About Public Square Amplified
Public Square Amplified is a local nonprofit newsroom founded by a team of Black women with over 40 years of combined experience in the academic, nonprofit, journalism, and community organizing sectors. Public Square Amplified positions journalism as a civic tool and creates a pipeline for a new generation of local journalists. Our reporting centers on social and economic justice, racial equity and equality, the climate crisis, and the immigrant experience in covering issues impacting and concerning citizens in and surrounding our headquarters, Newark, from the community's point of view. Founders Linda McDonald Carter, Cassandra Etienne and Josie Gonsalves lead the team of builders and facilitators committed to expanding the spaces for marginalized voices to affirm equity and equality in leadership, agenda-setting, and decision-making in the local news ecosystem.
What we do
Our first step is to serve Newark, the most populous city in New Jersey, by creating a community-responsive news outlet powered by residents' reporting about the city's five wards. Public Square Amplified's digital and social media platforms also reflect stories from the African-Caribbean diaspora and pioneer a central multimedia platform for multi-lingual stories that center the local immigrant experience. Ultimately, we'll work to reach residents and neighborhoods with similarly limited avenues to read about, access, share, or publish news that addresses the community in the context of civics, racial equity, and justice.
Vision
To create forums that explore civic participation, common ground, and just solutions.
Public Square Amplified will design and present workshops to train participants on civics and citizenship. Our forums, driven by local reports and feature stories, will engage readers and residents about the experiences and causes most pressing to the people of Newark.
To train and provide a platform for aspiring journalists, including residents and students.
Public Square Amplified will train and provide a publication outlet for local and aspiring journalists through a comprehensive media and newsgathering training program that equips journalists to share community stories otherwise misrepresented or neglected by other outlets.
Through our community journalism boot camp, we will make journalism and local reporting more accessible to Newark residents while supporting aspiring writers of color and promoting civic engagement.
Policies
Editorial Independence Policy
We subscribe to standards of editorial independence adopted by the Institute for Nonprofit News: Our organization retains full authority over editorial content to protect the best journalistic and business interests of our organization. We maintain a firewall between news coverage decisions and sources of all revenue. Acceptance of financial support does not constitute implied or actual endorsement of donors or their products, services or opinions. We accept gifts, grants and sponsorships from individuals and organizations for the general support of our activities, but our news judgments are made independently and not on the basis of donor support. Our organization may consider donations to support the coverage of particular topics, but our organization maintains editorial control of the coverage. We will cede no right of review or influence of editorial content, nor of unauthorized distribution of editorial content. Our organization will make public all donors who give a total of $5,000 or more per year. We will accept anonymous donations for general support only if it is clear that sufficient safeguards have been put into place that the expenditure of that donation is made independently by our organization and in compliance with INN's Membership Standards.
Corrections and Updates
Public Square Amplified is committed to accuracy and fairness. Editors will respond swiftly to any claim that we have been inaccurate. Readers can request a correction by sending a request to Public Square Amplified at info@publicsq.org. Our editorial team will carefully review any potential inaccuracy before making changes to a published piece. Typos and other minor errors will be corrected as quickly as possible, normally without any correction notice. In the event of a minor factual error, the story will be amended, and the change will be noted at the bottom. Significant corrections will be noted in the headline or at the top of the story. If new details or clarifications are added to a story after its publication, our practice is to include a note describing the update at the end of the piece. We encourage any reader who would like to discuss an article with a writer to reach out directly to that reporter. Each article will have contact information at the bottom of the published story. That reporter is obligated to inform Public Square Amplified of any request for a correction. Public Square Amplified adheres to the Society of Professional Journalism Code of Ethics. See the code of Ethics.Anti-Discrimination Policy
Public Square Amplified (PSA) does not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, genetic information, military status, or any other status prohibited by applicable law, in any of its activities or operations. These activities include, but are not limited to, the appointment to and termination from its Board of Directors, hiring and firing of staff or contractors, selection of volunteers, selection of vendors, and providing of services. Public Square Amplified will make every effort to provide reasonable accommodations to parties who provide services to or receive services from PSA who need them for medical and religious reasons, as required by law. Reports of discrimination should be made to the Director of Operations, Pamela Hill, at pamela.hill@publicsq.org or the Executive Director, Josie Gonsalves, at josie.gonsalves@publicsq.org. Parties of Public Square Amplified who violate the terms of this policy will face reprimand up to and including termination of business or service relationship with Public Square Amplified.
Confidentiality Policy
Confidential Information All parties (either individually or in collaboration with others) participating with Public Square Amplified (“Public Square Amplified” or “Agency”) acknowledge and agree that, in connection with the services to be provided to Public Square Amplified under all agreements, there will be access to Confidential Information of Public Square Amplified. “Confidential Information” shall mean any and all data relating to the business of Public Square Amplified, which is disclosed to parties, created by parties, or which parties learn as a result of providing services to Public Square Amplified and which information is not generally known to the general public. Parties shall take all reasonable steps to maintain the confidentiality of such information and shall not misuse or disclose such information in any manner other than as necessary in the performance of all agreements’ terms. Upon termination or expiration of agreements, parties shall return all records, data, information, and other documents and all copies, notes or other compilations thereof to the Agency, and such shall remain the property of the Agency.
Inventions, Patents, Trademarks and Copyrights
All parties participating with Public Square Amplified warrant that all works furnished to Public Square Amplified, including but not limited to writing(s), curriculum(a), program(s), design(s), photograph(s), and other inventions conceived, developed, created, written or contributed by parties are the independent creations of said parties and that no use whatsoever of any items referred to in this policy shall infringe upon the rights of any third party or parties. Parties shall promptly disclose to the Agency all works conceived or produced in the course of the performance of all agreements and assign to the Agency the entire right, title, and interest in and to all such works. Public Square Amplified may make any use (or nonuse) of such rights without any further obligation to parties in perpetuity. Parties shall take any and all necessary steps for the purpose of securing to the Agency or its nominees patent, trademark, or copyright protection upon all such works title to which the Agency may acquire in accordance with the provision of this policy.