Catch up on the latest from the Jonathan Logan Family Foundation and our grantee partners.
Logan Elevate Grants
April 2, 2024
The International Documentary Association announced the 2024 recipients of the Logan Elevate Grant, which supports emerging women and non-binary documentary filmmakers of color. This year’s recipients are Asmahan Bkerat for Concrete Land, Cherish Oteka for Gay Games and Sharon Yeung for We Are Volcanoes.
The Poet and the Silk Girl
March 26, 2024
The Poet and the Silk Girl follows one Japanese American family’s story of survival and resistance after being forcibly displaced and incarcerated during WWII. The new memoir by Satsuki Ina will be released by Heyday Books on March 26.
Sisters in Cinema
March 15, 2024
Sisters in Cinema celebrated the grand opening of the Sisters in Cinema Media Arts Center in the South Shore neighborhood of Chicago on March 15. The new center will be a space for Black women and gender non-conforming media makers and community members to showcase their work and collaborate with fellow creatives.
Academy Awards
March 10, 2024
20 Days in Mariupol, a production of FRONTLINE and The Associated Press, received an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
CIR merger
February 1, 2024
Mother Jones and The Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR) announced their merger into one nonprofit news outlet.
Democracy on Trial
January 30, 2024
The new documentary Democracy on Trial by Michael Kirk premieres on PBS on Tuesday, January 30.
Sugarcane
January 20, 2024
The documentary film Sugarcane by Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Directing Award in the U.S. Documentary category.
You Didn’t See Nothin
December 12, 2023
The Invisible Institute’s You Didn’t See Nothin has been named a top podcast of the year by multiple outlets, including Time and Apple Podcasts.
Logan Elevate Grants
November 2, 2023
The International Documentary Association announced the 2023 recipients of the Logan Elevate Grant, which supports emerging women and non-binary documentary filmmakers of color. This year’s recipients are Janay Boulos for a currently confidential project, Arya Rothe for her project Untitled and Pallavi Somusetty for Coach Emily.
McConnell, the GOP & the Court
October 31, 2023
The new FRONTLINE documentary McConnell, the GOP & the Court by Michael Kirk premieres on PBS on Tuesday, October 31.
Repairing the World
October 25, 2023
Documentary film Repairing the World: Stories from the Tree of Life by Patrice O’Neill is now available on PBS. Check your local listings for broadcast times and stream the film here.
Invisible Institute
October 10, 2023
Check out the latest investigation from the Invisible Institute: Illinois police department under fire for ‘culture’ of neglecting domestic violence reporting laws, by Farrah Anderson and Diana Leane.
Mill Valley Film Festival
October 5-15, 2023
Two JLFF-supported documentary films will premiere at the Mill Valley Film Festival: The 9 Lives of Barbara Dane by Maureen Gosling and A Double Life by Catherine Masud.
New America Fellows
Sept 19, 2023
The New America Fellows Program supports non-fiction creators working on books, films and multimedia projects. The Class of 2024 has been announced and includes two Jonathan Logan Family Foundation Fellows.
Audio Storytelling Intensive in Chicago
Sept 12 – Oct 5, 2023
The Invisible Institute and the Logan Center for the Arts at the University of Chicago are partnering to offer the Audio Storytelling Intensive, a 4-week workshop exploring the possibilities of audio storytelling.
Two Strikes and Tutwiler
September 5, 2023
Tune in to FRONTLINE on September 5 to see a documentary film collaboration between three JLFF grantees: FRONTLINE, The Marshall Project and Firelight Media. Two Strikes and Tutwiler will premiere in a two-part hour on PBS.
Online Journalism Awards
August 27, 2023
The Marshall Project and ProPublica both received honors from the Online News Association’s 2023 Online Journalism Awards.
Stop and Frisk
August 18, 2023
The podcast Stop and Frisk: Revisit or Resist by WHYY, in partnership with the Logan Center for Urban Investigative Reporting at Temple University, received regional and national Edward R. Murrow Awards.
Berkeley Film Foundation
August 15, 2023
The Berkeley Film Foundation announced the 2023 recipient of the Logan Elevate Grant, which supports emerging documentary filmmakers. This year the recipient is Thanh Tran for Finding Ma.
Jewish Film Institute
August 1, 2023
The Jewish Film Institute announced the inaugural recipient of the Envision Award, which provides substantial support to a documentary film project that explores the complexities of shared society by combating prejudice and antisemitism.
The War Horse
July 14, 2023
Congratulations to Thomas Brennan of The War Horse, who received the Lejeune Award for Exemplary Leadership from the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation.
ICT takes top honors
July 6, 2023
ICT received multiple honors from the Native American Journalists Association in the 2023 National Native Media Awards.
Silver Gavel Awards
May 24, 2023
The American Bar Association presented The Maine Monitor and the Investigative Editing Corps with a Silver Gavel Award for the series Eavesdropping in Maine Jails. Also at the Silver Gavel Awards, an honorable mention went to the documentary film American Justice on Trial.
Victim/Suspect
May 23, 2023
Victim/Suspect from the Center for Investigative Reporting is now available to stream on Netflix. The documentary film chronicles an investigation into a disturbing pattern: young women report sexual assault to the police but instead of the perpetrators being brought to justice, the women are arrested for filing a false report.
Clarence and Ginni Thomas
May 9, 2023
The new FRONTLINE documentary Clarence and Ginni Thomas: Politics, Power and the Supreme Court by Michael Kirk is now streaming on PBS.
You Didn’t See Nothin
April 19, 2023
Check out You Didn’t See Nothin, a new podcast from the Invisible Institute and USG Audio. Host Yohance Lacour revisits a 1997 hate crime on the South Side of Chicago that introduced him to the world of investigative journalism, examining how its ripple effects have shaped his own life.
Logan Photo Book Symposium
April 15, 2023
The Third Biennial Reva and David Logan Photo Book Symposium took place at UC Berkeley on April 15. The symposium brought together photographers, academics, students and collectors to celebrate the photographic book.
Blues Geographies
April 1, 2023
The Logan Center for the Arts at the University of Chicago presents Blues Geographies with virtuoso musicians Corey Harris and James Leva. This acoustic blues concert and jam session will explore the intersection of African and Celtic musical traditions.
The Movement and the ‘Madman’
March 28, 2023
Tune in to American Experience on March 28 to watch the documentary film The Movement and the ‘Madman’ which shows how antiwar protests in the fall of 1969 caused President Nixon to cancel what he called his “madman” plans for a massive escalation of the U.S. war in Vietnam, including his threats to use nuclear weapons.
Blues at the Logan Center
February 23, 2023
Join the Logan Center at the University of Chicago for You So Country!, a virtual event exploring Black rural identity and Blues music.
ProPublica
February 2, 2023
ProPublica is accepting applications for the new Editor Training Program, which aims to increase the ranks of investigative editors in the journalism industry from diverse backgrounds.
The Picture Taker
January 30, 2023
Tune in to Independent Lens on PBS on January 30 to watch the documentary film The Picture Taker, exploring the life of Memphis photographer Ernest Withers, whose legacy of recording Black history and civil rights struggles was complicated by the revelation that he worked as an FBI informant.
No Straight Lines
January 23, 2023
Tune in to Independent Lens on PBS on January 23 to watch the documentary film No Straight Lines, following the journey of five pioneering artists in the queer comics underground of the 1970s.
Victim/Suspect
January 19, 2023
Documentary film Victim/Suspect from The Center for Investigative Reporting will premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. The film follows an investigative reporter at CIR as she uncovers a nationwide pattern of young women reporting sexual assault to the police, only to be accused of fabricating their allegations.
Making Gay History
January 18, 2023
Congratulations to Making Gay History for receiving gold medal and listener’s choice Signal awards in the History category for the “Coming of Age During the AIDS Crisis” season of the podcast.
Spelman College
December 16, 2022
Spelman College announces establishment of Jonathan Logan Family Foundation Center for Documentary Media Studies
ProPublica
December 15, 2022
ProPublica launches Investigative Editor Training Program
Associated Press
December 15, 2022
AP announces sweeping democracy journalism initiative
NiemanLab Predictions for Journalism 2023
December 13, 2022
More journalism funders will take more risks by Barbara Raab, JLFF Senior Program Adviser
IDA Awards
December 10, 2022
Congratulations to Fannie Lou Hamer’s America for receiving the Best TV Feature Documentary Award at the 2022 IDA Documentary Awards.
Reveal
December 8, 2022
Reveal’s After Ayotzinapa makes the list of Best Podcasts of 2022 from the New York Times.
Howard University
November 15, 2022
Howard University’s Center for Journalism and Democracy hosted the Democracy Summit in Washington, DC.
NewsMatch
November 1, 2022
NewsMatch 2022 launches November 1 and runs through December 31: Funding drive kicks off as nonprofit newsrooms take root across America
Inside Philanthropy
October 20, 2022
The Logan Legacy: Three Brothers Carry on the Philanthropic Work Their Parents Started by Celia Wexler, Inside Philanthropy
Michael Flynn’s Holy War
October 18, 2022
The new documentary Michael Flynn’s Holy War is now streaming on FRONTLINE.
Freedom of the Press Award
October 11, 2022
Congratulations to Wendi Thomas, founding editor and publisher of MLK50: Justice Through Journalism, on receiving the 2022 Freedom of the Press Award from the Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press.
The Picture Taker premiere
October 1, 2022
The documentary film The Picture Taker by Phil Bertelsen will premiere at the Woodstock Film Festival.
IDA Getting Real
Septemer 27, 2022
The International Documentary Association’s Getting Real conference takes place from September 27-30. The theme this year is Flipping the Frame.
INN Awards
Septemer 21, 2022
Congratulations to the JLFF grantees honored by the Institute for Nonprofit News at this year’s INN Awards:
Lies, Politics and Democracy
September 6, 2022
Tune in to FRONTLINE on September 6 at 9/8c to watch Lies, Politics and Democracy, an examination of the profound and mounting threats to American democracy.
Berkeley Repertory Theatre
September 1, 2022
Berkeley Rep to open downtown housing next to theater for visiting artists by Supriya Yelimeli, Berkeleyside
Logan Elevate Grant
August 10, 2022
The International Documentary Association announced the 2022 recipients of the Logan Elevate Grant, which supports emerging women and non-binary documentary filmmakers of color. This year’s recipients are Paige Bethmann for Remaining Native, Chelsea Hernandez for The Untitled 19th* News Film and Zippy Kimundu for The White Doctor.
Logan Elevate Grant
August 4, 2022
The Berkeley Film Foundation announced the 2022 recipient of the Logan Elevate Grant, which supports emerging documentary filmmakers. This year’s recipient is Jennifer Huang for The Long Rescue.
Hidden Letters premiere
June 11, 2022
The documentary film Hidden Letters by Violet Du Feng and Zhao Qing premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York.
Administrator of the Year
May 19, 2022
David Boardman, dean of Klein College of Media and Communication at Temple University, has been named Administrator of the Year in the 2022 Scripps Howard Awards.
Pulitzer Prize finalist
May 10, 2022
The Marshall Project was a finalist in the National Reporting Category for the Pulitzer Prize for their investigation into how local government agencies throughout America pocketed Social Security benefits intended for children in foster care.
Repairing the World premieres in Pittsburgh
May 5, 2022
‘Repairing the World’ is inspiring look at Pittsburgh synagogue shooting’s aftermath by Toby Tabachnick, Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle
White House Correspondents’ Association award
April 30, 2022
The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists received the Katharine Graham Award for Courage and Accountability from the White House Correspondents’ Association.
Logan Symposium
April 29, 2022
The 14th annual Reva & David Logan Symposium on Investigative Reporting took place at UC Berkeley from April 29-30. Check out recordings of the event on YouTube.
Yvonne Latty and Julie K. Brown to join Logan Center for Urban Investigative Reporting
April 27, 2022
American Justice on Trial premiere
April 22, 2022
The documentary film American Justice on Trial by Andrew Abrahams and Herb Ferrette premiered at the San Francisco International Film Festival.
I.F. Stone Award for Journalistic Independence
April 14, 2022
Congratulations to Jamie Kalven, founder of the Invisible Institute, on receiving the I.F. Stone Award for Journalistic Independence by the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University.
Peabody nominations
April 14, 2022
Peabody Award nominations announced for Storm Lake in the Documentary Film category and Reveal’s Mississippi Goddam: The Ballad of Billey Joe in the Podcast & Radio category.
Spirit of Folk Award
April 7, 2022
Congratulations to Eugene Rodriguez, founder of Los Cenzontles Cultural Arts Academy, on receiving a Spirit of Folk Award from Folk Alliance International. The award honors Eugene’s lifelong commitment to preserving and promoting folk traditions through music, youth arts education, media production and community engagement.
IRE Award
April 6, 2022
Reveal’s ‘Mississippi Goddam: The Ballad of Billey Joe’ Wins IRE Award
Imagining the Indian premiere
April 3, 2022
The documentary film Imagining the Indian: The Fight Against Native American Mascoting by Aviva Kempner and Ben West premiered at California’s American Indian and Indigenous Film Festival.
Plot to Overturn the Election
March 29, 2022
Plot to Overturn the Election by Sam Black is available to watch now on PBS. In this new investigative collaboration, FRONTLINE and ProPublica trace the hidden sources of misinformation about the 2020 election, demonstrating how a handful of people have had an outsized impact on the current U.S. crisis of democratic legitimacy.
Spark Fund
March 23, 2022
Congratulations to Yvonne Welbon, founder of Sisters in Cinema, who has been selected as a recipient of Firelight Media’s Spark Fund. This is a one-time opportunity underwritten by the National Endowment for the Humanities to provide stipends to established BIPOC filmmakers whose work was disrupted by the pandemic.
NAACP Image Awards
February 25, 2022
Congratulations to Abby Ginzberg’s film Barbara Lee: Speaking Truth to Power on winning the NAACP Image Award in the Outstanding Documentary Category. The awards show will air on BET on Saturday, February 26 at 8pm ET/PT.
Report for America on 60 Minutes
February 24, 2022
Tune in to 60 Minutes on CBS on Sunday, February 27 at 7pm ET/PT to watch a special segment about the fight to save local journalism, featuring Report for America.
Fannie Lou Hamer’s America
February 22, 2022
Tune in to American ReFramed on PBS on Tuesday, February 22 at 10pm ET for the premiere of Fannie Lou Hamer’s America, a documentary film about one of the Civil Rights Movement’s lesser-known leaders, a fearless Mississippi sharecropper-turned-human-rights-activist.
Howard University grant announcement
February 22, 2022
Black Press Archives at Howard University Gets Preserved, Digitized Thanks to $2M Grant
Big Sky Documentary Film Festival
February 18-27, 2022
Sara Terry’s documentary A Decent Home has been selected as the opening night film at the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival in Montana. The film will also be available to stream from February 21 – 24.
Ambies Podcast Awards
February 16, 2022
The Making Gay History podcast has been nominated by the Podcast Academy for an Ambie Award in the Best History Podcast category. The awards ceremony will be live streamed on March 22, 2022 at 6pm PT.
American Reckoning
February 15, 2022
Tune in to FRONTLINE on February 15 at 10/9c for American Reckoning. This documentary film is part of FRONTLINE’s Un(re)solved initiative, telling stories of more than 150 victims of civil rights era killings for whom there has been no justice.
NAACP Image Awards
January 18, 2022
Abby Ginzberg’s documentary film Barbara Lee: Speaking Truth to Power has been nominated for an NAACP Image Award. The awards show will air Saturday, February 26 at 8pm ET on BET.
Top podcasts of the year
December 27, 2021
Three podcasts from JLFF grantees made The Atlantic’s list of the 50 best podcasts of 2021: Making Gay History, La Brega, and Mississippi Goddam: The Ballad of Billey Joe.
Top docs of the year
December 16, 2021
Congratulations to Andrew Burton and Michael Kirby-Smith, whose film Newtok was named one of the best documentaries of the year by Esquire magazine.
Firelight Media
December 14, 2021
Check out this interview with Marcia Smith, president and co-founder of Firelight Media: Ignore Anyone Who Tells You to Wait Your Turn by Danielle Cohen, The Cut
Making Gay History
December 14, 2021
Congratulations to Eric Marcus of the Making Gay History podcast for receiving a 2022 Alumni Award from the Columbia Journalism School.
Queer Cinema Project
December 14, 2021
San Francisco State student Sarah Taborga’s thesis project from the JLFF-supported Queer Cinema Project aired on PBS. The project is titled Dear Queer Dancer and you can read more about it in SF State’s magazine.
Logan Symposium on the Artist’s Book
December 4-5, 2021
Tune in for the hybrid in-person and virtual 2021 Logan Symposium on the Artist’s Book at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco.
DOC NYC Film Festival
Starting November 10, 2021
Two documentary films supported by JLFF are featured at this year’s hybrid in-person and virtual DOC NYC film festival: A Decent Home and Newtok.
NewsMatch 2021
JLFF is proud to support NewsMatch, the annual campaign to support news organizations covering the issues that matter most. Through December 31, donations to hundreds of nonprofit organizations will be matched 1:1. Join us in supporting this valuable cause at NewsMatch.org.
IDA Logan Elevate grants
November 3, 2021
The International Documentary Association’s Logan Elevate Grants support emerging women filmmakers of color working on investigative projects. Congratulations to the 2021 recipients, Ilse Fernandez and Rintu Thomas.
Logan Center Bluesfest 2021
October 15-17, 2021
The Logan Center at the University of Chicago presents Bluesfest 2021. This year’s hybrid model will feature select in-person programming, and all programming will be live-streamed for free. The live stream will be available to view through October 24.
Firelight Media
September 27, 2021
Firelight Media announced the 2021 recipients of the JLFF-supported William Greaves Fund for mid-career documentary filmmakers of color.
Reveal’s American Rehab podcast
August 17, 2021
American Rehab wins Murrow award for best podcast
Berkeley Film Foundation Logan Elevate grant
July 29, 2021
The Berkeley Film Foundation announced the 2021 recipient of the Jonathan Logan Family Foundation Elevate Award for emerging filmmakers. This year’s award goes to A Thousand Pines by Sebastián Díaz Aguirre, a documentary following a group of Mexican seasonal workers for a nine-month tree planting season through the American South.
Announcing partnership with Temple University
July 20, 2021
Klein College Establishes Logan Center for Urban Investigative Reporting
Making Gay History
July 1, 2021
The award-winning Making Gay History podcast will debut its ninth season, “Coming of Age During the AIDS Crisis,” on July 1. Listen to a preview.
Peabody Awards for JLFF Grantees
June 24, 2021
Congratulations to Crip Camp, Welcome to Chechnya and FRONTLINE’s Whose Vote Counts on receiving prestigious Peabody Awards.
Pulitzer Prizes for JLFF Grantees
June 11, 2021
Congratulations to the following JLFF grantees for being recognized in this year’s Pulitzer Prize awards:
The Jonathan Logan Family Foundation’s logo for use by the press or grantees can be found here.