Nigeria’s Sahara Reporters has been announced as one of the selected media organizations awarded by Omidyar Network, a philanthropic venture firm that invests in both non-profit and for-profit media ventures.



The company received about $450,000 to support their work over a period of three years. During the 3rd plenary session of the 2011 World Press Freedom Day conference in Washington DC, Stephen King, the founder of the organization announced that they were awarding about $5 million to four independent media organizations working to foster journalism practice and freedom of expression.

As published on the WPFD’s blog, in a press release, King said, “Omidyar Network believes a healthy government—one that is responsive to its citizens—requires a healthy, robust fourth estate.” He added, “By focusing additional efforts on fostering investigative and citizen journalism, we believe we will be catalyzing transparency efforts that will positively affect millions of people.”

Omoyele Sowore, Saharareporters.com founder who served as one of the speakers during the event, said that the grant will help expand the frontiers of their operations. Adding that the grant also reaffirms that their work at Sahara Reporters is legitimate and innovative. The other organizations that also received the grant include: African Media Initiative, $1.7 million over two years; Media Development Loan Fund, $2 million; and the Committee to Protect Journalists, $800,000.


http://www.cp-africa.com/2011/05/04/sahara-reporters-receives-450000-grant-from-the-omidyar-network/

I'm happy for Omoyele Sowore and the hard working folks at Sahara,

That is the eBay guy, right?

Congratulations to SR!

Crooked and corrupt Naija politicians go feel the effect of the $450, 000 for sure,

http://www.omidyar.com/investment_areas/media-markets-transparency/government-transparency


What’s at Stake

People look to government institutions to work on their behalf and provide oversight on matters that significantly impact their quality of life. Government fulfills this role most effectively when its activities are open and transparent to citizens. With visibility into government actions and spending, people are more likely to participate in the political process and hold government officials accountable for their actions. When citizens engage in the issues that affect them, they can help to ensure that power and public funds are used wisely and are representative of their interests.

Strategy

We support technologies that give millions of people access to credible information about government actions and influence in the U.S. and other countries. We aim to build and invest in the technology platforms that track government activities and money flows, provide citizens with the opportunity to engage on specific issues, and establish the public checks and balances that can help people hold government leaders more accountable.

Goal

We believe that open access to information and transparent systems will increase the public's knowledge of government activities and lead to a more informed and engaged citizenry that holds its officials accountable. We believe greater transparency will also result in more effective investigative journalism, which holds political leaders and systems to a higher standard. More accountability will ensure appropriate influence and integrity in the political process, and bolster the effectiveness of representative government as a force for improving people’s lives.

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You'lld think after receiving so much they'lld be gracious enough to get off their backsides and do some real investigative journalism, instead all they do is sit and pull off ridiculous stories from their overheating bums.

wesley80:

You'lld think after receiving so much they'lld be gracious enough to get off their backsides and do some real investigative journalism, instead all they do is sit and pull off ridiculous stories from their overheating bums.

Duhhh!!! Obviously, they received the award and recognition for doing just that.

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