The Kansas City Defender

Kansas City Defender
Owner(s)Institute for Nonprofit News[1]
Founder(s)Ryan Sorrell
PublisherRyan Sorrell
FoundedJuly 2021 (2021-07)[2]
CityKansas City metropolitan area
CountryUnited States
Websitekansascitydefender.com

The Kansas City Defender is a news outlet primarily by and for African-American youth, especially in the Kansas City metropolitan area and the Midwestern United States more generally.[1] They won the 2022 Community Engagement Award from Local Independent Online News (LION) Publishers for "engaging Black youth both in digital spaces, and real-life community events. Their stories on racism in schools sparked national coverage and conversations.[3] Among other things, they work to understand the differences between the different audiences on different social media platforms and how to tailor their content to maximize the engagement of those different audiences.[4]

Kansas City Defender founder and publisher, Ryan Sorrell, insists, "young people are not unreachable. They are very interested in news. It just has to be produced and packaged the right way for them to be interested in consuming it".[5] Defender community engagement efforts have included basketball park takeovers[2] and grocery buyouts.[6] Among other things, they speak directly to high school age youth, writing about them and their concerns and inviting them to contribute content.[7]

  1. ^ a b The World’s Most Innovative Black News Startup, The Kansas City Defender, Wikidata Q116193297
  2. ^ a b James Anderson (11 August 2022). "The Kansas City Defender is a nonprofit news site for young Black audiences across the Midwest". Nieman Lab. Wikidata Q116194176.
  3. ^ "Meet the winners of the 2022 LION Local Journalism Awards". LION Publishers. 28 October 2022. Wikidata Q116194094.
  4. ^ Ryan Sorrell; Spencer Graves (22 November 2022). "Kansas City Defender founder Ryan Sorrell explains why you should care". Radio Active Magazine. Wikidata Q116194338.
  5. ^ Victoria Holmes (15 November 2022). "The Kansas City Defender, reaching young Black communities currently underserved by mainstream media". Editor & Publisher. ISSN 0013-094X. Wikidata Q116194691.
  6. ^ "Kansas City 'Defender' Blog Offers Giveaway After Spreading False Serial Killer Rumor". Tony's Kansas City. 11 October 2022. Wikidata Q116194908.
  7. ^ Lauren Kaljur (7 June 2022). "This is what a youth-led editorial agenda looks like". small press. Wikidata Q116196452.