Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism

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Video: Demonstrators At South Bay Call For Justice In Shacoby Kenny Killing

The latest on the escalating situation in the Suffolk County Sheriff's Department

Protesters rallied outside South Bay House of Correction last Friday, calling again for justice in the December killing of Shacoby Kenny. (Read prior BINJ coverage here). Kenny’s death was ruled a homicide by the state medical examiner’s office…

ABOUT

The Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism supports the development and production of independent news—here at BINJ.News, our weekly magazine covering Boston and environs, and by syndicating our award-winning reporting to news outlets around Massachusetts and the nation.

BINJ achieves its mission by: providing organizational support to community publications; running reporting collaborations and civic engagement initiatives; training promising journalists; and producing bold independent journalism.

LATEST NEWS

Editor’s Note: Half Off Again This Week

Leads to major donors appreciated while I mull over BINJ’s funding strategy

JASON PRAMAS

I’m taking another one of my pseudo-vacations this week—kind of half working and half not. And I’m thinking about ways to increase the ranks of BINJ’s major donors in my down time. So, if anyone has any bright…

A Unique Psychedelic Lifeline Out Of Massachusetts

Michou Olivera on fighting addiction using psilocybin and building a grassroots alternative to corporate psychedelic care

ALLIE RUDEN

Michou Olivera had a vision. While homeless and tripping on three-and-a-half grams of Golden Teacher mushrooms, she saw her future: hundreds of people coming to her for mushrooms and help with their psychological, physical, and spiritual needs. The…

In Cambridge, Pasta And The Possibilities Of Autism Employment

While AI job screening, lack of accessibility, and funding cuts create steep hurdles for neurodivergent job seekers, local programs and inclusive employers fight to connect applicants with opportunities

MADISON LUCCHESI

Julia Agostino places three bags of pasta into a bright yellow box marked with the tagline “Made with love … and 'tism.” There’s ruffled cresti di gallo noodles, deep-grooved radiatori, and spiral trottole. The pasta bags, all of…

Editor’s Note: BINJ Turns 11!

Thanks to the thousands of supporters who have helped us to keep reporting on key issues of the day in the public interest!

JASON PRAMAS

I am pleased to announce that the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism turned 11 years old this week! On June 30, 2015, Chris Faraone, John Loftus, and I met at a now-long-shuttered Cambridge bar and agreed to found…

Opinion: The Black Response On The Matter Of ShotSpotter In Cambridge

“The organizing labor of Black and brown grassroots leaders has largely been erased from public narratives.”

THE BLACK RESPONSE

Note: The following op-ed was submitted to the Boston Globe for publication on May 28, 2026 but never published. Two years ago, our organization, The Black Response, initiated a campaign to stop use of ShotSpotter in our community.…

BINJ.NEWS IN YOUR INBOX

The Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism produces bold investigative reporting that challenges powerful interests and lifts up the voices of marginalized people. BINJ publishes high-quality journalism by experienced reporters as well as talented and highly motivated college students whom we train and mentor. Our reporting and analysis fills the gaps left by the mainstream media in Greater Boston and throughout Massachusetts, focusing on prisons, policing, surveillance, housing, the environment, arts, media and other critical issues facing our city and state.