Maryland Matters
Maryland Matters is a nonprofit, nonpartisan digital news organization covering Maryland state government, politics, and policy. It operates as an affiliate of States Newsroom and is funded entirely through donations and grants with no paywall.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded-
- HeadquartersTakoma Park, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Maryland Matters does
Maryland Matters is a nonprofit, nonpartisan online news organization that covers Maryland state government, politics, and policy across beats including education, health, environment, justice, transportation, and the economy. It fills a coverage gap left by the decline of traditional local newspapers in the state, providing original reporting and commentary to Maryland residents, policy professionals, and advocacy stakeholders. The organization operates as an affiliate of States Newsroom, the nation's largest state-focused nonprofit news network with 220+ journalists across all 50 states, and maintains full editorial independence from its parent.
The core product is a WordPress-based news website delivering category-organized coverage, supplemented by a daily email newsletter (Maryland Matters Memo), a Commentary opinion section, and Brief Matters short-form news briefs. Content is distributed freely with no paywall or subscription, and is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) to enable republication by other news organizations. The organization also engages in co-branded events such as policy briefings with KFF.
Maryland Matters is funded entirely through tax-deductible donations from individuals and foundation grants, processed through its parent States Newsroom (a 501(c)(3) public charity). It does not generate revenue from advertising or subscriptions. The mailing address is States Newsroom in Washington, DC, and the publication is led by Editor-in-chief Steve Crane, founder Josh Kurtz, and co-founder Louis Peck, supported by a small editorial team of reporters and interns.
Maryland Matters firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Maryland Matters
- Legal name
- Maryland Matters
- Website
- https://marylandmatters.org
- Company type
- Private
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Maryland Matters is a nonprofit, nonpartisan digital news organization covering Maryland state government, politics, and policy. It operates as an affiliate of States Newsroom and is funded entirely through donations and grants with no paywall.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Maryland Matters industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Nonprofit Digital News and Policy Journalism
- NAICS
- Newspaper Publishers (513110)
- SIC
- Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Data Journalism & News Intelligence Publishers (Indexes, Election/Market Data) (MPAJADAK)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- News, Politics & Current Affairs Magazines (MPAJAEAO)
Keywords
Where Maryland Matters is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Takoma Park
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Maryland Matters business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Individual Donations: Relies on donations from individuals who support the nonprofit news operation. Donations are tax-deductible and processed through parent organization States Newsroom.
- Foundation Grants: Part of States Newsroom, the nation's largest state-focused nonprofit news organization, which is supported by grants and donations as a 501c(3) public charity.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free news content - no subscription required |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Maryland Matters product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Maryland Matters is a nonprofit, nonpartisan online news organization that produces original reporting and commentary on Maryland state government, politics, and statewide policy issues including education, health, environment, justice, transportation, and the economy. All content is delivered free to readers through its website, daily email newsletter, and Creative Commons republication, with no paywall, subscriptions, or advertising. The operation is funded by individual donations and foundation grants routed through its parent organization, States Newsroom.
Product overview
Maryland Matters is a nonprofit news organization operating a single unified digital news platform. The core offering is original reporting and commentary on Maryland government, politics, and statewide issues. The product portfolio includes the main news website with category-based content areas (Gov & Politics, Environment, Health, Education, Justice, Transportation, Work & the Economy), supplemented by the Maryland Matters Memo daily newsletter, a Commentary section for opinion pieces, and Brief Matters for shorter news items. The organization is part of States Newsroom, the nation's largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Maryland Matters News Platform A nonprofit, nonpartisan online news platform delivering original reporting and commentary on Maryland government, politics, and statewide issues including education, health, environment, justice, transportation, and the economy. All content is freely available to the general public with no paywall, subscription, or advertising.
- Maryland Matters Memo Newsletter A daily email newsletter delivering a roundup of the most significant Maryland stories to subscribers each weekday morning, with a weekly option also available.
- Commentary Section An opinion and commentary section featuring contributed pieces from various authors on Maryland political and policy topics.
- Brief Matters Short-form news briefs covering timely Maryland news items across all coverage categories including government, politics, environment, health, education, justice, transportation, and the economy.
Companies that use Maryland Matters
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Maryland Matters technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Maryland Matters partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- States NewsroomflagshipMaryland Matters is an affiliate of States Newsroom, the nation's largest state-focused nonprofit news organization. States Newsroom provides support, grants, and infrastructure while Maryland Matters maintains full editorial independence. The network spans all 50 states with 220+ journalists.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Maryland Matters competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- The Connecticut Mirror: Nonprofit state government and policy news outlet covering Connecticut, funded primarily through donations and foundations. Closely mirrors Maryland Matters' editorial focus, free-access model, and reliance on a small team of specialist reporters.
- Wisconsin Examiner: Nonprofit state government and policy news outlet covering Wisconsin, also operating under the States Newsroom network. Near-clone peer sharing infrastructure, editorial approach, and funding model with Maryland Matters.
- The Nevada Current: Nevada-focused nonprofit news outlet covering state government, politics, and policy. Another States Newsroom affiliate with the same operational template, donor-supported funding model, and free-access distribution.
- NC Policy Watch: North Carolina-focused nonprofit news outlet covering state government, politics, and policy issues, supported by donations. Operates with a similar small-team, free-content model targeting a single state.
- New Mexico In Depth: Nonprofit investigative and policy news outlet covering New Mexico state government. Comparable in mission, scale, and donor-supported nonprofit structure to Maryland Matters.
- VTDigger: Vermont-based nonprofit, nonpartisan digital news outlet covering state government and policy, supported by donations and grants. Directly comparable in model, scale, and mission to Maryland Matters as a state-focused nonprofit newsroom.
Others
- States Newsroom: The parent nonprofit network of Maryland Matters, operating state-focused news outlets in all 50 states with 220+ journalists. Comparable as the umbrella organization whose funding, infrastructure, and editorial model directly determine Maryland Matters' trajectory.
Broad incumbents
- CalMatters: Larger California-focused nonprofit news outlet covering state government and policy with a substantially bigger staff and budget. Same nonprofit state-policy journalism model, but at a much larger scale than Maryland Matters.
- ProPublica: National nonprofit investigative newsroom funded primarily through donations. Comparable in nonprofit mission and donor-supported model, but operates at significantly greater scale and a national rather than state-level focus.
- The Texas Tribune: Major nonprofit statewide digital news organization covering Texas government and politics, supported by donations, foundation grants, and events. Same editorial mission as Maryland Matters but operating at significantly greater scale and brand recognition.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Maryland Matters social profiles
Digital presenceMaryland Matters financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Maryland Matters leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
Maryland Matters funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Maryland Matters 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 Maryland Matters
What does Maryland Matters do?
Maryland Matters is a nonprofit, nonpartisan online news organization that produces original reporting and commentary on Maryland state government, politics, and statewide policy issues including education, health, environment, justice, transportation, and the economy. All content is delivered free to readers through its website, daily email newsletter, and Creative Commons republication, with no paywall, subscriptions, or advertising. The operation is funded by individual donations and foundation grants routed through its parent organization, States Newsroom.
Is Maryland Matters a public or private company?
Maryland Matters is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Maryland Matters founded?
Maryland Matters was founded in -1. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Maryland Matters based?
Maryland Matters is headquartered in Takoma Park, United States, in the North America region.
How does Maryland Matters make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Individual Donations are the primary driver. The others are foundation Grants.
Who are Maryland Matters's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are The Connecticut Mirror, Wisconsin Examiner, The Nevada Current, NC Policy Watch, New Mexico In Depth and VTDigger. States Newsroom is listed as an others. Broad incumbents are CalMatters, ProPublica and The Texas Tribune.
Does Maryland Matters have an API?
No public API is recorded for Maryland Matters.
What industry is Maryland Matters in?
Maryland Matters's product category is Nonprofit Digital News and Policy Journalism. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJADAK, Data Journalism & News Intelligence Publishers (Indexes, Election/Market Data), with a secondary code of MPAJAEAO, News, Politics & Current Affairs Magazines. Its NAICS code is 513110 and its SIC code is 2711.