When readers across New Hampshire clicked “donate,” mailed checks, or dropped contributions off at local newsrooms this fall, many weren’t thinking about fundraising totals or matching formulas. They were thinking about school board meetings, town budgets, lake health, housing shortages — and the reporters who keep showing up to cover them.
That collective show of support has added up. Partners in the Granite State News Collaborative have raised more than $77,000 to support local newsrooms across the state through a coordinated fundraising campaign that combines community donations with national matching funds.
“The newscape in New Hampshire is constantly shifting, as are people’s news consumption habits,” said Carol Robidoux, editor and publisher of the Ink Link News Group. “Anything we can do collectively as professional journalists to reinforce the enduring value of journalism in the context of a vibrant and connected community is important to us as a news organization.”
As of this week, the campaign has generated nearly $60,000 in direct contributions from readers and supporters, with additional matching funds bringing the total to $77,848.59 so far. The fundraiser runs through midnight on Dec. 31, and additional matching dollars may still be unlocked before it closes.
The campaign is part of the New Hampshire Community News Fund, a shared initiative created by the Granite State News Collaborative to help strengthen local journalism across the state. GSNC is a nonprofit journalism collaborative that brings together newsrooms, higher education institutions, and community partners to support local reporting, share resources, and build sustainable models for news in New Hampshire.
“At its core, this campaign is about people showing up for the newsrooms that show up for them,” the Granite State News Collaborative said in a statement. “Local news is deeply personal. It’s about your town, your school board, your neighbors. Seeing people support this work — not just one outlet, but many — is incredibly meaningful.”
A shared approach to fundraising
Rather than running separate, competing appeals, participating outlets took part in a coordinated campaign supported by shared messaging, marketing tools, and fundraising infrastructure produced by GSNC. Donations came in both online and offline, and were then amplified through matching programs, including national journalism initiatives such as NewsMatch.
For local editors, the campaign’s success has been both affirming and instructive.
“I’m blown away by the support for this campaign, and humbled that many of our readers have given to sustain local journalism,” said Julie Hirshan Hart, editor of the Laconia Daily Sun. “It shows not only that people are reading and consuming local news, but that they place real value on the work we do.”
Robidoux, who is a founding partner of GSNC, said the response reflects a shift in how audiences think about trust.
“What seemed to start as a broad distrust in ‘the media’ has turned into something more specific — people questioning which sources are real, trustworthy, and human-driven,” she said. “The success of this campaign tells me that New Hampshire readers are ready to be more discerning, and that ‘local’ really matters.”
Supporting local reporting
Funds raised through the campaign are distributed back to participating outlets based on donor intent, giving each newsroom flexibility to address its most pressing needs.
At the Laconia Daily Sun, Hart said the proceeds will directly support local reporting while helping ensure continued access for readers.
“These funds will help support our reporting on Laconia and surrounding communities — from examining the health of Lake Winnipesaukee and nearby water bodies to covering the ongoing housing crisis,” she said. “They also help ensure our readers continue to have access to the local news they need, free of charge.”
For smaller outlets, Robidoux said the added financial stability can be critical.
“Most local news organizations operate with very little margin for error,” she said. “Having even a short runway helps us weather the unpredictables that, unfortunately, can mean shutting down a news operation.”
For the Granite State News Collaborative, the campaign’s impact extends beyond the final tally.
“This is a reminder that people still care deeply about having trustworthy, local reporting in their lives,” the Collaborative said. “When newsrooms work together — and when communities are invited into the process — local journalism can still thrive.”
The fundraiser runs through midnight on Dec. 31.
Participating partners include Business NH Magazine, Concord Monitor, Granite State News Collaborative, Laconia Daily Sun, Manchester Ink Link, Monadnock Ledger-Transcript, NH Business Review, NHPBS, NHPR, Nashua Ink Link, and Valley News.
"We are grateful for the support being shown for local journalism," says Matthew Mowry, Co-Publisher and Executive Editor fo Business. NH Magazine.
Melanie Plenda is the Executive Director of the Granite State News Collaborative. To learn more about the NH Community News Fund visit https://www.collaborativenh.org/support-the-gsnc
These articles are being shared by partners in the Granite State News Collaborative. Don’t just read this. Share it with one person who doesn’t usually follow local news — that’s how we make an impact. For more information, visit collaborativenh.org.