Introducing the News Revenue Ad Network: A mission-aligned approach to sustainable advertising
The News Revenue Hub is proud to announce the launch of the News Revenue Ad Network, a new advertising initiative built to support trusted newsrooms and deliver meaningful results for brands. The network’s inaugural campaign goes live in June, and the network has grown to more than 100 newsletters across 41 mission-driven newsrooms, reaching a combined audience of 1.6 million subscribers.
Advertising was once a cornerstone of journalism revenue, but over the past 30 years more than $33 billion in ad revenue has disappeared from the industry. Today’s digital landscape is cluttered and impersonal — built for scale, not substance, and reliant on over-optimized metrics. And smaller and independent outlets are often left behind, because they don’t have the capacity to navigate an overly complex ad ecosystem that rarely prioritizes trust, quality, or community impact.
The News Revenue Ad Network is designed to operate differently. It’s built specifically for public service newsrooms that want to work with brands that share their values.
“This launch marks a bold new chapter in the Hub’s mission to help newsrooms diversify revenue streams in ways that align with their editorial values and long-term sustainability,” said Mary Walter-Brown, the Hub’s founder and CEO.
Built on experience
The Ad Network emerged from one-on-one consulting the Hub has conducted with newsrooms — helping them define ad value propositions, create pitch decks, and experiment with sponsorship models. In early 2024, the Hub launched its Mission-Driven Ads Lab to test new approaches with a small group of publishers.
The lessons learned directly informed the development of the Ad Network.
“All of the pieces we used to create the News Revenue Ad Network were refined during the Ads Lab process,” said Sarah Bishop Woods, the Hub’s chief strategy officer and Ads Lab project lead. While the Hub still also offers individual advertising consultation, Bishop Woods said the focus has shifted to where the most people can benefit: the Ad Network.
How it works
The News Revenue Ad Network operates as a centralized system that brokers advertising campaigns across a growing list of Hub member newsrooms. The inaugural campaign is focused on newsletters, which offer strong reader engagement and a scalable entry point.
Unlike other advertising networks, this one is built by people with media and editorial backgrounds — a team that understands the importance of brand safety from a newsroom perspective, as well as the advertiser perspective. The Hub’s Ad Network team includes Ashley Guckert, who manages the network and onboards newsrooms; Mary Ornstein, national seller; Sarah Frank, newsroom consulting lead; Joe Troiano and Donald DeSantis, ad operations specialists; and Anna Damman, media planner. James Bareham has been an integral part of the lifecycle of the Ad Network as a creative director.
Ornstein, who brings experience from television and streaming ad sales, describes the network as a “unicorn” for advertisers — offering mission-aligned, trustworthy, local journalism at a national scale. “It’s a win-win for the newsrooms and the brands,” she said.
Guckert echoed that sentiment. “Newsrooms’ editorial integrity and respect for their readers is our top priority,” she said. “The advertisers we’re bringing in are vetted and safe — brands their audiences can relate to.” Newsrooms in the network have full control over ad participation, and always have the ability to opt out of individual campaigns.
Who can join
The goal of the Ad Network is to help newsrooms maintain their independence and integrity while gaining access to new revenue. “Whatever system you have, whatever workflows you have, we will work with you to set it up,” said Guckert. “It’s our goal to make the process as white-glove and painless as possible.”
The network is currently open to Hub member newsrooms, who can participate for free in 2025. INN’s Rural News Network member outlets are also eligible to participate at no cost this year. Other newsrooms can join the waitlist for entry later this year. After several campaigns are complete, the Hub expects to open broader access by fall 2025.
“Carolina Public Press joined the Ad Network because the expanded advertising and sponsorship opportunities align with our commitment to sustainability and growth without compromising our editorial independence. Our partnership with INN and NRH allows us to tap into new revenue streams, strengthen our newsroom’s capacity, and invest more deeply in the kind of in-depth, investigative reporting our readers rely on,” shared Frank Taylor, executive director of Carolina Public Press.
What’s next
The Hub is learning and iterating in real-time, moving quickly and thoughtfully based on what’s working and what needs refining. Infrastructure is already in development to support future expansion, including website placements and programmatic opportunities.
“There are really great companies with advertising budgets that want to market to news consumers — brands that care about their communities and key issues,” said Bishop Woods. “There needs to be a better pipeline connecting those brands with the news organizations that share those values. That’s exactly why we’re doing this.”
It’s a pivotal moment, said Guckert — one that demands urgency and creativity. “We’re facing challenges where democracy is fighting for survival, public media is fighting for survival,” she said. “We need systems that can iterate and pivot quickly, with the core tenants answering the question of: What do we do next?”
The Hub’s News Revenue Ad Network team is positioned to do just that. “We’re incredibly resourceful and do not stop trying,” she added.
The next major milestone is performance data. As campaigns wrap, results will be measured and case studies built to demonstrate that mission-driven advertising can scale — and thrive.
Newsrooms interested in joining the network or learning more can fill out this form.