The News Literacy Project is a nonpartisan education nonprofit that works with teachers, school districts, states and community partners like libraries and after-school clubs to ensure students in all 50 states receive news literacy instruction before they graduate from high school.
“The News Literacy Project is one of the most important public service organizations in the nation.”
Pierre Thomas, ABC News Senior Justice Correspondent
What is news literacy?
News literacy is the ability to judge whether news and other information is trustworthy. It is a key life skill and an important part of any media literacy, digital literacy or civics education program. It prepares students to:
- Understand why a free press matters in a democracy.
- Tell the difference between reliable news and false or misleading information.
- Spot their own bias and look for facts — not just information that supports what they already believe.
- Use trustworthy information to make informed choices in daily life.
Our values
What we believe:
- News literacy, an essential life skill, is fundamentally nonpartisan.
- Facts matter.
- A free press is a cornerstone of democracy.
How we achieve what we believe:
- Independence and nonpartisanship.
- Innovation.
- Inclusion and diversity.
- Collaboration.
The challenge
Misinformation is everywhere, causing real harm by dividing communities and eroding trust. Most students aren’t taught the critical thinking and news literacy skills they need to navigate today’s world — in school, at work or in daily life.
Our solution
We believe every K-12 student should learn news literacy just as they do math or English. That is why our goal is bold and ambitious: Make news literacy part of required learning nationwide. As the leader in this work, NLP has the experience and reach to help make this a reality. Students who learn news literacy in middle and high school are better able to spot false or misleading content, identify credible sources and think carefully about the information they use. These skills help them push back against misinformation and make informed choices that shape their futures — and our society.
Long-term social impact
2.5 million students guaranteed news literacy instruction before high school graduation through NLP’s direct support of state and district initiatives.
Short-term direct impact
3.5 million students taught news literacy skills using NLP resources.*
20,000 educators in more than one-third of all U.S. public school districts using NLP’s resources to teach news literacy.
*Since 2016, when we launched Checkology®, our digital learning platform.
From the start, leading the way
Since NLP was founded in 2008, we’ve expanded our reach and built the expertise to be a leader in the field of news literacy. How we got here:
2008
Start-up funding
NLP is founded with a $250,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
2009
NYC and Chicago
NLP launches its in-person classroom program at Williamsburg Collegiate Charter School in Brooklyn and then expands to Chicago.
2010
Fall forum kick-off
NLP holds the first of many fall forums featuring well-respected journalists.
2011 – 2012 school year
Expansion to D.C.
NLP expands into the District of Columbia.
2013
Chronicling success
The Chronicle of Philanthropy features NLP as an example of a nonprofit that survived and thrived despite launching during the 2008 recession.
2013 – 2014 school year
Teaching the teachers
NLP offers the first series of online professional development workshops for teachers nationwide.
2014 – 2015 school year
Expansion to Houston
NLP expands to Houston with a pilot classroom program.
2016 – 2017 school year
Introducing Checkology®
NLP launches its e-learning platform, making news literacy education available to schools nationwide.
2017 – 2018 school year
Organizational milestones
NLP introduces its weekly educator newsletter, The Sift®.
NLP’s website, Newslit.org reaches more than 129,000 visitors for the year, a record.
More than 106,000 students have now been taught news literacy skills using NLP resources (since 2016).
NLP’s budget grows to $3 million and a staff of 10.
2018 – 2019 school year
10-year anniversary
NLP releases an upgraded and expanded version of Checkology.
The organization marks its 10-year anniversary
2019 – 2020 school year
Growing awareness
NLP removes its nominal paywall on Checkology in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, making the platform free to all educators, students and families.
NLP launches its podcast, Is that a fact?, with an inaugural 10-episode season featuring conversations with experts working to combat misinformation.
NLP hosts its inaugural National News Literacy Week, a campaign that defines news literacy and its importance for educators, students and the public and offering tools for them to improve their news literacy skills.
2020 – 2021 school year
Professional acknowledgment
NLP produces a new two-part Checkology lesson on conspiratorial thinking.
NLP launches an online resource library for educators, including lesson plans, classroom activities, posters and infographics, quizzes and more.
NLP earns the Best Digital Tools for Teaching & Learning designation for Checkology by the American Association of School Librarians.
2021 – 2022 school year
Expansion accelerates
NLP develops more news literacy education content than at any time since the launch of Checkology in 2016, including three science-related lessons and an editorial cartooning lesson.
NLP’s founder Alan C. Miller is awarded AARP’s Purpose Prize.
More than 1.6 million users visit Newslit.org.
More than 370,000 students have now been taught using NLP resources (since 2016).
NLP’s increases its budget to $5.7 million and a staff of 31.
2022
$10 million commitment
Melanie and Richard Lundquist, co-founders of the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools and two of California’s most significant philanthropists, announce a $10 million commitment to NLP, the largest donation in the organization’s 14-year history.
2022 – 2023 school year
15-year anniversary
NLP produces a new Checkology lesson, “Harm & Distrust,” which explores the history of racist mainstream news coverage of Black Americans to put the larger issue into focus.
NLP publishes its Framework for Teaching News Literacy, a guide for educators with common standards, essential questions, knowledge and skills objectives.
NLP launches RumorGuard®, a new platform that teaches people how to identify credible information and debunk viral rumors.
NLP pilots its District Fellowship program as the most effective way to integrate news literacy instruction into districtwide curriculum. Fellowship models became a guide for other districts to follow.
2023 – 2024 school year
More accolades
NLP is awarded The David M. Rubenstein Prize, the highest honor from the Library of Congress Literacy Awards Program.
Checkology is awarded the Webby People’s Voice Award from the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences.
NLP’s RumorGuard is awarded the Best Digital Tools for Teaching & Learning designation as an innovative fact-checking tool by the American Association of School Librarians.
2024 – 2025 school year
News literacy research
NLP publishes its first original study, News Literacy in America: A survey of teen information attitudes, habits and skills.
NLP announces its first National News Literacy Conference for educators, to be held in Utah in October 2026.
More than 1.4 million students have now been taught using NLP resources (since 2016).
NLP’s budget grows to $9.3 million and its staff expands to 47.
2025 – 2026 school year
Checkology now on Clever
NLP releases an enhanced version of Checkology, consolidating all its educator resources on the platform, which is now a one-stop shop for teaching news literacy.
NLP launches Checkology on Clever, the second most-used edtech platform in K-12 education, further expanding its reach.