Retro Report
Retro Report is an independent nonprofit news organization producing 300+ short documentary videos and classroom-ready lesson plans, serving K-12 teachers and students across 14 subject areas through a freemium, donation-funded model.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Retro Report does
Retro Report is an independent nonprofit news organization headquartered at 633 Third Avenue in New York City that produces short-form documentary videos and accompanying classroom resources for the K-12 education market. Its core offering consists of more than 300 documentaries covering historical topics — originally focused on U.S. and world history, civics, and government — now spanning 14 subject areas including biology, chemistry, environmental science, physics, psychology, media literacy, and race and society. Each video is paired with teacher-developed lesson plans, student activities, scaffolded writing resources, and increasingly with interactive tools such as the Cold War timeline and Latin America Cold War map. The platform also includes professional development webinars, a Teacher Ambassador program, a Council of Educators, and Teacher Fellows programs to build educator community.
Under the hood, Retro Report operates a WordPress/Newspack website hosted on Netlify, with video hosting through YouTube embeds, lesson plan and teacher account management, email marketing via Mailchimp, donation processing through Stripe, search via Algolia, and analytics through Google Analytics and Google Ads — a standard low-cost SaaS stack rather than proprietary technology infrastructure. The editorial process is led by award-winning journalists who conduct rigorous fact-checking and primary source analysis; production quality was validated by a 2025 News and Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Light News Feature: Short Form.
Retro Report is funded entirely through donations and likely institutional grants, with all content and lesson plans provided free of charge to teachers and students. Go-to-market is community-led: teachers register for free accounts, the organization cultivates peer advocacy through ambassador and council programs, and reach is amplified through flagship media partnerships with NBC News, PBS, The New York Times, The New Yorker, Scientific American, and Frontline. Curated thematic collections such as the Global Cold War Collection extend the product surface. No revenue, headcount, or fundraising figures are publicly disclosed.
Retro Report firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Retro Report
- Legal name
- Retro Report
- Website
- https://retroreport.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Retro Report is an independent nonprofit news organization producing 300+ short documentary videos and classroom-ready lesson plans, serving K-12 teachers and students across 14 subject areas through a freemium, donation-funded model.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Retro Report industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Educational Documentary Journalism
- NAICS
- Educational Services (61), Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111)
- SIC
- Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Interactive Multimedia Learning Content (Video, Audio, Interactive Lessons) (EDAFACAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- K–12 Instructional Video & Multimedia (EDAGALAA), Short-Form Documentaries (MPADADAC), Children’s & Youth Educational Entertainment (Edutainment) (EDAGALAK)
Keywords
Where Retro Report is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Retro Report business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Individual Donations: Retro Report is an independent nonprofit news organization that relies on donations from individuals to fund documentary production and maintain free access to educational resources. The website prominently features a 'Donate' call-to-action.
- Institutional Funding: As a nonprofit organization, Retro Report likely receives grants and support from foundations and institutional donors, though specific funders are not explicitly mentioned in the source material.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Others | Free access for all users |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels6 records
Retro Report product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Retro Report produces and distributes a library of more than 300 short-form documentary videos that examine historical events and connect them to present-day issues. These documentaries are paired with classroom-ready lesson plans, student activities, interactive timelines and maps, and professional development resources for K-12 teachers and students. All educational content is offered free of charge through the retroreport.org website.
Product overview
Retro Report is a documentary news organization offering a unified platform of educational media products for teachers and students. The core offering consists of 300+ short-form documentary videos produced by award-winning journalists, which connect past historical events to present-day contexts. These videos are complemented by educator-designed lesson plans, student activities, interactive timelines and maps, and professional development resources. The product suite also includes curated thematic collections (such as the Global Cold War Collection) that bundle related videos with specialized interactive tools and lesson materials. All resources are designed to support classroom instruction and foster critical thinking skills.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Retro Report Documentary Videos
- Lesson Plans
- Student Activities
- Interactive Timelines and Maps
- Professional Development
- Global Cold War Collection
Quantifiable outcome
- News and Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Light News Feature: Short Form
Companies that use Retro Report
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Retro Report technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Feature3 records
Retro Report partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.
- The New YorkerflagshipThe New Yorker is listed as a media partner of Retro Report, helping to reach broader audiences with documentary content about historical events and their relevance to current issues.
- NBC NewsflagshipNBC News partners with Retro Report to distribute documentary journalism and reach audiences interested in historical context for news stories.
- Scientific AmericanflagshipScientific American collaborates with Retro Report on documentary content, particularly for videos covering scientific topics and their historical implications.
- PBSflagshipPBS serves as a media partner, helping Retro Report reach public media audiences interested in educational documentary content.
- The New York TimesflagshipThe New York Times partners with Retro Report to distribute documentary journalism and reach audiences interested in historical news coverage.
- Frontline (PBS)flagshipFrontline partners with Retro Report on documentary content, combining investigative journalism with historical context.
- New Visions for Public SchoolscoreNew Visions for Public Schools partnered with Retro Report to create lesson plans as part of their U.S. Cold War unit, demonstrating collaborative curriculum development.
- The Writing RevolutioncoreThe Writing Revolution partnered with Retro Report to combine video content with Hochman Method writing strategies, creating lesson plans that build analytical thinking and deepen student understanding.
- The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey PlazaminorThe Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza co-hosted a Kennedy and the Cold War webinar with Retro Report featuring films, lessons, and resources about the Cuban Missile Crisis and broader Cold War topics.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Retro Report competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Khan Academy: Nonprofit providing free K-12 educational videos, lessons, and practice across dozens of subjects; comparable freemium model, teacher adoption focus, and curriculum-aligned content approach.
- PBS LearningMedia: PBS's free K-12 educational media platform offering thousands of videos, lesson plans, and interactive resources across subjects—directly comparable to Retro Report's freemium teacher-focused documentary model.
- Crash Course: YouTube-based educational video series covering U.S. History, World History, and other subjects in short, engaging formats; comparable free K-12 video library and subject-area structure.
- Frontline (PBS): PBS investigative documentary series producing short and long-form journalism films, including educational classroom resources—overlapping with Retro Report's documentary production and PBS partnership.
Broad incumbents
- Discovery Education: Commercial K-12 platform providing streaming video, lesson plans, and curriculum resources across science and social studies—comparable target audience and content categories with broader paid-product positioning.
- Smithsonian Education: Smithsonian's K-12 educational division provides free multimedia resources, lesson plans, and interactive tools across history and science—comparable nonprofit educational media model with broader institutional backing.
- New York Times Learning Network: NYT's free K-12 teaching resource with daily lesson plans, current-events articles, and journalism-based activities—comparable teacher audience, free access model, and emphasis on news literacy.
- National Geographic Education: National Geographic's K-12 educational arm offers free videos, lesson plans, and interactive maps aligned to standards—comparable subject coverage (history, science, geography) and freemium distribution.
Others
- New Visions for Public Schools: NYC public schools support organization that partnered with Retro Report on Cold War curriculum; adjacent K-12 curriculum co-developer serving overlapping educator audiences.
Emerging players
- The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza: Historical site museum offering educational programming and resources on JFK and Cold War history; a minor Retro Report partner, comparable in producing K-12 history educational content.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Retro Report social profiles
Digital presenceRetro Report financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Retro Report leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Retro Report funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Retro Report 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 Retro Report
What does Retro Report do?
Retro Report produces and distributes a library of more than 300 short-form documentary videos that examine historical events and connect them to present-day issues. These documentaries are paired with classroom-ready lesson plans, student activities, interactive timelines and maps, and professional development resources for K-12 teachers and students. All educational content is offered free of charge through the retroreport.org website.
Is Retro Report a public or private company?
Retro Report is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Retro Report founded?
Retro Report was founded in 2012. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Retro Report based?
Retro Report is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Retro Report make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Individual Donations are the primary driver. The others are institutional Funding.
Who are Retro Report's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Khan Academy, PBS LearningMedia, Crash Course and Frontline (PBS). Broad incumbents are Discovery Education, Smithsonian Education, New York Times Learning Network and National Geographic Education. New Visions for Public Schools is listed as an others. The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza is listed as an emerging player.
Does Retro Report have an API?
No public API is recorded for Retro Report.
What industry is Retro Report in?
Retro Report's product category is Educational Documentary Journalism. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAFACAG, Interactive Multimedia Learning Content (Video, Audio, Interactive Lessons), with a secondary code of EDAGALAA, K–12 Instructional Video & Multimedia. Its NAICS code is 61 and its SIC code is 7812.