As I write this letter, a Global Press reporter in Puerto Rico is appearing on a local radio station to ensure her recent story reaches people in a rural area. Tonight, a reporter in Zimbabwe is going on a local television broadcast to ensure she reaches local teachers and civil servants. In Mongolia and Mexico, our local audience liaisons just secured ongoing partnerships with top national news sites. This busy day sums up 2023 in a nutshell: We deeply invested in our local audiences. As you'll see in the pages that follow, we grew our media partnerships by 430% in 2023.

Overall, 2023 was a banner year for Global Press. We produced exceptional stories on some of the world's most pressing issues. We built nine new bureaus. We launched a new impact-tracking framework and debuted a powerhouse team of local audience liaisons. We debuted a new, proximate editorial leadership structure. And we raised more than $6 million, with 100% of our donors renewing their support and a host of new supporters joining our quest to build a more informed and inclusive world.

For me personally, 2023 was full of new opportunities. My first book, “Byline,” sold out in its first run and took me around the country on a book tour that raised everything from awareness to money to newsletter subscribers for Global Press. Being on the road for two months with my 3-year-old son and Global Press' incredible impact analyst, Fortune Moyo, was a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

I wrote “Byline” in an effort to seize a moment in time; that fleeting post-pandemic moment where people were already forgetting the incredible storytelling that local reporters around the world contributed when foreign correspondents were stuck at home. I wanted to freeze time in the pages of the book to remind newsroom leaders to keep caring about safety and security and to continue investing in inclusive storytelling. And I wanted to pull back the curtain on international journalism, to give this generation of activated news consumers the tools they need to critically consume stories from around the world, ensuring that the news they choose is dignified and precise.

As we charge into 2024, Global Press is more prepared than ever to meet the moment. We're debuting new topical verticals, three investigative columns and a brand new design for Global Press Journal. We've created new certificate and fellowship programs to scale our training offerings like never before. And we're continuing to deeply invest in audience development with new and transparent metrics that will showcase how our unique strategy seeds the ground for impact by prioritizing some of the hardest-to-reach audiences on Earth.

This year, Global Press will celebrate its 18th anniversary. I recently found an old blog entry that I wrote in 2006 just after Global Press was born. The last line reads: "I want to always be sure that [Global Press] is of service to the people in the communities it covers. They deserve a news source that sees them fully and values them completely in a way that only local reporters can." In the pages of this annual report you'll hear from more than 50 local readers, government officials and media partners who affirm that we're doing just that.

I have never been prouder of the work we are doing or the way we are doing it. And I am endlessly grateful for your support.

— Cristi

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