The Daily Memphian
The Daily Memphian is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit digital news outlet, operated by Memphis Fourth Estate, Inc., providing metered subscription local journalism across metro, business, sports, food, and arts verticals to readers in the Memphis, Tennessee metropolitan area, including Shelby County and North Mississippi suburbs.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2018
- HeadquartersMemphis, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What The Daily Memphian does
The Daily Memphian is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit digital news organization, operated by Memphis Fourth Estate, Inc., that publishes primary daily online local journalism for the Memphis, Tennessee metropolitan area. The company was launched in September 2018 by CEO Eric Barnes (a former Tennessee Press Association president) and an experienced Memphis-area news leadership team, and now operates with 51-100 employees covering metro, business, food, sports, suburbs, op-ed, and arts/culture verticals. Its core product is a metered digital news subscription offering four free articles per device per month before a paywall, supplemented by free morning and evening email editions, six podcast series, a daily games section, and a free unlimited-access program for Shelby County public schools and libraries.
The platform is built as a standard digital content management and subscription system (paywall, email, RSS, podcast distribution, commenting) with Google reCAPTCHA for form protection; no proprietary technology or AI capabilities are documented. Revenue comes from four streams: recurring subscriptions (the primary stream), advertising and sponsorships across the site, podcasts, and events, donations to its 501(c)(3) parent entity, and per-word transaction fees from legally required public notices in Shelby County ($0.30 per word, effective July 2025 under Tennessee Code Annotated 1-3-120). The organization is governed by an independent board with members from ValFund, Everwell, The Works Inc., TIME, and Soulsville, Inc., and is supported by named foundation donors including AutoZone, the Hyde Family Foundation, the Community Foundation of Greater Memphis, the Briggs Foundation, the Crawford-Howard Foundation, and the First Horizon Foundation.
Distribution is digital-first and concentrated in a single domestic market: the greater Memphis metropolitan area including Shelby County, Tennessee suburbs, and North Mississippi. Adjacent products extend monetization beyond subscriptions, including a marketplace, job listings, sponsored content, and Eventbrite-hosted community events. The publication has been recognized by Politico, The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, NiemanLab at Harvard, The Poynter Institute, Forbes, and CNN.
The Daily Memphian firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Daily Memphian
- Legal name
- Memphis Fourth Estate, Inc.
- Website
- https://dailymemphian.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2018
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- The Daily Memphian is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit digital news outlet, operated by Memphis Fourth Estate, Inc., providing metered subscription local journalism across metro, business, sports, food, and arts verticals to readers in the Memphis, Tennessee metropolitan area, including Shelby County and North Mississippi suburbs.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Daily Memphian industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Digital Local News
- NAICS
- Newspaper Publishers (513110), Periodical Publishers (513120), Newspaper Publishers (51311)
- SIC
- Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Newsletter Publishing Platforms (MPACAIAA)
Keywords
Where The Daily Memphian is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Memphis
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
The Daily Memphian business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Subscriptions: Monthly subscription model providing unlimited access to articles after 4 free articles per device per month limit. Primary revenue stream from paying subscribers.
- Advertising & Sponsorships: Sponsorships and advertising visible on the site, at events, and in podcasts. Advertisers may sponsor specific content categories.
- Donations: 501(c)(3) nonprofit accepting donations from individuals and foundations. Donations made to Memphis Fourth Estate, Inc.
- Public Notice Fees: Revenue from publishing public notices at $0.30 per word as required by Tennessee law for legal notices.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free tier - 4 articles per device per month |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Public Notices - $0.30 per word |
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
The Daily Memphian product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Daily Memphian is a primary daily online news publication providing intelligent, in-depth local journalism for the Memphis metropolitan area, operating on a freemium subscription model (four free articles per device per month, then paid unlimited access). Beyond written news, the publication distributes daily email editions, multiple podcast series, daily puzzle games, legally required public notices, gift subscriptions, a local marketplace, job listings, sponsored content, and an events calendar.
Product overview
The Daily Memphian is a nonprofit digital news subscription platform providing comprehensive local news coverage for the Memphis metropolitan area. The service operates on a subscription model offering four free articles per device monthly before requiring paid access. The core product portfolio includes the primary digital news subscription, free email newsletter editions, multiple podcast series, daily puzzle games, and legally-required public notice publishing. Additional offerings include gift subscriptions, a marketplace for local classifieds, job listings, sponsored content packages, and a community events platform. The organization generates revenue through subscriptions, advertising, sponsorships, and charitable donations to its parent nonprofit Memphis Fourth Estate, Inc.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Digital News Subscription Subscription service providing unlimited access to local Memphis news coverage including Metro, Business, Sports, Food, Suburbs, Arts, Opinion, and more. Freemium model with four free articles per device per month before paid access required.
- Email Editions Free daily email newsletters delivering morning and evening editions plus breaking news alerts to subscribers.
- Podcasts Podcast series including Sound Bites (food), On the Record (metro), Behind The Headlines, The Sidebar (arts), Grizzlies Podcast (sports), and The AM/DM (daily news).
- Daily Games Daily puzzle offerings including Sudoku, WordRow (Wordle alternative), and Jigsaw puzzles available to all readers.
- Public Notices
Companies that use The Daily Memphian
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
The Daily Memphian technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
The Daily Memphian partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.
- WKNOminorEric Barnes, CEO of The Daily Memphian, is host of Behind the Headlines on WKNO.
- EventbriteminorThe Daily Memphian Events page hosted on Eventbrite platform for event management and ticketing.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
The Daily Memphian competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- CalMatters: California-focused nonprofit digital newsroom with foundation and major-donor backing. Comparable as a larger-scale nonprofit digital news operation, though statewide rather than Memphis-metro.
- The Texas Tribune: One of the largest state-level nonprofit digital newsrooms in the U.S., combining subscriptions, events, and major-foundation funding. Comparable as a scaled nonprofit digital news model, though at state rather than metro geography.
Emerging players
- Chalkbeat: Nonprofit digital news organization covering education policy across multiple U.S. cities with foundation funding. Comparable as a topic-driven nonprofit news model that overlaps with The Daily Memphian's education coverage beat and shares donor-supported nonprofit funding.
- The 19th News: National nonprofit digital newsroom covering gender and politics with foundation and donor funding. Comparable as a foundation-supported nonprofit digital news operation with subscription and sponsorship revenue diversification.
- The Markup: Nonprofit digital news outlet focused on technology and society, supported by major foundations and donors. Comparable as a digitally-native, donor-funded nonprofit news operation, though nationally rather than locally scoped.
Direct peers
- VTDigger: Nonprofit digital news outlet covering Vermont with a freemium paywall, foundation grants, and donor support. Operates an analogous single-region, digital-first, donor/subscription-funded local news model.
- The Connecticut Mirror: Nonprofit digital news outlet covering Connecticut state and local policy with foundation support. Operates the same nonprofit, foundation-funded, digital-first model for a regional audience.
- The Commercial Appeal: Gannett-owned Memphis daily covering the same metro, business, sports, food, and suburbs beats. Directly competes for Memphis readers, advertisers, and public-notice revenue, though it operates as a scaled chain outlet rather than a nonprofit.
- MLK50: Justice Through Journalism: Memphis-based nonprofit digital news outlet focused on accountability journalism on economic and social justice. Shares the same metro footprint, 501(c)(3) nonprofit funding model, and donor-supported structure as The Daily Memphian.
- Block Club Chicago: 501(c)(3) nonprofit digital news startup covering Chicago neighborhoods with a freemium subscription model and foundation/donor support. Operates with a comparable mission-driven, single-metro nonprofit news structure to The Daily Memphian.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
The Daily Memphian social profiles
Digital presenceThe Daily Memphian compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
The Daily Memphian financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Daily Memphian leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles15 records
The Daily Memphian funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Daily Memphian M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Daily Memphian
What does The Daily Memphian do?
The Daily Memphian is a primary daily online news publication providing intelligent, in-depth local journalism for the Memphis metropolitan area, operating on a freemium subscription model (four free articles per device per month, then paid unlimited access). Beyond written news, the publication distributes daily email editions, multiple podcast series, daily puzzle games, legally required public notices, gift subscriptions, a local marketplace, job listings, sponsored content, and an events calendar.
Is The Daily Memphian a public or private company?
The Daily Memphian is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was The Daily Memphian founded?
The Daily Memphian was founded in 2018. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is The Daily Memphian based?
The Daily Memphian is headquartered in Memphis, United States, in the North America region.
How does The Daily Memphian make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are advertising & Sponsorships, donations and public Notice Fees.
Who are The Daily Memphian's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are CalMatters and The Texas Tribune. Emerging players are Chalkbeat, The 19th News and The Markup. Direct peers are VTDigger, The Connecticut Mirror, The Commercial Appeal, MLK50: Justice Through Journalism and Block Club Chicago.
Does The Daily Memphian have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Daily Memphian.
What industry is The Daily Memphian in?
The Daily Memphian's product category is Digital Local News. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJADAB, Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital), with a secondary code of MPACAIAA, Newsletter Publishing Platforms. Its NAICS code is 513110 and its SIC code is 2711.