EconoFact

What EconoFact does

EconoFact is a non-partisan digital publication launched in January 2017 that publishes fact-based economic and social policy analysis for policymakers, journalists, educators, and the general public. It is published by the Edward R. Murrow Center for a Digital World at The Fletcher School of Tufts University and operates as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt program. The publication's core products include EconoFact Explainers (in-depth analytical articles on policy topics such as federal debt, taxation, Social Security, and tariffs), the EconoFact Chats weekly podcast hosted by Executive Editor Michael Klein, Fact Briefs (short fact-checking content produced in partnership with Gigafact), and EconoFact for Educators (a curated portal of classroom materials organized by economics subject area). Content is written by the EconoFact Network, a contributor pool of over 150 academic economists from institutions including MIT, Harvard, Stanford, UC Berkeley, and the University of Chicago.

The underlying technology is a standard WordPress-based content management and publication platform with podcast distribution across Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Soundcloud, and Spotify. The organization operates a lean editorial team of approximately 9 people, including 3 student research assistants, supplemented by the broader Network of academic contributors. EconoFact pursues a freemium content model: core content is freely available to all readers, while a premium subscription tier offers exclusive additional content and Q&A sessions with economists. The publication is funded through tax-deductible individual donations, institutional support from Tufts University, and grants from the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and Smith Richardson Foundation. Its go-to-market is content-led, leveraging earned media through over 234 citations in major outlets including The New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, NPR, and PBS, complemented by media republication partnerships with regional outlets and active social media distribution across five platforms.

Name

EconoFact

Legal name

EconoFact (a program of Tufts University)

Website

https://econofact.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

EconoFact is a non-partisan economic policy publication operated by Tufts University, providing fact-based analysis to policymakers, journalists, educators, and the public through memos, a podcast, and fact briefs written by a network of 150+ academic economists.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Medford

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

Revenue model

1. Donations and Institutional Support: EconoFact is funded through tax-deductible donations from individual donors, institutional support from Tufts University, and grants from foundations including Peter G. Peterson Foundation, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and Smith Richardson Foundation. The platform operates as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization affiliated with Tufts University's Fletcher School.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

EconoFact is a non-partisan digital publication that produces fact-based, data-driven analysis of economic and social policy issues. Its core offerings include written explainers on policy topics, a weekly podcast featuring interviews with leading economists, and short fact-checking content produced in partnership with Gigafact. Content is written by members of the EconoFact Network, a network of over 150 academic economists from institutions including MIT, Harvard, Stanford, and the University of Chicago.

Product overview

EconoFact is a non-partisan digital publication offering fact-based, unbiased analysis of economic and social policy issues. The platform operates three core content products: EconoFact Explainers (in-depth analytical articles on policy topics), EconoFact Chats (a weekly podcast hosted by Executive Editor Michael Klein featuring economist interviews), and Fact Briefs (fact-checking content produced in partnership with Gigafact). Additionally, EconoFact for Educators provides curated educational materials organized by economic subject areas. Content is written by leading academic economists from the EconoFact Network and published by the Edward R. Murrow Center at The Fletcher School, Tufts University.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 234 citations in major media outlets including The New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, NPR, and PBS

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• GigafactcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFact Briefs are published in partnership with Gigafact, an initiative focused on countering misinformation online. This partnership produces short fact-check format content addressing common claims about economic issues.
• Edward R. Murrow Center for a Digital World at The Fletcher School at Tufts UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEconoFact is published by the Edward R. Murrow Center for a Digital World at The Fletcher School at Tufts University, providing institutional affiliation and support.
• Journalist's Resource at Shorenstein Center, Harvard Kennedy SchoolminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEconoFact and Journalist's Resource co-host webinars on reporting on the local impacts of international trade.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• The Hamilton Project (Brookings): Economic policy initiative within Brookings producing research, policy briefs, and fact-based proposals on issues including debt, retirement security, and labor markets. Comparable to EconoFact in evidence-based policy mission and emphasis on accessible economic analysis.
• Brookings Institution: Major public policy research organization producing economic policy analysis across multiple formats. Overlaps with EconoFact's mission of providing rigorous, non-partisan economic analysis to policymakers and the public, though Brookings operates at much greater scale and breadth.
• Peterson Institute for International Economics: Non-partisan economic policy research institution publishing analyses, briefs, and working papers on global economic issues. Comparable to EconoFact as a think-tank-style content publisher targeting policymakers and journalists, but significantly larger and focused on international trade and macro.

Direct peers

• Tax Foundation: Non-partisan tax policy research organization producing analysis, explainers, and data visualizations for policymakers, journalists, and the public. Most direct peer to EconoFact in terms of mission, format (short explainers, fact-based analysis), and audience, though narrower in topic focus (tax/fiscal policy).
• The Conversation U.S. Non-profit media outlet that publishes academic-expert-authored articles for a general audience with republication by major news outlets. Closely comparable to EconoFact in academic-to-public content model, citation-driven distribution, and targeted audience of journalists and policymakers.
• Tax Policy Center: Non-partisan tax and budget policy research organization producing analyses, reports, and explainers. Comparable to EconoFact in output format and policy-research-to-public-bridge mission, with similar institutional funder structure.
• Planet Money (NPR): NPR podcast program that explains economic concepts and current economic events to a general audience. Comparable to EconoFact's podcast and explainer formats in mission of making economics accessible to non-specialists, though delivered via audio storytelling with much larger audience scale.
• Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget: Non-partisan budget and fiscal policy organization producing analyses, explainers, and policy primers on debt, deficits, and entitlements. Very closely comparable to EconoFact's debt, deficit, and Social Security explainers in both topic and accessible format.
• Gigafact: Non-partisan fact-checking initiative producing short fact briefs on policy claims. Directly comparable to EconoFact's Fact Briefs product, with which it co-publishes; same format, similar audience, and active distribution partner.

Others

• National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER): Premier academic economics research organization producing working papers and convening researchers. Comparable to EconoFact's EconoFact Network as the underlying source of academic economist contributors, though NBER publishes primary research rather than accessible policy explainers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/EconoFactOrg
• Facebookfacebook.com/econofact
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/econofact
• Instagraminstagram.com/econofactorg

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 EconoFact