One year of publishing The 51st
And what a year it's been!
This week marks one year since The 51st began publishing. In that time, we’ve published hundreds of news articles, explainers, and profiles that help District residents make sense of the moment we’re living in while taking pride in the people, places, and traditions that make our city special.
Can you believe it’s been a whole year? As The 51st’s Executive Editor, I can’t!
Last August, I told my husband that some former colleagues asked me to join a worker-led local newsroom they were launching, and I wanted in. He asked if I thought it would last for more than a few months. Over my seven years freelancing, he’d seen that was often the track record for startups. But I needed a more stable job for my family.
At that point, thanks to all the generous believers who donated to our crowdfunding campaign, The 51st was funded through January 2025. But when the new year came, thanks to the 2,000+ readers who had stepped up as paying members, our newsroom was able to forge forward — just in time to report on an administration change that’s impacted our city in ways we’ve never experienced.
Being an independent news source, able to cover this historic moment — free from billionaire owner meddling — has been vital. We’re only beholden to readers like you.
We couldn’t have predicted this moment, but we’re so glad that we’re here — and growing.
With your support, I was able to join The 51st full-time as Executive Editor this summer alongside our first full-time Senior Reporter, Martin Austermuhle. Together, with a team of freelance editors, writers, and Community Connectors, we’ve produced even more journalism to meet this moment.
To mark our one-year anniversary, we’ve got an ambitious goal to bring on 551 new members in the month of October. Join today to keep The 51st’s reporting strong for years to come!
If you’re already a member, THANK YOU! You can help us reach this goal: Tell one friend why you support The 51st, and ask them to join, too. If only one in six of them follows through, we can reach our goal — and even bigger plans for the newsroom to come.
Christina Sturdivant Sani, The 51st Executive Editor
