Building The 51st

Community Connections

An update from our Ward 7 Community Connector

While we have a snapshot of what residents want from local news, we have so much more to learn.

Blue yard sign saying 'This House Supports Federal Workers' against a brick wall with a green bush in front.

Building The 51st

Your support helps The 51st show up for federal workers

...and the city. It's going to take everyone doing what they can.

A collection of twitter post screenshots, showing updates stressing the importance of a long-term public archive of the site.

Building The 51st

It's been one year since DCist was shut down

Here's what we've grown thanks to you, and what's needed to keep going.

A flyer that reads 'Local Journalism Makes People's Lives Better' and goodie bags with 51st stickers and buttons.

Building The 51st

Local News Shouldn’t Rely on Algorithms—That’s Where You Come In

The 51st is powered by community in all sorts of ways.

Trumps face spray painted in white on a red wall with #LOCKER ROOM POTUS next to it.

Building The 51st

Two days in and some things we know for sure

I can’t shake the image of the president being sworn in, flanked by some of the richest men in the world. The tech billionaires surrounding Donald Trump on Monday have all had a hand – some more than others – in degrading the local and national media landscape, resulting in fewer

Building The 51st

3 Months, 81,000 Readers and 60 Stories. Here's What's Next.

We're only 68 members away from our goal of 2000 needed by 2025!

Sunlight hits a row of buildings on 18th St in Adams Morgan.

Building The 51st

A New Chapter, Two Decades in the Making

Back in 2005, only a few years into what I assumed would be a brief residence in D.C., I started writing for what was then a small blog. DCist had no full-time or paid writers; we all did it as a labor of love when our day jobs were

The door to the Reginald F. Lewis Museum in Baltimore, with a placard for 'Witness: Media & The Movement'

Building The 51st

A Reciprocal Relationship

I recently visited an exhibit at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum in Baltimore about how Black media played a role in the Civil Rights Movement. It highlighted publications like the Baltimore AFRO American newspaper and journalists like Moses Newson, who risked their lives to shed light on the horrors Black

Photo showing strips of many different colors and patterns weaved together. In the foreground, tucked into some of the fabr

Building The 51st

Our people-powered news needs more people

Hey There, Eric Falquero here, one of The 51st co-founders and resident numbers guy. I ran partnerships for the WAMU/DCist local newsroom and was one of the 17 workers abruptly fired in February. Before that, I helped lead the Street Sense newsroom for a decade. Building The 51st has

Colorful newspaper boxes in various states of knocked over along a sidewalk in D.C.

Building The 51st

This is my nightmare — but hear me out

Hi there, Colleen here. 51st cofounder and reporter, formerly of DCist and WAMU. As your inbox probably suggests, it’s Giving Tuesday — that special day when every nonprofit you’ve ever given your email to reaches out with an open palm. Well, surprise, we’re going to do that too!

Building The 51st

Thank you for funding this hyper-local dream

Hey folks, It's Christina here, with a quick story: At the top of 2024 — after working six years as a freelance journalist — I decided to search for a full-time job. Like most reporters who’ve spent more than a decade in the field, I yearned for something new.

A mural painted in D.C., there are four children tending to the soil, with vibrant greens growing out of the earth.

Building The 51st

Help The 51st grow — for free!

We’ve been publishing for almost two months (!) and growing The 51st with you has been thrilling. Our progress has been heartening, and each day this dream of growing a sustainable worker-led newsroom for D.C. feels more and more possible. The crowdfunding campaign gave us the runway we needed