[1] The Bay Citizen was part of a small but growing number of similar news organizations across the country dedicated to locally focused public service journalism, including Voice of San Diego, Texas Tribune, and MinnPost.

In early 2009 billionaire investor and Bay Area philanthropist Warren Hellman convened an advisory committee to explore a solution to the lack of strong local journalism.

[1] Lisa Frazier, formerly the head of McKinsey & Company’s West Coast Media and Entertainment practice, was appointed President and CEO.

[citation needed] Don Fisher, Gap founder, and Value Act CEO Jeff Ubben donated $1 million each, but the site also raised money from less wealthy and prominent donors.

[5] The Bay Citizen alongside The Texas Tribune also recently received a joint $975,000 grant from the Knight Foundation to develop an open source publishing platform tailored for nonprofit news organizations.