Ohio Capital Journal

What Ohio Capital Journal does

Ohio Capital Journal is an independent, nonprofit news organization founded in 2019 and headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. It is part of States Newsroom, described as the nation's largest state-focused nonprofit news organization. The publication is dedicated exclusively to covering Ohio state government and its impact on Ohio residents' lives, combining statehouse coverage with investigative journalism on public corruption, policy analysis, and political commentary across beats including civil rights, education, healthcare, and elections.

The organization's core products are its main news website (ohiocapitaljournal.com) and The Eye-Opener, a free daily morning email newsletter that aggregates Ohio and national news. The platform is built on WordPress, a standard CMS-based publishing architecture with no documented proprietary technology layer. Distribution occurs through the owned website, email newsletter, RSS feed, and social media channels (Twitter and Facebook). All content is licensed under Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, enabling republication by partner outlets and extending reach through content syndication.

The business model is reader-supported philanthropy. All news content and the newsletter are free to access, with prominent Donate and Subscribe calls-to-action on the site. Revenue is derived from individual reader donations and subscriptions rather than advertising, paywalls, or institutional grants disclosed publicly. The organization employs 7 people and has no disclosed revenue figures, no app presence, no developer-facing API, and no AI capabilities documented.

Name

Ohio Capital Journal

Legal name

Ohio Capital Journal

Website

https://ohiocapitaljournal.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Ohio Capital Journal is an independent, nonprofit news organization in Columbus, Ohio, part of States Newsroom, providing free state-government coverage and investigative journalism to Ohio residents through its website and daily newsletter.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Digital News Publishing

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (513110)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Investigative & Nonprofit News Organizations (MPAJADAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Newsletter Publishing Platforms (MPACAIAA)

Keywords

• State government journalism
• Nonprofit news
• Investigative reporting
• Policy analysis
• State politics coverage

Headquarters

HQ city

Columbus

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 philanthropy: The organization is an independent, nonprofit news organization that relies on reader support through donations. The website features prominent 'Donate' and 'Subscribe' calls-to-action, indicating a reader-supported funding model.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Ohio Capital Journal is an independent, nonprofit digital news organization that publishes daily reporting on Ohio state government, investigative journalism on public corruption, policy analysis, and civic commentary. It distributes this content free to readers via its website, a daily morning email newsletter called The Eye-Opener, social media channels, and Creative Commons-licensed syndication, funded through reader donations and subscriptions.

Product overview

Ohio Capital Journal operates as a single core news product delivered through its main publication website and a complementary daily email newsletter called The Eye-Opener. The publication focuses on Ohio state government coverage, investigative journalism, political analysis, and commentary, distributed free to readers with revenue generated through donations and subscriptions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Ohio Capital Journal Digital News Publication Independent, nonprofit digital news publication providing Ohio state government coverage, investigative journalism, policy analysis, political insight, and principled commentary, distributed free to readers via the website.
• The Eye-Opener Daily Newsletter Free daily email newsletter rounding up news and commentary from across Ohio and around the country, delivered to subscribers' inboxes every weekday morning.
• Democracy Toolkit Citizen resource section providing voter registration links, polling location information, and Ohio legislator contact information to help Ohioans engage with state government.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• States NewsroomcoreOthersOhio Capital Journal is part of States Newsroom, described as 'the nation's largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.' This affiliation provides the organization with network resources, shared infrastructure, and collaborative opportunities with other state-focused newsrooms across the country.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Wisconsin Examiner: Wisconsin-focused nonprofit news organization within the States Newsroom network, providing state government coverage, investigative reporting, and commentary on policy—directly comparable to Ohio Capital Journal's editorial focus and structure.
• Pennsylvania Capital-Star: Pennsylvania statewide nonprofit news outlet covering state government, also affiliated with States Newsroom. Closely mirrors Ohio Capital Journal's editorial model, newsletter offering, and free-access reader-supported approach.
• CalMatters: California statewide nonprofit news organization covering state policy, government, and politics. Comparable as a larger-scale nonprofit state-focused outlet; offers a model of how a single-state donor-funded newsroom can expand reach through newsletters and investigative verticals.
• Minnesota Reformer: Nonprofit statewide digital news outlet covering Minnesota state government and policy; operates on the same reader-supported model with statehouse-focused investigative journalism, and frequently shares content with Ohio Capital Journal via the States Newsroom network.
• The Nevada Independent: Nevada statewide nonprofit news organization focused on state government coverage and political journalism. Mirrors Ohio Capital Journal's nonprofit, donor-supported model and emphasis on state-level accountability reporting.
• NC Newsline: North Carolina-focused nonprofit news outlet covering state government and politics, part of States Newsroom. Same editorial scope and donation-supported operating model as Ohio Capital Journal.
• VTDigger: Vermont's leading statewide nonprofit digital news outlet, providing in-depth coverage of state government, politics, and policy. Comparable in donor-supported nonprofit model, single-state focus, and small newsroom structure.
• Michigan Advance: Michigan-focused nonprofit newsroom covering state government and politics, part of the same States Newsroom network as Ohio Capital Journal. Operates with the same donation-funded model and similar statehouse beat structure.
• Source NM: New Mexico statewide nonprofit news outlet within States Newsroom, providing state government and policy coverage. Directly comparable in editorial approach, network affiliation, and reader-supported nonprofit structure.

Broad incumbents

• ProPublica: National nonprofit investigative newsroom funded primarily through philanthropy. Comparable in nonprofit donor-supported model and investigative journalism focus, but operates at much greater scale and national scope rather than state-specific coverage.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/OhioCapJournal
• Facebookfacebook.com/ohiocapitaljournal
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ohio-capital-journal

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 Ohio Capital Journal