An InvestigateWest review found at least 30 people charged with trafficking without evidence of selling or distribution. They face mandatory minimum prison terms.
InvestigateWest today announced that the organization has received a $100,000 gift from local philanthropists Lisa Mennet and Paul Joseph Brown to forward their mission of local nonprofit journalism focused on environment, government accountability, and public health.
“This is the single largest individual gift our organization has received and will make a tremendous impact on our ability to educate and engage our community through investigative journalism,” says Allison Augustyn, InvestigateWest Executive Director. “We are so incredibly grateful for Paul and Lisa’s passion for our work and our community.”
Lisa Mennet and Paul Joseph Brown
Augustyn says the donation will be used to increase local public interest reporting using new media, and to build an innovative community engagement model to better serve readers.
“Journalism and journalists are under attack in America as never before, but independent, unbiased journalists have demonstrated over and over again that journalism has a critical role in keeping governments and corporations accountable. InvestigateWest was founded to provide journalism in the public interest by reporting on a broad range of social issues, and has contributed to public awareness and advanced the public policy process,” says Paul Joseph Brown. “Lisa and I believe a well-informed public is the foundation of a healthy democracy. We believe in journalism, we believe in InvestigateWest, and we are thrilled to support the organization’s important mission.”
The story you just read is only possible because readers like you support our mission to uncover truths that matter. If you value this reporting, help us continue producing high-impact investigations that drive real-world change. Your donation today ensures we can keep asking tough questions and bringing critical issues to light. Join us — because fearless, independent journalism depends on you!
The webinar will give practical guidance for editors on how to manage and edit an investigative story
What happens when local news disappears? Polluters pollute more. Governments become less accountable. Entire communities are left in the dark.
Since 2009, InvestigateWest has been building something the Pacific Northwest desperately needed: a nonprofit investigative newsroom — and the civic infrastructure to spread accountability journalism across the region.
An InvestigateWest review found at least 30 people charged with trafficking without evidence of selling or distribution. They face mandatory minimum prison terms.
