Our Mission:
Empower.
To fund enterprise journalism projects focused on LGBTQ and other underrepresented communities and to create scholarships for LGBTQ journalists.
Our Mission
The Washington Blade was founded in 1969 as the country’s first gay newspaper and would later be described by the New York Times as the “paper of record for the LGBT community.”
The weekly print edition continues nearly 50 years later along with robust digital and mobile outlets. The Los Angeles Blade was launched in 2017. The Blade has won dozens of awards for its journalism and is the only alternative publication that is a member of the White House press pool. The Blade is a credentialed member of the White House Press Corps and White House Correspondents Association. The paper’s mission is to cover the LGBT community and movement in D.C. and around the world to advance understanding of the challenges and legal disadvantages facing LGBT people.
The Blade Foundation was founded in 2010 initially to fund the digitization of the full 47-year print and photo archive of the paper to make it free and publicly accessible. With that work well underway, the Foundation is shifting its focus to raising money to fund enterprise journalism projects in areas where LGBTQ advocacy work and visibility remain limited. Additional projects include funding a scholarship/fellowship program for aspiring college-aged LGBTQ journalists.
Our Impact
The Washington Blade has been traveling the world since 2013 covering LGBT issues in areas where LGBT advocacy work and visibility remain limited. With the support of the Blade Foundation the Blade has been able to extend its reach.
12+
Countries visited
The Washington Blade has visited countries including Cuba, Dominican Repubic, Honduras and more.
125+
Stories on LGBT Issues
The Washington Blade has written over 125 articles highlighting LGBT issues in these countries where LGBT advocacy work and visibility remain limited.
6+
foreign freelance correspondents
The Washington Blade has correspondents in countries such as El Salvador, Chile and Brazil reporting on LGBT issues.