California’s proposed 2026–27 state budget eliminates funding for two programs that have provided critical support to ethnic and community news outlets across the state — a move that advocates warn could devastate newsrooms that serve millions of Californians who rely on trusted, in-language and community-centered journalism.
The governor’s budget proposal zeros out funding for both the Propel Initiative and the California Local News Fellowship, leaving organizations that serve Black, immigrant, Latino, and other historically underserved communities without the state support they received in recent years.
The Propel Initiative — a partnership among American Community Media, California Black Media, the Latino Media Collaborative, and the Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education — had been funded through the state budget to strengthen ethnic and community media outlets that collectively reach more than 20 million Californians.
“At a moment when immigrant communities and other historically underserved Californians need trusted information more than ever, these programs are helping strengthen local journalism across the state,” the Propel Initiative partners said in a joint statement.
The California Local News Fellowship, which has operated since receiving initial legislative support in 2022, focuses on training and placing early-career journalists in local newsrooms — building the next generation of reporters while strengthening coverage in communities often overlooked by mainstream media.
