NEW YORK, March 15, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Contently Foundation, a nationally acclaimed New York nonprofit for investigative journalism, today announced that it is parting ways with its founder, Contently, Inc., the content marketing technology company, and has been renamed The Hatch Institute.
The new entity is expanding into a full-blown center for enterprise reporting and education, publishing long-form stories while providing training and support for freelance journalists. It will operate fully independently of Contently, Inc, which has provided most of the group’s funding since launching the award-winning foundation in 2014.
“I’m extremely grateful that Contently is allowing me and my team to take the reins of this amazing organization,” said The Hatch Institute’s editor-in-chief Brad Hamilton, who served in that role with The Contently Foundation. “Operating independently positions us for funding from other foundations, and we need that to grow.”
Contently, Inc. co-founder Shane Snow said, “We started the foundation as a way to give back to the community in the form of public service journalism, and to support the independent writers whose hard work helped us become an industry leader in content marketing. We’re excited to see our nonprofit find its own path now.”
Among The Hatch Institute’s initiatives is a free mentorship program, in which journalists will have access to Pulitzer-winner Bob Porterfield and three-time Pulitzer-finalist Les Zaitz, along with other veteran reporters.
The Contently Foundation staff, including chief executive Sam Slaughter and managing editor Scott Simone, will remain with The Hatch Institute.
The foundation’s first published piece, which detailed how young women play an unwitting role in the blackmarket trafficking of handguns, won the 2015 Donald Robinson Memorial Award for investigative reporting, a national honor given by the American Society of Journalists and Authors. The organization also chronicled a fight to stop fracking waste from polluting a small town in Pennsylvania; uncovered the secrets of the erotic massage industry; revealed hidden conflicts of interest in the judiciary; and used data to show that women in public service get paid less than men.
These stories were co-published with a host of other news outlets, including The Huffington Post, The Guardian, The New York Post, Fusion, Medium and others.
The foundation also led a networking program involving The Marshall Project, The Nation Institute, The Trace and other New York journalism nonprofits to facilitate coordination among these groups.
About The Hatch Institute
The Hatch Institute, Inc., is an independent, nonprofit center for investigative reporting that both publishes longform articles and provides educational services to reporters new to enterprise work. With a dedicated staff of veteran journalists, The Hatch Institute aims to provide real-world impact through its reporting, covering issues ranging from problems with for-profit and religious colleges to gender pay inequity to fracking conflicts. Its educational services have helped launch successful careers, with its reporters going on to contribute to media outlets including ABC News, the Washington Post, and others.