LA Local News Initiative

Mission

We’re on a mission to ensure every resident of Los Angeles is equipped with trusted local news and information that they need to be more civically engaged, to thrive in their lives in L.A., and to hold decision makers accountable for making L.A. work better for all who call it home.

About our journalism

The LA Local, formerly the LA Local News Initiative, is a nonprofit rebuilding trust in local news through community-rooted journalism. Publicly launched in September 2024 after a two-year process of planning, partnership, and fundraising led by the American Journalism Project, our mission is to strengthen civic engagement by producing news that reflects LA’s cultural and linguistic diversity and meets daily community needs.

Our flagship newsroom, Boyle Heights Beat—founded in 2010—provides bilingual “news by and for the community” and builds the pipeline through its youth journalism program. Building on its success, The LA Local is expanding this hyperlocal reporting and community engagement model to additional neighborhoods, ensuring more communities have access to trusted, representative local news. The Boyle Heights team currently covers Eastside issues including health and environment, culture, safety, business and development, education, and immigration. We are also hiring additional editorial staff focused on enterprise, community, culture, and arts coverage citywide.

As one of the largest local coalitions addressing the local news crisis, The LA Local invests deeply in making media partnerships successful. Acting as a connector and convener, we lead a growing coalition of 22 media outlets collaborating on content sharing, reporting, and community engagement— including direct funding to CalMatters and LAist to expand their coverage capacity.