By Melissa Milios Davis
Dear CMP supporters, friends and colleagues: Today I'm excited to share some personal and professional news.
This fall, after nearly five years as CMP Director, I will be stepping into a new role within our broader coalition as Network Manager for Press Forward – the national philanthropic campaign to strengthen communities by reinvigorating local news. You can read more in a Q&A here – including just a few of the many lessons from Colorado I’ll take with me.
You may recall that earlier this year, Colorado Media Project was named one of Press Forward’s first local chapters. As Network Manager, I will lead efforts to engage Press Forward's diverse array of aligned funders, who collectively have committed more than $500 million to catalyze a local news renaissance that reshapes the local news landscape and re-centers local journalism and civic information as forces for community cohesion, public participation, and government accountability.
I’m deeply honored that in this new role I’ll get to remain connected to many of the people and organizations in Colorado and across the U.S. who are working to rebuild and reinvigorate a healthier public square. Our CMP executive committee of funders is strong and supportive of this transition, and the Gates Family Foundation — where I’ve served as Vice President for Strategic Communications and Informed Communities for the past 7.5 years — remains deeply committed to working with our foundation peers and grantees to strengthen local news as a public good to support informed and engaged communities.
“Melissa’s leadership with CMP and beyond have been such an essential part of growing the state’s media ecosystem and the current, thriving energy among funders in Colorado. We are thrilled that her engagement and expertise will continue to benefit philanthropy, albeit on the national stage. And, we are equally excited that she will remain associated with the important work happening in Colorado. The Colorado Health Foundation is proud to be a funder of CMP and we look forward to continued work together on initiatives that are building more trusted local news and deeper relationships between newsrooms and sectors of community that are essential for health and democracy in every community in Colorado.”
Sam Moody, CMP’s Associate Director, will remain on point for all things CMP, and Kyle Huelsman of Advocacy Rising recently joined the CMP team to work with our partners on public policy. A new CMP Director position (hosted by Rose Community Foundation) will be posted soon, and this fall Gates Family Foundation will hire a new VP at Gates to oversee strategic communications and media grantmaking. I hope you will help us think about folks to recommend for both of these staff positions.
I also hope this news adds winds to everyone’s sails — as it just shows that Colorado’s unique and collaborative local news ecosystem is on the radar nationwide as a place to watch and learn from. Transitions are never easy, but I’m proud of what we’ve built here in Colorado, together since 2018 — and excited to continue sharing our learning to strengthen the field.
In fact, you can meet and hear directly from Colorado’s local news leaders on August 22 in Thornton, at the CMP Summit — where we’ll be spotlighting the impact of our grantees and partners. We’ll also hear from Press Forward Associate Director Christina Shih, and Silvia Rivera, MacArthur Foundation’s Director of Local News Programs, about how to get involved or go deeper with this nationwide renaissance in local news.
I am excited to continue this important work alongside you. See you soon — and don’t forget to RSVP today for the August 22 CMP Summit. Seating is limited!
Sincerely,
Melissa Milios Davis
Director, Colorado Media Project
Vice President, Gates Family Foundation