ProPublica hopes to fill the gap left by newspapers that have cut their investigative journalism departments. Backed by philanthropies, ProPublica will begin in January with a budget of $10 million
and eventually a full-time staff of 24 reporters and editors. The new organization will be headed by Paul E. Steiger, who was managing editor of
The Wall Street Journal until May. ProPublica
will provide its articles free through its own Web site, as well as to leading news organizations.
