inewsource

What inewsource does

inewsource (legal name: Investigative Newsource) is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit investigative newsroom founded in 2009 in San Diego, California, that produces data-driven accountability journalism serving San Diego County's 3M+ residents, Imperial County, and broader California audiences. It operates a core publishing platform at inewsource.org (built on Newspack, a WordPress-based CMS purpose-built for news organizations) with regional sections covering Central San Diego, South Bay, North County, and East County, complemented by the San Diego Documenters civic-engagement program, the Amplify South Bay weekly newsletter, and the Public Matters joint initiative with KPBS and Voice of San Diego.

Its business model is donor-supported rather than commercial: revenue streams include individual giving across one-time ($10-$500), monthly Community Partner ($10-$100/mo), and annual Member/Champion/Spotlight Club tiers ($100-$5,000/yr); major donor and family-foundation grants (Conrad Prebys Foundation, James Silberrad Brown Foundation, Price Philanthropies, Irwin and Joan Jacobs); institutional funding from American Journalism Project, Report for America, California Local News Fellowship, Fund for Investigative Journalism, and Fund for Nonprofit News; and ancillary channels including stock/securities gifts, vehicle donations, Facebook fundraisers, and employer matching gifts. Donor management runs through a Salesforce-integrated portal.

The newsroom distributes content through its own website, email newsletters (The Daily Digest, Behind the Story, Documenters Dispatch), and syndication/earned-media partnerships with KPBS, Voice of San Diego, EdSource, CalMatters, NPR, and USA TODAY. The organization employs ~18 staff including senior investigative reporters and editors; technology is intentionally lean (Newspack CMS, Salesforce CRM, Mailchimp, Google reCAPTCHA) with no disclosed AI/ML capabilities. Outputs have produced documented policy and institutional outcomes, including protections for 30,000+ Section 8 families, the surfacing of 10,000+ racist housing covenant documents, nearly $20M in stolen wages recovered, California SB 11 legislation, and a 2025 Pulitzer Prize finalist designation.

Name

inewsource

Legal name

Investigative Newsource

Website

https://inewsource.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

inewsource is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit investigative newsroom founded in 2009 in San Diego that produces data-driven accountability journalism for San Diego County, Imperial County, and California, funded by individual donors, family foundations, and institutional grants, and distributed via its own platform and partnerships with KPBS, Voice of San Diego, CalMatters, and EdSource.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Investigative News Media

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Newsletters & Email-Based News Publishers (B2B/B2C) (MPAJADAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB)

Keywords

• Investigative journalism
• Nonprofit newsroom
• Accountability reporting
• Data journalism
• Civic engagement

Headquarters

HQ city

San Diego

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Individual donations (one-time, monthly, annual): Public fundraising from individual donors via donate.inewsource.org with tiers ranging from $10 to $5,000+ (one-time), $10/mo–$100/mo (monthly Community Partner recurring giving), and $100/yr–$5,000/yr (annual). Donor portal supports recurring giving and giving history.
2. Major donor and foundation grants: Major gifts of $1,200+ (Spotlight Club), $2,500+, $5,000+, $10,000+, $25,000+, and $50,000+ from individuals, family foundations (e.g., Conrad Prebys Foundation, James Silberrad Brown Foundation, Price Philanthropies, Hervey Family Fund) and institutional funders (American Journalism Project, Report for America, Fund for Investigative Journalism, Fund for Nonprofit News, County of San Diego, The San Diego Foundation).
3. Donor-advised fund and planned giving: Donor-advised fund contributions searchable via EIN 27-0732786, plus planned giving through wills, gifts of assets and endowment contributions.
4. Stock and securities gifts: Electronic transfer of appreciated stock or mutual funds to inewsource's US Bank Corp Advisors brokerage account, allowing donors to avoid capital gains tax while receiving charitable credit.
5. Vehicle donations: Vehicle contributions facilitated through CARS (careasy.org), 100% tax-deductible, with free pickup.
6. Facebook fundraisers and employer matching gifts: Birthday and special-occasion Facebook fundraisers routed to inewsource, plus dollar-for-dollar employer matching-gift programs using EIN 27-0732786.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels8 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

inewsource produces and distributes nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative and accountability journalism for San Diego County, Imperial County and California through its inewsource.org news platform, regional email newsletters (The Daily Digest, Behind the Story, Documenters Dispatch, Amplify South Bay) and syndication partnerships with KPBS, Voice of San Diego, EdSource and CalMatters. It runs the San Diego Documenters civic-engagement program that pays community members to attend and document public meetings, the Amplify South Bay regional newsletter product, and the joint Public Matters initiative with KPBS and Voice of San Diego funded by Irwin and Joan Jacobs. Membership tiers (Member, Champion, Spotlight Club) and a Salesforce-backed Donor Portal support recurring giving and member benefits.

Product overview

inewsource operates a nonprofit investigative newsroom platform built around a core news website (inewsource.org) that hosts regional coverage for San Diego County (Central San Diego, South Bay, North County, East County), state-wide California reporting, and standalone featured investigations such as HOME SICK, Fentanyl: A Decade of Death, and Data Divide. The platform extends beyond the core site through several named modules: the San Diego Documenters civic engagement program, the Public Matters initiative (a partnership with KPBS and Voice of San Diego), and the Amplify South Bay regional newsletter product. Recurring content is delivered through three email newsletters (Behind the Story, The Daily Digest, Documenters Dispatch), while membership, donations, and recurring giving are managed through an integrated Donor Portal, with member benefits including digital access, quarterly webinars, and exclusive events for higher-tier Spotlight Club donors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• San Diego Documenters: A civic engagement program of inewsource that trains and pays community members to attend and document local public meetings
• Amplify South Bay
• Public Matters

Products and services

• inewsource.org (San Diego investigative newsroom platform) The core inewsource.org platform — a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative newsroom website covering San Diego County and California, with regional sections for Central San Diego, South Bay, North County and East County plus statewide California reporting. Publishes data-based investigative and accountability journalism on immigration, housing, education, infrastructure, environment and health, and serves free unlimited digital access supported by member donations.
• San Diego Documenters A community-powered civic engagement program housed at inewsource that trains and pays San Diegans to attend and document local public meetings and government proceedings, producing public meeting notes published on the sandiegodocumenters.org platform. The notes feed inewsource's accountability reporting pipeline and are distributed via the weekly Documenters Dispatch newsletter.
• Amplify South Bay Weekly regional newsletter covering South Bay San Diego communities (Chula Vista, National City, Imperial Beach, San Ysidro, Coronado), produced by inewsource reporters in partnership with the San Diego Documenters program. inewsource's first geographically focused news product.
• Public Matters Civic engagement initiative jointly operated by inewsource, KPBS, and Voice of San Diego to expand civic participation in local decision-making in San Diego, with content streams on housing, transit, and government accessibility. Funded by Irwin and Joan Jacobs.
• Donor Portal Secure online system for managing recurring giving, downloading giving history, and updating donor profile information, supporting the Member, Champion and Spotlight Club tiers and backed by Salesforce for nonprofit development.

Quantifiable outcome

• 30,000+ low-income San Diego County families promised the same rent-increase protections as other California tenants after inewource's Section 8 investigation
• +8 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• KPBSflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerKPBS is a co-founding partner with inewource and Voice of San Diego in the Public Matters civic-engagement initiative. KPBS broadcasts Public Matters content and co-hosts Politifest events. KPBS has also hosted inewource-produced reporting and podcasts, including REWIRED and San Ysidro transit coverage.
• Voice of San DiegoflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerVoice of San Diego is a co-founding partner in the Public Matters initiative with KPBS and inewource. The three organizations share content, host co-produced events (Politifest), and align civic-engagement reporting across San Diego County.
• EdSourcecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerEdSource contributes statewide California education reporting that is republished on inewource.org's California section (e.g., Michael Burke on community college bachelor's degrees, Zaidee Stavely on English learners).
• CalMatterscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCalMatters reporters (Adam Echelman, Carolyn Jones, Brittany Oceguera, Kristen Hwang) author California stories republished under inewource's California section, including community college fraud, state superintendent election, Native artifacts, and union clinic spending.
• The San Diego SunminorGTM or Marketing PartnerHyperlocal partner; reporter Brisa Karow writes for The San Diego Sun and contributes Central San Diego stories to inewource's coverage (e.g., East Village Association parking revenue story).
• San Diego DocumentersflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerSan Diego Documenters is a program housed at inewource (with Program Manager Isaac Brambila) that trains and pays community members to attend and document local public meetings. Their notes feed inewource's civic-engagement and accountability reporting, and the program is co-branded in stories and newsletters.
• Institute for Nonprofit News (INN)coreStrategic or Co-development Partnerinewsource is a member newsroom of the Institute for Nonprofit News, a consortium of more than 450 nonprofit newsrooms in North America; the INN member badge appears on inewource.org.
• Trust ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development Partnerinewsource is a Trust Project member newsroom and adheres to its standards and indicators for trustworthy journalism.
• NewspackcoreTechnology or Integrationinewsource.org is powered by Newspack, a WordPress-based publishing platform built specifically for news organizations, providing reader accounts, newsletters, donations and content management.
• CARS (Charitable Adult Rides & Services)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCARS facilitates vehicle donations on behalf of inewource via careasy.org, providing free pickup and 100% tax-deductible contributions.
• Facebook (Meta)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFacebook provides the fundraising platform for birthday and special-occasion fundraisers benefitting inewource (default_beneficiary_id 1977733618973055), plus inewource's main Facebook page presence.
• San Diego Zoo, San Diego Humane Society, KPBS Producer's ClubminorOthersReference to civic memberships of board leadership, not formal organizational partnerships.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• ProPublica: National nonprofit investigative newsroom and the dominant player in U.S. donor-funded investigative journalism. Comparable as a model and funder ecosystem peer; AJP, a ProPublica spin-off, directly funds inewsource.
• The San Diego Union-Tribune: San Diego's legacy daily newspaper covering the same regional beats (courts, government, housing, border) that inewsource pursues. Comparable as a broad local-news incumbent; multiple inewsource staffers (Greg Moran, Lorie Hearn, Matt Hall) previously worked there.

Direct peers

• Reveal (Center for Investigative Reporting): National nonprofit investigative newsroom producing long-form accountability journalism. Comparable as a peer nonprofit investigative outlet with similar foundation-funder mix and national-award pedigree.
• KPBS: San Diego's NPR/PBS member station and co-founding Public Matters partner. Directly comparable as a regional nonprofit newsroom pursuing civic-engagement and accountability journalism, with broadcast reach that extends inewsource's audience.
• Voice of San Diego: San Diego-based nonprofit investigative newsroom covering local government, politics, and accountability. Direct peer — co-founding partner with inewsource in the Public Matters initiative, sharing audience, events (Politifest), and editorial overlap in San Diego civic coverage.
• EdSource: California-focused nonprofit newsroom covering K-12 and higher-education policy. Direct peer in the nonprofit investigative-journalism model; content partner whose bylines appear in inewsource's California coverage.
• CalMatters: California statewide nonprofit newsroom covering policy, politics, and accountability. Direct peer model as a donor-funded investigative newsroom; inewsource republishes CalMatters reporting on its California section and shares institutional-funder ecosystem (AJP, Report for America).
• Center for Public Integrity: National nonprofit investigative newsroom focused on accountability and policy impact. Direct peer in donor-funded investigative journalism; shares funder ecosystem and IRE award circuit with inewsource.
• The Texas Tribune: Texas-based nonprofit statewide newsroom and a flagship of the donor-supported investigative model. Direct comparable on business model (501(c)(3), foundation-funded, events-driven donor engagement) and INN member ecosystem.

Emerging players

• The Marshall Project: Nonprofit investigative newsroom focused on criminal justice. Comparable as a donor-funded, single-topic investigative outlet with similar staff scale and Pulitzer-adjacent recognition; partial overlap with inewsource's Veterans Village and Donovan Deaths coverage.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/inewsource
• Facebookfacebook.com/inewsource
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/inewsource
• Instagraminstagram.com/inewsource

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles17 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about inewsource