Technical.ly is growing its DC journalism in this recession. You can help

Just as local reporting, especially on the economy and careers, is becoming more important, it’s also becoming more endangered.

Local journalism was already at risk, and the pandemic recession is making that worse. We at Technical.ly are digging our heels in and working to deepen our reporting that will help you navigate your company and your career through a deep recession. We think our reporting on entrepreneurship, technology, career and economic change is about to mean a lot more.

In December, we announced we were adding an additional full-time reporter in Baltimore, joining Michelai Graham here in D.C., Technical.ly Assistant Editor Stephen Babcock and Alex Galiani, who leads business development, to round out our team in the DMV. Despite this remarkable disruption, that is still happening. We want to go farther.

We know we need to do more for Technical.ly to serve as the modern “paper of record” for how the economy is changing in Washington D.C., and throughout the region. Even as our sustainability is further challenged by an economic shock, we intend to deepen our journalism, to help you navigate your organizations, your career and your place in the DMV’s recovery. You can help us do that in several ways.

Today we are introducing the Technical.ly Journalism Fund, a pool of funding that will go directly to our reporting, both by our full-time newsroom and to increase additional freelance writing.

At launch, this is imagined as a $1,000 contribution from organizations, but you are able to alter the contribution level. Additionally, we want to make clear the various ways you can support expanding our work.

How can my organization work with Technical.ly?

1. Work with Technical.ly to support your talent acquisition needs: We specialize in employer brand marketing and direct placement support. That work has always contributed to our newsroom. If you’re in a position of growth, consider us as a way to both meet your organizational goals and support local economic reporting. (And hey — right now, we’re offering free job posts to companies hiring for tech roles and COVID-19-related roles.)
2. Underwrite Technical.ly storytelling you want to see: If you want support for stories or virtual events (webinars, etc.) that drive results for your company, our product team can help. If you have a passion that important stories in Baltimore aren’t being told enough, you can underwrite our newsroom to do more of that issue-based reporting.
3. Contribute to the Technical.ly Journalism Fund: As introduced here, if you want to make a smaller organizational contribution to ensure we’re here to report on your company’s growth and work, consider making a contribution and think of that as an annual act of support.

For insight on any of these methods of support (or more creative solutions), you can email me (chris@technical.ly) and/or my colleague Alex Galiani (alex@technical.ly), a Maryland native who works everyday to make connections in Baltimore, D.C. and beyond.

How can I as an individual support Technical.ly?

1. Subscribe and share: Reading, subscribing and talking to us is always the best first step. We have a daily headlines email and our popular This Week in Jobs newsletters; join here. Otherwise, following and sharing our work on social and with your network helps us serve more people. We also want to hear from you, on social and via email.
2. Tell us if we’ve helped your career: We set aside our individual membership program earlier this year because we are more interested in knowing how we’ve helped you; fill out our Employment Survey here.
3. Attend our virtual events and chip in: Starting on May 7 (details to come), we’ll be hosting a series of virtual events focused on career and organizational navigation in times of crisis. Many of these will be free to attend to remain accessible, though any contributions will go toward our Journalism Fund.

At times of crisis, we find just how valuable and to whom we are. Technical.ly aims to become a more valuable tool to support navigating the choppy local economy and your career. We appreciate any support to get us there.