“Acronym created The Courier Newsroom, a syndicate of regional 'news' sites (operating 10 sites), and after the 2020 election Acronym spun off The Courier to Good Information Inc., which is owned/controlled by Tara McGowan.”
Attributed to RedState (Brad Slager)
The piece describes The Courier as an operation set up by Acronym to run multiple regionally named outlets (it says the Courier currently operates 10 sites) and claims Acronym later transferred ownership to Good Information Inc./The Good Information Project tied to Tara McGowan.
What the proof shows
Public records and contemporaneous reporting show ACRONYM organized and majority-owned Courier Newsroom when it was formed in March 2019, and reporting from October 2021 documents that Good Information Inc. (a public benefit corporation led by Tara McGowan) acquired Courier from ACRONYM. The claim that Courier operated "10 sites" is broadly consistent with how Courier and its sub-sites described the network (many state pages refer to a 10‑state network), though counts have varied over time (8 in 2021, ~10–11 in 2023–2024 and larger later). The core factual elements (ACRONYM launched/owned Courier; ownership moved to Good Information Inc.; Good Information is tied to Tara McGowan) are supported, but the precise number of state sites depends on date and thus needs that context.
Corrected version
ACRONYM launched Courier Newsroom in 2019 and initially owned it. In October 2021 Good Information Inc., a public benefit corporation led by Tara McGowan, acquired Courier. The network has expanded over time — it had roughly 8 sites in 2021 and was described as operating about 10–11 state newsrooms around mid‑2024 (and has continued to grow since).
Automated evidence confidence: 0%
References and proof
Every link was reachable when published. Each proof point states how that source bears on the claim.
MUR 7789 — First General Counsel’s Report (Courier Newsroom, Inc., et al.) ↗
Federal Election CommissionPublic records indicate that [Courier] was organized in Delaware on March 21, 2019 ... Courier represents that it is a for-profit media company that is majority owned by Acronym, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization.
Courier Newsroom Spent Big on a Meta Ad Blitz in October ↗
Columbia Journalism Review (Tow Center)In 2021, Good Information Inc., a public benefit corporation owned by McGowan, acquired Courier; its funding has since been largely unavailable to the public.
About Us — The Gander (a Courier newsroom) ↗
The Gander / Courier Newsroom (official site)The Gander is owned and operated by Courier Newsroom, a civic media company with 10 state-based newsrooms across the country. Courier Newsroom is a public benefit corporation owned by Good Information Inc.
COURIER turns five! ↗
Courier Newsroom (official site)Now, five years later, COURIER has eleven state newsrooms: Arizona, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
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