand Northwest Montana, from local schools and sports to outdoors, business, arts and local life.
These stories celebrate the people, traditions and places that make this region unique.
“It’s not just one story. It’s the
collection of stories over time that
helps people understand the
community they live in.”
– Matt Baldwin, Regional Managing Editor
2025 Highlights
10,000+ stories
and photos
350 podcast episodes
14 MILLION
website views
150+ public
meetings covered
100s of local sporting events covered
$150,000+ in-kind advertising for local nonprofits
150s of staff volunteer hours in community
The model that supported local news has changed
Advertising that once supported local news is down. At the same time, the cost of producing quality journalism, especially deeper reporting andcommunity coverage, continues to rise.
The result is a widening gap between what it takes to do this work and what traditional revenue can support.
“Sometimes you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone, and you don’t want to risk local journalism being gone. What happens is people stop showing up at community meetings because they don’t
know about the issues. I think journalism is critical to civic engagement.
– Trey Solomon, Supporter, Writing Coaches of Montana
We're investing. Please join us.
This reflects a choice we have made to invest in local reporting, not reduce it.
- Expanded rural government reporting across Northwest Montana through our partnership with Report for America
- Growing multimedia storytelling through podcasts, video journalism and YouTube programming
- Strengthening partnerships with local businesses and community organizations
- Increasing community listening, newsroom accessibility and public engagement
THE OPPORTUNITY
Our 100-day, $100,000 campaign to build a stronger foundation for local journalism in Northwest Montana.
Your support, plus a $25,000 matching challenge from Report for America, will help us strengthen and sustain the reporting our communities depend on.
MATCHING CHALLENGE
Every gift you make will go twice as far.
YOUR SUPPORT HELPS FUND
- Watchdog reporting on local government and public institutions
- Rural community coverage
- Environmental and natural resource reporting
- Features and profiles that tell the story of our community
- Local school and sports coverage
- Student internships, youth engagement and local news literacy programs
COMMUNITY HEALING – following Jack Underhill’s Conrad Cemetery series: “Before Jim Korn passed away, his nurse searched him up on Google because (son) Kevin Korn wasn’t providing any familial information. The nurse found my story and was able to get in touch with my source and tell her that her grandfather was dying. She was able to say goodbye to Jim before he died because of my article.”
JOURNALISM IS COMMUNITY
“Without local news, people are left in their own silos without a shared understanding of their community.”
– Matt Baldwin, Regional Managing Editor
Support Local Journalism
Local journalism is the heartbeat of strong communities
Your gift helps sustain the reporting that serves communities across Northwest Montana.
While advertising and subscriptions remain an important part of sustaining our newspapers, they no longer fully support the level of local reporting our communities deserve. Community support helps fill that gap by funding in-depth reporting, coverage of rural communities, and stories that require time and resources to pursue.
Your support helps make journalism like the stories above possible. Contributions from readers and community members help ensure that experienced reporters continue covering local government, environmental issues, public safety, education, and the stories that shape life across our region.
Together, we can ensure that strong, independent local journalism continues to inform and strengthen our communities.
Donate today to support local journalism in Northwest Montana
Your gift supports:
- Coverage of rural communities across Northwest Montana
- Environmental, natural resource, and quality of life reporting
- Investigative stories that require time and in-depth reporting
- Watchdog reporting on city halls and county commissions
Foundational Support
Donations are made through the Inland Northwest Journalism Foundation, a nonprofit partner that helps communities
support and strengthen local journalism. The fund is administered by Innovia Foundation, a community foundation serving the Inland Northwest.
Ways to Invest in Local News
Mail a Gift
Innovia Foundation/INJF
818 W. Riverside Ave., Ste. 650,
Spokane, WA 99201
Questions?
Anton Kaufer
406.758.4444
Our communities deserve more coverage, not less
Thank you for supporting local news in Northwest Montana
Editorial Independence and Donor Transparency
Our mission is to serve as the cornerstone of our communities through a steadfast commitment to community journalism and the delivery of factual information. We believe strong local news strengthens civic life, supports informed decision-making, and upholds the principles of the First Amendment and the Fourth Estate.
Support from readers, foundations, and community partners helps sustain this work. However, financial support does not influence our journalism. Our newsrooms maintain full editorial independence over the stories we pursue and the coverage we provide. Donors do not receive special access to our journalists, advance review of stories, or influence over editorial decisions.
We are committed to transparency in how this work is funded. Contributions that support our journalism do not constitute endorsement of a donor’s products, services, or viewpoints. All funds raised through this campaign are administered by Innovia Foundation, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that maintains legal control over all donations. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
Independent local journalism depends on public trust. Upholding that trust through transparency and ethical reporting is a responsibility we take seriously.