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The newsrooms join an existing partnership of news outlets that provide a free source of in-depth local and regional journalism across the Mississippi River Basin, which stretches from Canada to Louisiana and Montana to Pennsylvania. Founded in 2021, the Ag & Water Desk is an editorially independent initiative based at the Missouri School of Journalism, and serves 70 million people in 31 states. The project has received major grants from the Walton Family Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation and Press Forward.
The Ag & Water Desk network enables reporters to share resources, coordinate coverage of regional stories, and bring local perspectives to basin-wide issues. Corps members receive training, mentorship and support while working alongside experienced local journalists.
The new partnerships build on the Desk's recent recognition as a LION Publishers 2025 Collaboration of the Year. Also in 2025, the Desk published its biggest collaborative project yet, "Down the Drain: A watershed moment for America's greatest wetlands," and welcomed our new editorial director, Chas Sisk.
"Adding these six newsrooms — and the talented young journalists who will fill these positions — will allow us to do even more innovative collaborations," Sisk said. "By combining organizations that are native to print, audio and video, we'll be able to go deeper into the stories of people living in the Mississippi River Basin."
All stories by the Desk are free to republish by any newsroom. Sign up here.
About the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk
The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk is an independent reporting network based at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, in partnership with Report For America and the Society of Environmental Journalists, with major funding from the Walton Family Foundation. The mission of the Ag & Water Desk is to enhance the quantity, quality and impact of journalism on agriculture, water and related issues throughout the nation's largest watershed.
About Report for America
Report for America recruits, places and supports talented journalists in local newsrooms across the United States. We provide salary support, training, and newsroom sustainability coaching, enabling our partners to expand coverage on critical, often overlooked issues and strengthen trust with their audiences. Report for America's journalist-first model offers a practical, hopeful solution to rebuilding local news — one community at a time. Report for America is an initiative of Report Local, a nonprofit journalism organization dedicated to strengthening local journalism across the U.S. and around the world.
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