The Freedom Forum is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) foundation dedicated to fostering First Amendment freedoms for all.[1] The organization advances First Amendment freedoms through programs that include Today's Front Pages, the Power Shift Project, the annual Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism Conference for high school juniors, annual First Amendment Festival, Free Expression Awards and other conferences.[2] [3] Freedom Forum operated the Newseum in Washington, D.C. until 2019, when it sold the building to Johns Hopkins University.
The Freedom Forum was founded in 1991 when the Gannett Foundation, started by publisher Frank E. Gannett as a charitable foundation to aid communities where his company had newspapers, sold its name and assets back to Gannett Company for $670 million. Retired Gannett chairman and USA Today newspaper founder Al Neuharth used the proceeds to found the Freedom Forum. Its original mission was to foster "free press, free speech and free spirit."
Neuharth's daughter, Jan A. Neuharth, is chief executive officer and chair of the Freedom Forum.[4]
Today, the organization trains, teaches, and surveys students, educators, journalists and journalism educators, and community leaders to promote free expression, First Amendment awareness and storytelling, and inclusive newsroom culture.[5] The Freedom Forum's vision is "an America where everyone knows, values and defends the freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly and petition." The Freedom Forum's affiliate organizations include the Al Neuharth Media Center at the University of South Dakota; the Overby Center for Southern Journalism and Politics at the University of Mississippi; and the John Seigenthaler Center at Vanderbilt University.
Independence Day marks the birth of the Freedom Forum, which grew out of the Frank E. Gannett Newspaper Foundation, established by the newspaper publisher in Rochester, N.Y., in 1935. After Al Neuharth became Gannett's chief executive officer in 1973, the company became the nation's largest newspaper chain. The foundation also grew. From 1977 through 1989, it provided nearly $27 million in grants — more than $72 million in 2021 dollars — to further journalism-related education, nonprofits, professional organizations, diversity and other initiatives.
In 1989, the foundation relocated to Arlington, Va., overlooking Washington, D.C., and in 1991 became the Freedom Forum, with a mission to foster First Amendment freedoms. Over the next decade, the organization undertook several global initiatives to honor journalists and advance free press, including a television segment and a media studies center.[6]
On April 18, 1997, the Freedom Forum opened the Newseum in Arlington, Va., to help the media and the public understand each other better with news-related artifacts, interactive exhibits, theaters, engaging programs and an education center. After welcoming 2.25 million visitors over five years,[7] the Arlington Newseum closed in March 2002, to plan for its new location in Washington, D.C. From 2000-2019 the Freedom Forum continued its journalistic and entrepreneurial approach to educating the public on First Amendment freedoms by establishing its flagship programs.
In 2011, the Education Department launched the Digital Classroom website with support from the Ford Foundation. This marked the first step in making Newseum content available online to educators everywhere, with lesson plans and videos based on Newseum collections. Later revamped as NewseumED, the Freedom Forum's ongoing digital education offerings reach more than 11 million students, educators, and lifelong learners around the globe.
In 2016, the Freedom Forum kicked off its first annual Free Expression Awards ceremony to honor dedication to the freedoms of the First Amendment.[8] Honorees include journalists, activists, athletes, politicians, attorneys, clerics, media executives and others who have made a difference by exercising their First Amendment freedoms.[9]
In 2018, in response to sex abuse scandals involving major media figures, the Freedom Forum dba Newseum convened the Power Shift Summit, seeking solutions-based alternatives for employees facing abuse and emphasizing the need for diversity and inclusiveness in America's newsrooms.[10] The summit launched the Power Shift Project, with grant funding from CBS to implement its Workplace Integrity Training program, designed to produce workplaces free of harassment, discrimination and incivility, and filled with opportunity, especially for those who have traditionally been denied it.[5]
In 2020, Freedom Forum and Library of Congress celebrated the availability to researchers of more than 250 boxes of papers Al Neuharth donated to the library in 2005. The papers chronicle Al Neuharth's life and career as a journalist, media executive, founder of USA TODAY, First Amendment champion with Gannett Co., the Gannett Foundation, the Freedom Forum and the Newseum.
The Freedom Forum is the nation's foremost advocate for First Amendment freedoms. Each year, it engages thousands of Americans on the freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly and petition through debates with engaging expert content, conversations, and digital storytelling. It surveys Americans annually about their First Amendment rights and organizes events and other content to showcase "champions of free expression."
The Power Shift Project is a training initiative designed to improve the quality and future of journalism by improving the diversity, equity and culture of news organizations.[5] The project's goal is workplace integrity, defined as "environments free of harassment, discrimination and incivility, and filled with opportunity, especially for those who have traditionally been denied it."[5] The Power Shift Project offers training specifically for media organizations and journalism classrooms. The curriculum is built around four pillars: critical thinking, courageous conversations, qualifying as an ally, and cultures of respect and trust.[5]
Today's Front Pages is a daily curation of front pages from newspapers across any town in America. Hosted through an online application, editors from small towns and major metros upload their papers' cover pages. The program is one of the most digitally-visited collections the organization hosts.[11] [12] The Freedom Forum has made the page available for mobile download in order to "get hundreds of front pages on your phone or tablet, locate a newspaper by name or location using the map view, and create a list of 'favorites' for easy access."[13]
Where America Stands provides data insights on Americans' views of the First Amendment. Respondent answers to more than 200 questions provide a deep and detailed picture of how people agree and differ on the relevance today of the freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly and petition guaranteed by the First Amendment.[14]
The Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism Conference is an annual opportunity for high school juniors to receive a $1,000 college scholarship.[15] The program was established in 1999 to honor Al Neuharth, founder of The Freedom Forum and USA TODAY. The conference is designed to inspire and encourage students to pursue journalism careers and become people who "dream, dare, do." Free Spirit alumni include journalists working for The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Baltimore Sun, ESPN and network-affiliated TV stations.
The Freedom Forum produces a variety of educational content distributed on YouTube such as the First Five Express,[16] First Five Now, First Five Live, and First Amendment Fast Facts. In 2022, the organization released a short-form documentary, "Murfreesboro: One Mosque's First Amendment Fight to Worship"[17] consisting of interviews about the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro's First Amendment legal action against discrimination from their community.[18]
The annual Free Expression Awards have run since 2016, "honoring champions of free expression for exercising their rights to express themselves, spark conversations and inspire action." Its guest speakers and award recipients have included Tim Cook, Ava DuVernay, John Lewis, General Colin Powell, Pussy Riot, Eric Treene, and Judy Woodruff. Freedom Forum's First Amendment Festival is an annual all-ages gathering of "fun, freedom and fellowship," aimed at exploring First Amendment conversations, games, and classroom sessions.[19]
The Freedom Forum's Newseum Collection hosts a curation of Ted Polumbaum photos made available for licensing. Photographs in this online exhibit examine three specific areas: the early political career of Sen. Edward Kennedy from 1958 to 1969; the events of Freedom Summer in 1964; and his coverage of historic moments and extraordinary people.[20]
Freedom Forum has a team of First Amendment educators and lawyers to provide expert commentary and editorials[21] along with a Council of Advisors and Board of Trustees.[22] [23]
The Freedom Forum is supported in part by contributions and grants. Freedom Forum leadership determines the content of its work independent of outside funders.