Abbreviation | FJM Foundation |
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Formation | June 26, 2019 |
Founders | |
Type | Nonprofit organization 501(c)(3) |
Purpose | Establishment of a memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., to commemorate journalists |
Headquarters | Washington, D.C., United States |
Method | Donations |
Key people |
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Website | www |
The Fallen Journalists Memorial Foundation (FJM Foundation) exists to construct a permanent memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., to honor fallen journalists.[1] The effort was launched as an initiative of the Tribune Publishing Company by its chairman, David Dreier, at the National Press Club Journalism Institute in June 2019. That marked the first anniversary of the deadliest assault against journalists in United States history.[2][3] On June 28, 2018, a gunman killed five employees in the newsroom of Tribune's Capital Gazette in Annapolis, Maryland.[4][5]
Dreier, who is a former senior member of the United States House of Representatives (1981–2013) and a longtime champion of press freedoms, has said that he looks forward to leading this multi-year effort to its completion.[6][2][3]
The only memorial commemorating journalists located in Washington, D.C., resided at the Newseum, which closed at the end of 2019.[7] Dreier has said that, in addition to the mass shooting at the Capital Gazette in 2018, the closing of the Newseum provided inspiration for the FJM project.[8]
The Annenberg Foundation and the Michael and Jackie Ferro Foundation have provided initial funds for the FJM Foundation.[9]