The Maine Community Foundation (MaineCF) has announced the launch of a new initiative to strengthen Maine communities by ensuring strong, local news coverage in all parts of the state. MaineCF applied and has been selected by the nonpartisan philanthropic initiative Press Forward to become one of 36 independent chaptersnationwide.  

Press Forward and ​​Press Forward Maine share the goal of strengthening communities by ​​reinvigorating local news. Press Forward Maine will be housed within MaineCF and led by Senior Advisor Lisa DeSisto, former CEO of Maine Today Media and the Maine Trust for Local News. The initial focus will be building a broad-based advisory panel to identify and prioritize the best ways to reimagine and expand access to local reporting.   

“Our own research and the ‘Strengthening Maine’s Civic Life’ report we funded last year tell us two things,” said MaineCF CEO Deborah Ellwood. “One, most people in Maine are interested in reading and learning about their communities but, two, may encounter barriers for understanding how they can engage and participate locally. Press Forward Maine will bring people and resources together to close that gap because quality reporting means people can learn about any issue, understand how to get involved, have their voice heard and find solutions together. We are very pleased Lisa DeSisto is joining to help lead this effort as senior advisor and excited to get to work with our donors and partners.”  

​​​DeSisto, who also worked at the Boston Globe for 17 years before leading Maine’s largest media organization through many changes over​​13 years, said, “I know all too well that these are changing times in the news business.​​This is important workand am glad to continue as senior advisor to Press Forward Maine. We are committed to contributing to a vibrant media ecosystem by partnering with large and small news organizations. As a nonprofit community foundation with a 42-year record of working in communities across all 16 Maine counties, Maine Community Foundation ​is the perfect institution to convene media partners and craft new models for collaboration and innovation to better engage with Maine people​.”  

MaineCF’s Vice President of Philanthropy Bree Arsenault said there is interest in supporting local news infrastructure among MaineCF’s current and potential donors. “There seems to be an understanding among those looking to build a better Maine that local news and informationare essential to inform and involve people in working together to find solutions. We are pleased to partner with Lisa DeSisto and work with our network of donors and partners to invest in promising solutions.” 

In 2023, MaineCF embarked on a needs assessment project to help define the next phases of the foundation’s strategic work. Over a period of nine months, more than 1,500 community leaders, donors, nonprofits and stakeholders from every county in Maine provided their insights and perspectives on the state’s challenges, needs and opportunities. 

Respondents repeatedly noted the need for more information about how to get involved locally. Consistent access to news and information is central to the health of Maine communities and core to the state’s progress on its biggest challenges. These include resilience to severe weather events, the need for affordable housing and economic opportunities in all parts of Maine.  

The MaineCF-funded “Strengthening Maine’s Civic Life” report by the Goldfarb Center for Public Affairs at Colby College and Public Engagement Partners highlights the state’s strengths and vulnerabilities and uncovered a high level of support for quality local news.  

According to this research, Maine people rank 10th in the nationon keeping up with the news, with 74% percent of Mainers engaging in reading, watching or listening to news about political, societal or local issues, compared with the national average of 68%. Residents expressedfacing barriers to civic participation, including lack of information about engagement opportunities.