• by Ray Schultz , Yesterday

The MacArthur Foundation has awarded more than $6 million to eight organizations that address reporting challenges in the U.S.-Mexico borderland. 

The grants are intended to help publications deal with the challenges news providers face in that locale. This is MacArthur’s initial funding for the region, and there will be more in the future. 

The borderlands span 23 counties in Southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. The area has a population of more than 11 million people.

“Small newsrooms in this region struggle with limited resources while confronting exceptional challenges, including safety concerns, trauma, and difficulties accessing information from governments on both sides of the border,” says Silvia Rivera, director of local news, in  a statement.  “This makes the role of local newsrooms even more critical, as they bear the overarching responsibility of combating misinformation and maintaining community cohesion.”

The grantees include:

• The Border Chronicle--$350,000
• Community Foundation for Southern Arizona--$750,000
• Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism CUNY Foundation Inc.--$750,000
• El Pasto Community Foundation--$2.2 million
• El Pasto Matters Inc.--$750,000
• Puente News Collaborative---$450,000
• San Antonio Area Foundation--$350,000
• Wayne State University Law School--$350,000