Michigan’s nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom — free to every reader
In-depth, nonpartisan reporting on the policies, people and systems that shape life across Michigan — the trusted information residents need to understand complex issues, hold leaders accountable, and make informed decisions. Free to every reader, with no paywall or subscription required.
Our Mission
Making Michigan better through high-quality, nonpartisan journalism and engagement
Bridge Michigan exists to ensure every Michigander, regardless of income or ZIP code, has access to the trusted, nonpartisan, fact-based reporting they need to hold leaders accountable, understand complex policy and participate as informed citizens. We cover education, health, environment, business, politics and government accountability with rigorous journalism that follows the facts wherever they lead.
Nonpartisan
We are beholden to no group, ideology, or political party. Our journalists use data to separate fact from conjecture and follow the evidence wherever it leads.
No paywall
Every story we publish is free to read. Access to accurate civic information is not a privilege — it is a prerequisite for democratic participation.
Statewide
We cover all 83 Michigan counties. Our journalism is freely available for republication by local outlets, carrying trusted reporting into communities that need it most.
The Center for Michigan
Bridge Michigan is a publication of the Center for Michigan
The Center for Michigan is the 501(c)(3) nonprofit publisher of Bridge Michigan and BridgeDetroit. Founded in 2006, the Center advances its mission of making Michigan better through high-quality, nonpartisan journalism and engagement. Bridge Michigan has served readers statewide since 2011; BridgeDetroit launched in 2020 to serve Detroit with community-engaged, locally rooted journalism.
The two newsrooms are editorially independent. The Center provides shared infrastructure, technology, production and operational support, so each newsroom can focus on what it does best. Both share same-day publishing rights to each other’s content and coordinate coverage where it benefits readers.
How We’re Funded
The Center for Michigan and its newsrooms are supported by individual donors, foundations, sponsors and advertising — not shareholders. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, every dollar we receive is invested back into our journalism and our mission. We are beholden to no group, ideology, or political party, and we are transparent about and independent of our sources of funding. We publicly disclose all donors who give $5,000 or more annually. See where our funding comes from and who supports our work.
Policies
Trust and reliability are core to our mission. We are beholden to no group, ideology, or political party, and we are transparent about and independent of our sources of funding. Our reporting is rigorous and fact-based, we are clear about our methods, and we own our mistakes promptly and transparently. If you spot an error, we want to know.
As a member of the Institute for Nonprofit News (INN), we maintain a strict firewall between journalism and funding, so no donor, sponsor or foundation influences our coverage decisions. All revenue returns to the mission of making Michigan better.
100/100 — NewsGuard rates Bridge Michigan at the top of its credibility scale, reflecting adherence to all nine standards of accuracy and transparency.
Center — AllSides, a national media bias watchdog, rates Bridge Michigan as “center” based on multi-partisan, scientific analysis — not biased to the left or the right.
Gold Seal — Candid (formerly GuideStar) awards Bridge Michigan its Gold Seal of Transparency for full public disclosure of our finances, board, staff and programs.
+48 NPS — On a scale from -100 to +100, Bridge Michigan’s Net Promoter Score reflects strong reader loyalty — near the top of the range considered excellent.
National Model — The Institute for Nonprofit News featured Bridge Michigan as a model for building reader trust and revenue through newsletters, and counts us among its network of independent nonprofit newsrooms dedicated to public service journalism.
Our Staff
Bridge Michigan is published by the Center for Michigan. Our team includes the journalists who report and edit Bridge Michigan’s journalism, alongside the revenue and operations staff who sustain it — all governed by an independent, volunteer board of directors. We are accountable to Michigan, and we work to build a team that reflects the diversity of the state we cover.
Staff
Meet the Center for Michigan team and the journalists behind Bridge Michigan.
Board of Directors
Meet the independent board that governs the Center for Michigan.
Jobs and Internships
See open positions and learn about our internship program.
Annual Report
Each year we publish a full account of our journalism, our finances and our impact. Transparency about our own organization is part of how we earn the trust we ask of our readers.
Form 990
As a registered nonprofit, we annually file a Form 990 with the IRS that provides a detailed public record of our finances, governance and operations. We make these filings easy to find as another way of holding ourselves accountable to the communities we serve. You can also view our full financial profile, ratings and reporting history on Candid (formerly GuideStar).
Bridge Michigan’s work isn’t possible without you
Our journalism is free to every Michigander because members, businesses and organizations choose to fund it. If you’d like to back a newsroom that answers to no one but the facts and the people of this state, we’d be grateful.
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