4 5 2020: THE ELECTION + COVID-19 + RACIAL EQUITY In a time of tremendous need, First Look Institute (FLI) reported on and responded to deep divisions in U.S. society — demonstrated by the 2020 election — the greatest public health crisis of the modern era, and the ongoing quest for racial equity. In a landscape rife with increasing disparities, FLI’s mission and programs amplified critical underrepresented stories and provided a platform for the storytellers whose lives were upended by the coronavirus pandemic. During the first year of the pandemic, The Intercept’s investigative journalism exposed the Trump administration’s failed response to the crisis and shed light on the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 on incarcerated, Indigenous, immigrant, working-class, and POC communities. Criminal justice has always been a core focus of The Intercept’s reporting, so the newsroom was poised to cover the protests following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis in a way that enhanced public understanding of the dynamics that drive police violence and thwart reform. The Intercept’s team of reporters, researchers, and editors produced original reporting not only on well-publicized cases of police brutality, but also other systemic abuses of power that disproportionately affect the poor, activists, people of color, and other vulnerable groups. After a summer of racial justice protests and amid a lethal pandemic, The Intercept uncovered dozens of instances of the unethical and improper influence of money in politics. These stories informed readers as they prepared to cast their ballots in one of the most consequential presidential elections of their lifetimes. “This was a year of unprecedented challenges, as our newsroom took on the most important news stories in a generation while navigating a pandemic that posed new obstacles to our ability to do our work. I’m proud of the way our team rose to these challenges, producing some of the most high-impact journalism we have ever done.” – BETSY REED, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, THE INTERCEPT While many for-profit news outlets were forced to cut back on in-depth reporting, The Intercept intensified its coverage of the issues that defined this momentous year, frequently breaking stories that other news outlets followed. Since its inception, The Intercept has taken a distinctive, fiercely independent approach to coverage of politics, the environment, criminal justice, tech, policing, and movements for social justice, including the Black Lives Matter movement. As Black and brown Americans and front-line workers disproportionately suffered from the pandemic, The Intercept team relentlessly pursued stories that exposed injustices. Intercept reporters uncovered wrongdoing and abuses at both the national and local levels, leading to change and recognition. The newsroom produced several widely read collections of articles, including “The Coronavirus Crisis,” “All the President’s Crimes,” “BlueLeaks,” “Protests for Black Lives,” and “The War on Immigrants.” Our reporting shined a light on how workers were dying from abuses of employer power and revealed who was profiting off of the pandemic. Also in 2020, The Intercept collaborated with Invisible Institute, Topic Studios, and iHeartRadio, in association with Tenderfoot TV, on the launch of “Somebody,” a seven-part investigative podcast with nearly 1.5 million downloads and a 2021 finalist for a Pulitzer Prize. “Somebody” is an American true-crime podcast hosted by Shapearl Wells that investigates the shooting and death of her son, Courtney Copeland. The podcast explores the racial disparities and turbulent relationship between law enforcement and citizens in one of America’s largest cities. The need for The Intercept’s work has never been greater, even as the barriers to investigative journalism have never been higher. The Covid-19 pandemic’s economic fallout led to massive job losses, with devastating consequences for reporters and documentarians. In response, FLI provided support to journalists and filmmakers experiencing economic hardship or legal risks from their reporting on racial justice protests. The Press Freedom Defense Fund launched an emergency financial assistance program. As many journalists struggled with financial hardship, illness, and the needs of dependents and children, PFDF disbursed more than $200,000 in emergency assistance. In April 2020, Field of Vision created the Documentary Freelancer Relief Fund in collaboration with Topic Studios. This fund provided $250,000 in emergency relief payments to freelancers in the documentary field. This fund was one of the first of its kind — and the only U.S. source of relief to freelancer documentarians worldwide.