MindSite News Opens Chicago Bureau to Boost Local Mental Health Reporting

CHICAGO, June 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- MindSite News, the nation's only news outlet dedicated to reporting on mental health, is opening a bureau in Chicago to boost mental health reporting in the nation's third largest city. The bureau is supported by the Reva and David Logan Foundation, the Field Foundation and the Sozosei Foundation.

The news outlet was founded in 2021 to report on the mental health crisis in the U.S. and explore solutions. The Chicago bureau will focus on the intersection of criminal justice and mental health, the unique mental health needs facing the city's immigrant community, efforts to transform the city's crisis-response system and other issues.

"The bureau will enable MindSite News to deepen our work in Chicago and build on our history of partnering with local outlets including WBEZ, Block Club Chicago and South Side Weekly," said MindSite News Founding Editor Rob Waters.

Josh McGhee, MindSite News' investigative reporter, will serve as bureau chief and continue his reporting on criminal justice and mental health. Alma Campos will serve as lead writer for a project on mental health issues affecting Chicago's immigrant communities. The project is funded by a $50,000 grant from the Field Foundation of Illinois, which supports community power building by investing in Chicago's civic infrastructure, creative sector, local news outlets, and organizers.

"An important measure of community wellbeing is the physical and mental health of its residents. The Field Foundation is proud to support the team at MindSite News and their efforts to put a human face on mental health issues in Chicago, from community conditions and needs to lived experiences and potential solutions," said Daniel O. Ash, the foundation's president. "These are stories that must be told with the authenticity, nuance and inclusion that MindSite brings to its work."

The Reva and David Logan Foundation, which supports social justice, the arts and investigative journalism in Chicago, awarded $55,000 in renewal funding to MindSite News to support its investigative and Chicago-based reporting.

"We see the effects of deteriorating mental health resources on a daily basis in Chicago, and the city is extraordinarily fortunate to be a center of reporting for MindSite News," said board member Crystal Logan. "The foundation believes deeply in MindSite's mission and the importance of their work."

Sozosei Foundation, the first foundation to fund MindSite News three years ago, last month awarded a new $100,000 grant to the outlet.

"The Sozosei Foundation is honored to support MindSite News and its award-winning journalists to illuminate the ongoing disgrace that is the nation's criminalization of mental illness," said Melissa M. Beck, the foundation's executive director.

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SOURCE MindSite News