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Project Censored is a nonprofit media watchdog organization in the United States.[1] The group's stated mission is to "educate students and the public about the importance of a truly free press for democratic self-government."[2][3][4]

Key Information

Project Censored produces an annual book and a weekly radio program. Both the annual books and the weekly radio programs, as well as public events sponsored by the Project, focus on issues of news censorship, propaganda, free speech, and media literacy. Past editions of the yearbook were published by Seven Stories Press.

Project Censored was founded at Sonoma State University in 1976 by Carl Jensen (1929-2015).[5] Since 2010, Mickey Huff has been the group's director.[6] It is sponsored by the Media Freedom Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, established in 2000. The organization is based in Ithaca, New York.

History

[edit]

Project Censored was founded in 1976 by Carl Jensen, Associate Professor of Media Studies at Sonoma State College, as a media research program.[7][8] The project focused on student media literacy and critical thinking skills, with particular attention to issues of censorship by the mainstream news media in the United States.[9]

Corporate media reporters, editors, and executives[10] lampooned Jensen for claiming they "censored" news stories. They argued that the stories were not censored, but that due to time and space constraints, they could not publish every story. Jensen began an annual study that found that, rather than covering newsworthy stories, the corporate media often featured trivial and non-newsworthy stories, which Jensen termed "junk food news" in a 1983 interview published in Penthouse.[11] Since the first Censored yearbook, published in 1993, each annual Censored volume has featured a chapter dedicated to exposing examples of what Jensen originally identified as "junk food news".

In 1996, when Jensen retired, Peter Phillips, also a sociology professor at Sonoma State University, became director of Project Censored. He continued to expand the Project's educational outreach and the annual book, adding the concept and analysis of "News Abuse" to elaborate Jensen's idea of "junk food" news.[12] "News abuse" refers to corporate media stories that were newsworthy, but presented in a slanted or non-newsworthy manner.[13]

In 2000, Project Censored came under the oversight of the non-profit Media Freedom Foundation, founded by Jensen and Phillips, to ensure its independence. In 2007, two Project Censored judges resigned over then-director Peter Phillips' decision to invite Steven E. Jones, a 9/11 Truth conspiracy theorist, as the keynote speaker at the Project's annual conference.[14]

Mickey Huff, director, 2024

Mickey Huff of Diablo Valley College became the director in 2010.[15] He and Andy Lee Roth (associate director, 2012-2024) extended the Project beyond Sonoma State University, and expanded the Campus Affiliates Program launched in 2009.[16][17] The top "Censored" news stories are identified through the Campus Affiliates Program, a collaborative effort between faculty and students at many colleges and universities.[18] In 2025, Shealeigh Voitl became associate director.[19]

Activities

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Publications

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Since 1993, Project Censored has published its annual list of the most under-reported news stories in the form of a book. Since 1996, Seven Stories Press in New York has published each annual Censored book.[20] The first Project Censored yearbook, Censored: The News That Didn’t Make the News—And Why, edited by Carl Jensen, was published by Shelburne Press in 1993.[21] Two subsequent volumes, the 1994 and 1995 yearbooks, were published by Four Walls Eight Windows.[22] From 2022 to 2025, the yearbooks were jointly published by Seven Stories Press and Project Censored’s publishing imprint, The Censored Press. The 2026 yearbook will be published solely by The Censored Press.

The organization's annual listing of the most significant but under-reported news stories, dating back to 1976, is archived on the Project Censored website.[23] Previous years' "Censored" lists have been featured in U.S. national media outlets.[24][25][26][27][28][29][30]

Censored Press

[edit]

The Censored Press was established in 2021 by Project Censored and the Media Freedom Foundation. The Censored Press has published a number of notable titles, including Going Remote: A Teacher's Journey (2022),[31] Guilty of Journalism: The Political Case Against Julian Assange (2023),[32] and Titans of Capital: How Concentrated Wealth Threatens Humanity (2024),[33] each of which was co-published by Seven Stories Press.

Documentary films

[edit]

Project Censored has been the subject of two feature-length documentary films. In 2013, Doug Hecker and Christopher Oscar produced and directed Project Censored: The Movie: Ending the Reign of Junk Food News.[34][35] The film features interviews with and commentary by Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, Dan Rather, Phil Donahue, Michael Parenti, Greg Palast, Oliver Stone, Daniel Ellsberg, Peter Kuznick, Cynthia McKinney, Nora Barrows-Friedman, John Perkins, Jonah Raskin, Khalil Bendib, Abby Martin, and faculty and students associated with Project Censored.

Project Censored: The Movie screened at numerous film festivals, including its premiere at the Sonoma International Film Festival in April 2013,[36] the Bend Film Festival in October 2013, and the Madrid International Film Festival in July 2013, where Doug Hecker and Christopher Oscar were recognized for Best Directing of a Feature Documentary.[37]

In 1998, Differential Films released Project Censored: Is the Press Really Free?, directed and produced by Steven Keller. In May 2000, Project Censored: Is the Press Really Free? aired on PBS stations across the United States.[38]

Reception

[edit]

Ralph Nader described Project Censored as "a deep, wide and utterly engrossing exercise to unmask censorship, self-censorship, and propaganda in the mass media."[39] In December 2013, Nader selected Censored 2014: Fearless Speech in Fateful Times as one of his "10 Books to Provoke Conversation" in 2014.[40]

In 2000, Don Hazen, the first executive director of the progressive news analysis and commentary website AlterNet, criticized Project Censored as "stuck in the past" with a "dubious selection process" that "reinforces self-marginalizing, defeatist behavior".[41] It has also been criticized for reporting on stories that are arguably not "under-reported" or "censored" at all, as they have appeared in The New York Times and other such high-profile publications.[42] Furthermore, the organization's use of the term "censorship" to describe under-reported items, rather than governmentally censored material, has been called into question.[43] William Powers, writing in The New Republic, called this broad use of the term "pernicious and deceptive."[44]

New Politics magazine criticized Project Censored for denying Serbian war crimes in the Yugoslav Wars, both crimes in Kosovo committed by Slobodan Milošević's government (such as the Račak massacre), and the Bosnian genocide committed by the Army of Republika Srpska, highlighting Michael Parenti's denial in the 2000 volume.[45]

Awards

[edit]

The 1995 edition of Censored: The News That Didn’t Make the News—And Why won the 1996 Firecracker Alternative Book Award for Nonfiction.[46]

In 2008, Project Censored received PEN Oakland's Censorship award.[47]

References

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[edit]
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Project Censored

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from Grokipedia
Project Censored is an American media research and advocacy organization founded in 1976 by communications professor Carl Jensen at , focused on identifying underreported or suppressed news stories by corporate-owned and promoting critical among students and the public. Each year, teams of student researchers and faculty evaluators review hundreds of story submissions to select and rank the top 25 most significant undercovered issues, which are compiled into annual books such as Project Censored's State of the Free Press 2025, emphasizing topics like corporate influence, environmental risks, and government accountability often sidelined in national coverage. The organization, now operated as a nonprofit through the Media Freedom Foundation, has produced over four decades of annual reports, hosted events like the Media Freedom Summit, and launched syndicated radio programming to amplify independent . Under successive directors including (1996–2010) and Mickey Huff (since 2010), it has trained thousands in media while drawing criticism for exhibiting a left-liberal ideological in its story selections, as acknowledged by founder Jensen himself in response to detractors.

History

Founding and Early Development (1976–1990)

Project Censored was established in 1976 at (SSU) in by Carl Jensen, a professor of communications studies, as a class project in a course aimed at examining . Jensen, motivated by concerns over underreported stories in mainstream outlets, tasked students with identifying significant covered in alternative or but largely ignored by major newspapers and broadcast networks. The initiative sought to foster and among participants while compiling annual lists of what Jensen termed the "top censored stories," beginning with on from 1975–1976, such as the swine flu outbreak at and satellite-spy industry developments amid tensions. In its initial years, the project operated primarily as an academic endeavor within SSU's communications department, involving undergraduate and graduate students in sourcing stories from outlets like small newspapers, newsletters, and foreign press, then cross-referencing coverage—or lack thereof—in dominant U.S. media such as and network television. By the early , Jensen formalized the selection process, prioritizing stories with systemic implications for , corporate influence, or , while excluding those deemed speculative or inadequately verified. A key conceptual contribution emerged in 1983 when Jensen coined the term "Junk Food News" to describe sensationalist, trivial coverage that distracted from substantive issues, contrasting it with the "news black holes" of suppressed stories. These early efforts produced informal reports and lists disseminated through university channels and occasional media appearances, building a reputation for highlighting topics like toxic contamination and regulatory failures overlooked by commercial press. Through the late and , Project Censored expanded modestly, incorporating more student researchers and faculty oversight while maintaining its focus on empirical documentation of coverage disparities rather than ideological . Annual compilations grew from initial top-10 lists to broader rankings by 1990, covering issues such as PCB , canned hunts, and congressional oversight loopholes, with Jensen personally vetting submissions for based on source multiplicity and factual substantiation. The project's outputs, often shared via academic papers and interviews, critiqued systemic media omissions attributable to corporate and advertiser pressures, though Jensen emphasized teachable evidence over unsubstantiated claims. By 1990, it had archived over a decade of such analyses, laying groundwork for formalized publications, without significant external funding or national infrastructure at the time.

Institutionalization and Growth (1990s–2000s)

Following Carl Jensen's retirement, sociologist assumed directorship of Project Censored in 1996, marking a phase of formalized operations and expanded academic integration at . Under Phillips, the organization shifted toward greater emphasis on education, incorporating structured student research into its core activities while maintaining the annual identification of underreported stories. This period saw the continuation and scaling of the project's yearbook series, with Phillips editing or co-editing fourteen volumes from 1997 to 2011, published by outlets including , which documented censored stories alongside analyses of media ownership concentration and systemic biases in reporting. In 2000, Project Censored established formal ties with the , a nonprofit that provided administrative support and enhanced operational independence from university constraints, facilitating broader outreach beyond Sonoma State. This structural change supported growth in educational programming, including expanded faculty and student involvement in story validation processes, which drew submissions from over 200 advisors nationwide by the mid-2000s. The annual top-25 censored stories lists, compiled through this network, gained wider distribution via books and outlets, with editions like Censored 2001 covering 18 months of research to align with publication timelines and increase timeliness. The 2000s further institutionalized the project through multimedia extensions, including the launch of The Project Censored Show on Pacifica Radio, co-hosted by Phillips, which debuted weekly broadcasts from KPFA studios in Berkeley to disseminate findings and interviews with independent journalists. Despite internal controversies, such as the 2007 resignation of two story judges over Phillips' inclusion of physicist ' controlled demolition hypothesis for the World Trade Center collapses—a decision defended as promoting open inquiry into underreported technical analyses—these years solidified Project Censored's role in training hundreds of students annually in critical media analysis, with yearbooks serving as pedagogical tools in sociology and courses. By decade's end, the project's archives encompassed over three decades of documented media omissions, underscoring its evolution into a sustained institutional critique of corporate media consolidation post-Telecommunications Act of 1996.

Modern Era and Adaptations (2010s–Present)

In 2010, Mickey Huff, a at , became the third director of Project Censored and president of its nonprofit arm, the Media Freedom Foundation, succeeding prior leadership to guide the organization into the digital media era. Under Huff's tenure, Project Censored launched The Project Censored Show in 2010, a weekly public affairs radio program co-hosted with sociologist , which expanded outreach by airing on approximately 50 stations via Pacifica Radio and offering podcasts on platforms like and . This initiative adapted to multimedia formats, complementing annual print yearbooks that compile the top 25 underreported stories validated through faculty and student research. The organization refined its conceptualization of to encompass "modern ," characterized by corporate media's subtle, systemic manipulation of narratives through ownership consolidation, advertising pressures, and omission of dissenting views, rather than solely suppression. By the , this framework addressed evolving challenges like the decline of independent journalism amid digital platform dominance, with annual reports critiquing mainstream outlets for undercovering issues such as corporate influence on policy and environmental risks. Huff co-edited multiple volumes emphasizing empirical validation of stories from alternative sources, while maintaining student involvement in story selection to foster . In 2024, Huff joined as Distinguished Director of the Park Center for Independent Media and Professor of , enhancing academic affiliations and integrating Project Censored's methods into curricula focused on press freedom and critical analysis. This development reflects adaptations to institutional shifts, including responses to heightened concerns over algorithmic and threats to journalists, as evidenced by ongoing outreach events and newsletters promoting amid polarized discourse.

Organizational Structure

Leadership and Key Figures

Project Censored was founded in 1976 by Carl Jensen, a professor of at , who served as its first director for 20 years. During his tenure, Jensen established the project's core practice of compiling annual lists of underreported stories, drawing on student research and a panel of media experts including and . Jensen, who passed away on April 22, 2015, at age 85, emphasized and critique of corporate news omissions as antidotes to systemic underreporting. Mickey Huff became the project's third director in 2010, also assuming the role of president of the Media Freedom Foundation, the 501(c)(3) nonprofit that sponsors Project Censored. A professor of and at , Huff has expanded the organization's focus on education and co-authored annual yearbooks such as State of the Free Press, which analyze censored stories alongside empirical media coverage data. Andy Lee Roth serves as Research Director, collaborating closely with Huff on story validation, faculty judging panels, and publications; he co-hosts the project's and has contributed to critiquing media models. Other key operational roles include Associate Director Shealeigh Voitl, who oversees program coordination, and Operations Manager Adam Armstrong, handling administrative functions. The leadership maintains ties to academic networks, with advisory input from figures like Chomsky, though primary decision-making rests with Huff and Roth.

Affiliations and Campus Chapters

Project Censored's primary affiliations with academic institutions occur through its Campus Affiliates Program, launched in 2010 to engage faculty and students in researching underreported news stories and promoting critical . This program operates as a decentralized network rather than formal chapters, enabling participants to contribute to story validation and educational outreach without requiring structured campus-based organizations. Affiliates assist in identifying and potential censored stories for inclusion in the project's annual yearbooks, drawing on student media review processes to evaluate corporate media omissions. By 2023, the program encompassed over 2,560 faculty members and students from more than 41 colleges and universities across the , providing research support that supplements the core team's efforts at , where Project Censored originated. Participation emphasizes hands-on media analysis, with affiliates encouraged to integrate Project Censored's methodology into coursework, such as developing skills through story vetting and independent source verification. The program's coordinators, including Steve Macek, a professor at , facilitate collaboration by organizing training and aggregating submissions from affiliates nationwide. While the initiative lacks publicly listed specific campus chapters or fixed membership rosters, it functions through voluntary affiliations that allow institutions to adopt Project Censored's resources for local initiatives, such as workshops or student-led reviews. This model prioritizes scalability and academic integration over hierarchical structures, aligning with the organization's educational mission since its founding at in 1976. Recent activities, including summer internships from universities like Vanderbilt and the , underscore ongoing student engagement without designating formal chapters.

Funding and Financial Transparency

Project Censored's operations are financially supported by the Media Freedom Foundation (MFF), a 501(c)(3) established in 2000 that raises funds specifically for Project Censored and related media initiatives. MFF handles donation processing, grant management, and fiscal oversight, ensuring tax-deductible contributions from individuals and foundations. In fiscal year 2023, MFF reported total revenue of $871,853, with expenses of $639,317, resulting in a net income of $232,536 and net assets of $471,951. Contributions constituted the primary revenue source, totaling $829,791 or approximately 95% of overall income, derived from individual donors, programmatic support like book sales and subscriptions, and targeted grants. A significant portion included a $600,000 grant from Free Press, a media reform advocacy group, designated for general support of Project Censored activities. Earlier records show more modest scales; for instance, MFF's 2022 revenue was $271,021, with expenses of $181,878. Historically, Project Censored benefited from institutional grants tied to its origins at , including a $20,000 award from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation in 1993 to publicize underreported stories. Current funding emphasizes grassroots appeals, such as one-time donations, monthly subscriptions, and purchases of annual yearbooks like State of the Free Press, alongside stipends for student interns funded through these channels. Financial transparency is maintained through mandatory IRS filings by MFF, accessible via public databases, which detail revenue breakdowns, (e.g., director Huff's role), and without itemizing all small donors due to federal thresholds. Project Censored asserts , stating that no donor influences content selection, though specific donor lists beyond major grants are not proactively published on its website. Independent evaluators like review these filings for accountability, assigning MFF a rating based on available data without noting diversions or irregularities.

Mission and Methodology

Core Objectives and Definitions

Project Censored's core objectives center on promoting critical media literacy through education and public awareness, with a focus on identifying and disseminating news stories overlooked or underreported by mainstream corporate media. Established in 1976 by sociologist Carl Jensen, the project aims to empower students, journalists, and citizens to scrutinize media practices and foster independent journalism that supports democratic discourse. This involves annual compilations of "censored" stories, derived from nominations by independent journalists and researchers, to highlight systemic gaps in coverage rather than isolated instances of suppression. The organization defines its mission explicitly as advancing critical media literacy training for students and the public while combating both overt and subtle forms of news censorship. This educational emphasis includes , workshops, and campus programs that teach verification techniques, source evaluation, and recognition of , positioning as a tool for . By prioritizing empirical underreporting over unsubstantiated conspiracy, Project Censored seeks to document patterns where significant issues—such as corporate influence on reporting or —receive disproportionate neglect, thereby challenging the notion of a fully informed public. In defining , Project Censored expands beyond traditional government-imposed suppression to encompass "modern censorship" as the subtle, ongoing manipulation of reality through media practices like omission, underreporting, , and . Founder Carl Jensen articulated this as "the suppression of information whether purposeful or not, by any method," emphasizing intentional non-inclusion of stories deviating from profit-driven or ideological priorities over a commitment to unvarnished truth. This framework critiques corporate media's structural incentives—such as advertiser pressures and —as causal factors in information gaps, rather than mere editorial discretion, though it has drawn scrutiny for potentially overlooking counterexamples of overreporting or the challenges of verifying unverified claims in fast-paced news cycles.

Story Selection and Validation Process

Project Censored's story selection begins with public nominations, where individuals submit articles from independent outlets via email, including a URL and the subject line "NOMINATION." Qualifying nominations report information the public has a right and need to know but to which access remains limited due to minimal corporate media coverage. These submissions form the initial pool, supplemented by research from affiliated academic programs. Central to the process is the Validated Independent News (VIN) exercise, involving students at over 300 campuses who identify candidate stories from independent sources, excluding press releases or academic papers. Students evaluate candidates for timeliness (published after March of the prior year), significance (e.g., number of people affected), factual from credible sources, and of under-reporting verified via media databases like Nexis Uni. They research potential contrary reports and summarize findings in a structured format: a 300-500 word overview starting with key facts, followed by details and an analysis of corporate coverage, plus full references and credits for researchers and faculty evaluators. Faculty review and approve VINs before submission to Project Censored by the annual deadline of May 15. Submitted VINs undergo multi-stage vetting by faculty, students, and an international panel of journalists and scholars, assessing , significance, and reliability. This year-long effort engages hundreds in summarizing and , prioritizing stories with documented evidence over opinion. Criteria include the extent of corporate media omission, potential societal impact, and , with revisions required if fuller coverage emerges. From this pool, judges rank the top 25 most censored stories for annual publication.

Criteria for "Censorship" and Empirical Challenges

Project Censored defines a "censored" news story as one that reports information the public has a right and but to which it has had limited access, encompassing not only outright suppression but also subtler mechanisms such as , omission, underreporting, and . This conceptualization of modern emphasizes systemic manipulation of by corporate-owned outlets, prioritizing stories with significant societal implications that receive disproportionate relative to their . In practice, candidate stories are vetted for inclusion based on criteria including factual reliability, timeliness, potential impact, and the extent of coverage in major corporate media; the clearest examples involve complete media silence, though undercovered topics qualify if independent verification confirms their underrepresentation. The validation process unfolds in multiple stages: submissions from independent outlets are first researched by student teams to confirm fact-based reporting and underreporting; faculty evaluators then assess these as Validated Independent News (VINs), focusing on whether corporate media has marginalized or ignored the information; finally, a panel of judges—comprising academics, journalists, and experts—ranks VINs into the annual Top 25, weighing factors like coverage volume, source credibility, and broader effects. This methodology aims to distinguish genuine underreporting from mere lack of interest, but it incorporates subjective judgments on "" without predefined quantitative benchmarks for insufficient coverage, such as specific outlet counts or audience reach thresholds. Empirical challenges to these criteria arise primarily from the expansive definition of , which critics argue conflates decentralized editorial choices with intentional suppression, lacking evidence of coordinated intent. For example, many selected stories receive some mainstream attention—such as initial reports in outlets like —suggesting delays stem from verification needs or competing priorities rather than systemic blackout, as evidenced by cases where -highlighted topics later gain traction post-independent sourcing. Quantifying underreporting proves difficult without standardized metrics; while evaluates coverage extent, it does not employ comprehensive media audits or statistical models to differentiate market-driven omission (e.g., low audience demand for niche or speculative claims) from bias-induced exclusion, potentially overstating causal links to corporate control. Further highlights selection biases, with analyses identifying a consistent left-leaning tilt toward topics like corporate malfeasance, environmental risks, and social inequities, which may reflect the ideological leanings of affiliated faculty and judges rather than exhaustive of all underreported angles. This pattern raises questions about comprehensiveness, as conservative or market-oriented underreporting (e.g., on regulatory overreach) receives less emphasis, introducing potential effects in a process reliant on volunteer evaluators from over 200 campuses. Although Project maintains high factual standards in validation, the absence of adversarial or diverse ideological panels limits empirical robustness, as self-reported defenses against bias claims do not mitigate observable thematic skews in outputs from 1976 onward.

Activities

Educational Initiatives

Project Censored emphasizes critical education as a core component of its mission to foster independent journalism and public awareness of underreported issues. Through its programs, the organization equips educators and students with tools to analyze , detect , and evaluate sources, drawing on empirical methods like Validated Independent (VIN) research protocols. The Campus Affiliates Program, initiated in , connects faculty and students at colleges and universities across the and internationally to conduct research on underreported stories and integrate into curricula. Participants, numbering in the hundreds, vet news submissions using Project Censored's criteria, contributing to annual outputs like the Top 25 Censored Stories; for the 2023–2024 edition, 206 student researchers from nine U.S. campuses analyzed hundreds of candidates. The program promotes hands-on learning through activities such as identifying "Junk Food News," "News Abuse," and recurring "Deja Vu News" patterns, aiming to build skills in source validation and without reliance on corporate funding. For broader K-12 and higher education, Project Censored offers a free, downloadable critical media literacy curriculum targeting ages 8–16 and beyond, including homeschoolers and traditional classrooms. Structured around guides like the Global Critical Media Literacy Educators Guides and the "Censorship Guide for Teachers: 12 Ways to Use Project Censored in Your Classroom," it covers topics such as media ownership influences, bias detection (e.g., racism, sexism), power dynamics in news production, and social justice applications. Companion resources include exercises tied to publications like The Media and Me: A Guide to Critical Media Literacy for Young People and the State of the Free Press yearbook series, which incorporate student-generated research to teach empirical news evaluation. Educators can access workshops via direct contact with Project Censored staff, facilitating customized sessions on integrating these materials into syllabi. Partnerships with institutions, such as (the program's origin in 1976) and others like , extend reach through collaborative curriculum development and student involvement in media analysis projects. These initiatives prioritize transparency in media education, encouraging scrutiny of institutional biases in reporting while avoiding prescriptive ideologies.

Media Productions and Outreach

Project Censored maintains "The Project Censored Show," a weekly and initiated in 2010 by director Mickey Huff and sociologist . The program airs on approximately 50 radio stations across the and is distributed digitally through platforms including and . It features in-depth interviews with journalists, scholars, and activists, alongside commentary on underreported stories, media omissions, and critical , with the stated aim of encouraging listeners to scrutinize information from mainstream and alternative sources. Episodes often tie into the organization's annual censored stories research, providing analysis of political, social, and economic issues. In 2024, Project Censored introduced the "Decoding Democracy" video series, produced in collaboration with media scholars, journalists, and activists to underscore the importance of critical media literacy and an independent press. The series consists of interview-based episodes hosted on the organization's YouTube channel, covering topics such as media funding, education, and democratic engagement; notable installments include discussions with independent journalist Abby Martin on propaganda and war reporting. Excerpts and full videos are promoted through the Project Censored Show and social media, with releases continuing into late 2024, such as analyses tied to U.S. elections. Outreach extends through periodic newsletters, issued monthly or as needed, which detail organizational updates, event announcements, and resource recommendations; for instance, the October 2025 edition highlighted Banned Books Week broadcasts and the printing of the 2026 "State of the Free Press" yearbook. Public engagement includes participation in conferences, such as the third annual Critical Media Literacy Conference of the Americas held October 21–23, 2022, in Oakland, California, and milestone events like the 50th anniversary celebration of the organization's work in 2025. An Outreach & Engagement Officer, Mischa Geracoulis, coordinates these efforts, including media placements and partnerships to amplify critical media literacy training beyond academic settings. The press room facilitates broader dissemination via releases and placements in outlets like the Radio Television Digital News Association, emphasizing innovative journalism resources.

Collaborative Partnerships

Project Censored collaborates with the Media Freedom Foundation, a nonprofit established in 2000 by founders Carl Jensen and , which provides and administrative management for the organization's activities. This internal partnership ensures financial and operational support for Project Censored's initiatives and publications. As a member of the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC), Project Censored aligns with a coalition that includes groups such as the ACLU and to oppose various forms of censorship and advocate for free expression. Project Censored's publishing imprint, The Censored Press, maintains a long-standing with , which handles printing and distribution of titles including annual State of the Free Press reports and specialized books such as Terms of Servitude: Zionism, Silicon Valley, and the War on Palestine, released on September 23, 2025. This arrangement mirrors Seven Stories' role in producing annual reports, enabling broader dissemination of Project Censored's research. Additional formal partners include the Alliance for Democracy, Open the Government, , , and Women Rising Radio, organizations that share Project Censored's emphasis on transparency, independent reporting, and press freedom. In 2024, Project Censored partnered with magazine to produce a special issue on media and politics ahead of the U.S. , highlighting underreported stories through joint editorial efforts. These partnerships facilitate story validation, co-publications, and outreach, though they primarily involve left-leaning groups, potentially influencing the selection of topics deemed "censored."

Key Outputs

Annual Top 25 Censored Stories

The Annual Top 25 Censored Stories constitutes Project Censored's flagship publication, presenting a ranked compilation of 25 underreported or misrepresented items from the previous year, drawn primarily from independent and sources. Launched in 1976 by founder Carl Jensen at , the list identifies stories that receive minimal or distorted coverage in major U.S. corporate media outlets, such as , , and network television broadcasts. Project Censored defines "" in this context not as direct suppression but as systemic underreporting due to media consolidation, advertiser influence, and editorial biases favoring elite interests over public-interest . The selection process begins with faculty and student researchers at reviewing hundreds of nominations submitted via an online form or identified through monitoring independent outlets like , , and CovertAction Magazine. Each story undergoes validation for factual accuracy, sourcing from primary documents or expert interviews, and assessment of national newsworthiness. A panel of 20-30 judges—comprising professors, investigative journalists, and media critics—then ranks the submissions using criteria including documentation quality, potential societal impact, and corporate media coverage gaps, quantified by searches in databases like NexisUni for mentions in top outlets. For instance, stories must demonstrate coverage in fewer than five major national outlets to qualify as underreported. This methodology, refined over decades, emphasizes empirical measurement of media neglect rather than subjective opinion. Annually, the Top 25 appears in Project Censored's yearbook, State of the Free Press, published by since 1993, with print runs exceeding 10,000 copies and digital access via the organization's website. Recent editions, such as the 2023-2024 volume released in October 2023, featured stories on topics like the U.S. State Department's funding of media influence operations abroad (ranked #1) and the underreporting of excess deaths linked to policies (#5). Earlier lists, like 2012-2013, highlighted issues such as non-consensual administered to Ethiopian immigrants by (#25) and widespread GMO contamination risks (#24). While the lists have spotlighted verifiable undercovered events—such as the Project Censored entry on U.S. support for Afghan opium production, later echoed in mainstream reports post-9/11—critics argue the selections disproportionately emphasize narratives adversarial to corporate and U.S. , potentially reflecting the ideological leanings of judges and nominators affiliated with progressive academia. Empirical of coverage claims relies on keyword searches, but omissions of conservative-leaning underreported stories, like certain integrity concerns, have prompted questions about selection neutrality. Nonetheless, the process incorporates cross-verification, requiring stories to withstand scrutiny from multiple independent sources before inclusion.

Publications and Reports

Project Censored's principal publications are its annual yearbooks, which compile and analyze underreported stories from sources, beginning with the inaugural volume in 1993 following the organization's founding in 1976. These yearbooks serve as comprehensive reports on media omissions, drawing from hundreds of story submissions vetted by student researchers from U.S. colleges and universities, with final selections validated by faculty evaluators. Since 1995, the yearbooks have been published in partnership with , with recent editions rebranded as State of the Free Press. The 2025 edition, for instance, spotlights 25 key stories on issues such as unreported workplace fatalities, threats, and social media's role in suppressing dissent, alongside critiques of corporate media spin. Each volume typically includes analytical sections on "Junk Food News"—sensational but non-informative coverage—"Déjà Vu News" tracking repeated underreporting, and " in Action" highlighting activist responses to . The organization's imprint, The Censored Press, facilitates these outputs and has copublished supplementary titles on topics like , , and , such as the Project Censored Guide to Independent Media and Activism. Digital archives of yearbook chapters from 1993 onward are available online, enabling public access to historical analyses. The 2026 yearbook, commemorating Project Censored's 50th anniversary, was sent to print in October 2025 and continues the tradition of exposing obscured narratives.

Awards and Recognitions

Project Censored has received multiple honors for its efforts in promoting and highlighting underreported stories. In 2014, the organization was presented with the National Whistleblower Center's Pillar Award for and , recognizing its role in fostering and accountability. In 2008, Project Censored earned the PEN Oakland National Literary Censorship Award, acknowledging its work in challenging media suppression and defending free expression. The project also secured two Firecracker Alternative Book Awards for its annual publications, highlighting excellence in alternative nonfiction and political writing. Director Mickey Huff received the Northern California Society of Professional Journalists' James Madison First Amendment Award and Beverly Kees Educator Award in 2019, commending his leadership in media education and advocacy. Additionally, the organization has been granted a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition for its community service in exposing censored news. The Skipping Stones Honor Award was bestowed upon Project Censored's publication The Media and Me: A Guide to Critical Media Literacy for contributions to multicultural education and teaching resources. These recognitions underscore the project's impact, though they primarily come from aligned independent and advocacy groups rather than mainstream journalistic bodies.

Reception and Impact

Supporter Perspectives and Achievements

Supporters of Project Censored, including linguist and former anchor , regard the organization as an essential counterweight to corporate media's systemic underreporting of stories vital to public understanding of power structures and policy decisions. They emphasize its role in fostering critical , enabling citizens to discern omissions driven by advertiser influence and ownership concentration rather than overt suppression. Media scholars aligned with this view credit the project with validating independent journalism through rigorous faculty evaluations, arguing that its annual selections highlight causal links between elite interests and news gaps, thereby advancing democratic accountability without relying on partisan narratives. Key achievements include the production of annual censored stories lists starting in , which have scrutinized over 25,000 news items submitted by researchers from U.S. campuses, with faculty panels confirming underreporting via metrics like mainstream coverage scarcity. The organization has published more than 30 yearbooks, beginning with the 1993 edition by Shelburne Press and continuing as the "State of the Free Press" series in partnership with , alongside resources like the youth-oriented "The Media and Me" guide and online "Censored Notebook" analyses. Educational efforts have trained thousands of students and educators through free workshops and 8-week paid internships offering $2,000 stipends, contributing to curricula at institutions like . Further successes encompass multimedia outreach, such as the weekly "Project Censored Show" launched in the 2000s and the award-winning "Project Censored: The Movie," which premiered at the Sonoma International Film Festival and screened globally, as well as collaborations with outlets like and to amplify independent reporting. By 2026, the project marks its 50th anniversary with a commemorative , underscoring sustained impact in documenting stories later corroborated by mainstream sources, such as early exposures of environmental hazards and expansions that gained wider traction post-validation.

Critic Evaluations and Methodological Critiques

Critics have primarily evaluated Project Censored's outputs as reflecting a consistent left-leaning ideological bias, with story selections favoring narratives critical of , U.S. , and environmental —issues often aligned with progressive activism—while underemphasizing conservative or centrist underreported topics. assessed the organization as left-biased due to these editorial preferences, though it rated factual reporting as high, citing proper sourcing and minimal failed fact checks. Independent journalists such as Marc Cooper and Michael Sigman have described the annual lists as predictably liberal, arguing that the emphasis on systemic media failures serves an agenda rather than neutral oversight. Methodologically, the project's multi-stage process—beginning with student nominations of independent articles, followed by faculty validation using tools like for coverage analysis, and culminating in rankings based on criteria such as story significance and mainstream omission—has drawn for its reliance on subjective judgments over empirical quantification. Founder Carl Jensen defined "censorship" expansively to include not only deliberate suppression but also , under-reporting, and , a framework critics contend enables overreach by conflating limited coverage with active concealment. For example, Don Hazen faulted the approach for "celebrating failure," as it prioritizes stories that fail to penetrate broader discourse, potentially due to inherent lack of appeal rather than institutional barriers. Specific critiques highlight inconsistencies in verifying under-reporting; numerous selected stories have appeared in major outlets like or alternative press, yet are labeled censored for insufficient prominence or follow-up, lacking standardized metrics for what constitutes adequate exposure. Dan Kennedy pointed to the 2000 validation of Diana Johnstone's analysis—later criticized as unsubstantiated—as evidence of lax vetting in the judging phase. Brooke Shelby Biggs of and Matt Palmquist of SF Weekly further alleged shoddy reporting in some inclusions, attributing this to the volunteer-driven, student-heavy pipeline that may prioritize volume over depth. These evaluations suggest the methodology, while educational, risks by drawing disproportionately from left-leaning independent sources, potentially mirroring the institutional biases it seeks to expose in corporate media.

Broader Influence on Media Discourse

Project Censored has shaped media discourse by identifying underreported stories that subsequently gained mainstream attention, thereby demonstrating patterns of initial omission in corporate media coverage. For instance, early highlights on the dangers of , effects, crimes, risks of drugs such as Depo-Provera and Bendectin, starvation in , South African apartheid, and prompted increased press scrutiny in later years, serving as a catalyst for broader journalistic accountability. This process underscores how the project's annual selections function as a "tip sheet" for investigative programs, influencing editorial decisions and public demands for comprehensive reporting on systemic issues. The organization has fostered critical discussions on media , particularly through omissions driven by corporate interests rather than overt suppression, gaining international recognition for elevating these debates in trade publications like Editor & Publisher. By evaluating stories based on criteria including source reliability, societal impact, and minimal mainstream exposure, Project Censored encourages journalists and audiences to question coverage gaps, promoting a centered on empirical underreporting rather than unsubstantiated . This has inspired analogous initiatives, such as Project Censored established in 1993, extending its model of rigorous story validation to global contexts. In the alternative media landscape, Project Censored amplifies independent outlets by validating their reporting in annual compilations, thereby bolstering their credibility and encouraging partnerships with entities like The Progressive and radio networks such as KPFA. Its emphasis on media literacy education has contributed to public awareness of corporate media consolidation's effects on news diversity, influencing pedagogical approaches in journalism programs and public seminars to prioritize independent verification over dominant narratives. Over nearly five decades since its 1976 founding, these efforts have sustained a counter-discourse challenging the hegemony of major outlets, though empirical validation of long-term attitudinal shifts in media consumption remains limited to anecdotal correlations with rising alternative media adoption.

Controversies

Ideological Bias Allegations

Critics have frequently alleged that Project Censored demonstrates a left-leaning ideological , primarily through its selection of underreported stories that consistently emphasize critiques of corporate power, U.S. , , and conservative political figures, while showing less attention to issues challenging progressive narratives or institutions. This pattern, according to detractors, undermines the project's claim of neutrality by prioritizing topics aligned with liberal priorities, such as and interventions, as evidenced in analyses of its annual Top 25 lists where stories on nuclear risks, abuses abroad, and corporate deregulation dominate. A notable example of alleged involves Project Censored's coverage of the , where it was accused of whitewashing Serb atrocities for two consecutive years by promoting narratives that minimized violations under Slobodan Milošević's regime, including of Diana Johnstone's 2000 Kosovo story, which critics argued distorted detention camps like Omarska and Trnopolje as mere POW facilities or refugee sites rather than sites of documented . Such choices were seen by outlets like as marginalizing mainstream progressive journalism and reflecting an anti-NATO, isolationist slant that downplayed verified war crimes against and . Further allegations point to the inclusion of fringe theories in its censored stories lists, such as 9/11 narratives in the mid-2000s, which critics viewed as indicative of a tolerance for left-wing contrarianism over empirical scrutiny, eroding credibility amid broader patterns of predictable liberal-leaning omissions. Project Censored has countered these claims through self-analysis of its 1993–2009 outputs, asserting diverse judge affiliations across political spectra and topic coverage focused on systemic media failures rather than , though skeptics maintain that the predominance of critiques—often overlapping with academic leftism—betrays an inherent skew.

Disputes Over Story Accuracy and Selection

Critics have contested Project Censored's selection process for exhibiting a left-liberal ideological , arguing that it disproportionately highlights stories critiquing corporate influence, U.S. , and while overlooking underreported issues from conservative viewpoints, such as government overreach in or failures. This allegedly stems from the involvement of student researchers and judges primarily from affiliate campuses in progressive-leaning academic environments, leading to a predictable roster of topics that align with narratives rather than a balanced scan of suppressed information across the spectrum. The organization's methodology, which relies on nominations from independent outlets followed by evaluation based on criteria like media coverage volume, source reliability, and societal impact, has been faulted for subjectivity in judging "." Detractors, including media observers, contend that many selected stories receive coverage in mainstream sources but fail to gain prominence due to lack of or editorial prioritization, not deliberate suppression—thus inflating claims of systemic omission. For instance, a analysis by SF Weekly found that nine of Project Censored's top 10 undercovered stories for that year had already appeared in outlets like , challenging the narrative of outright . Regarding story accuracy, while independent assessments rate Project Censored's reporting as generally high for factual adherence due to sourcing from verifiable alternative journalism, disputes arise over occasional reliance on unverified or singular perspectives that amplify unproven assertions. Critics in the early , such as those from Mother Jones, described some selections as featuring "shoddy reporting" that misrepresented events, like a 1999 story on by Diana Johnstone accused of lacking substantiation and promoting fringe interpretations. Project Censored maintains a multi-stage vetting process involving expert judges to mitigate errors, but opponents argue this does not fully counteract the effect of drawing heavily from ideologically aligned independent sources prone to their own omissions.

Responses to Criticisms and Self-Defense

Project Censored addresses allegations of left-leaning ideological bias by emphasizing the diverse participation of over 200 faculty members and students annually, many from mainstream institutions without presumed left-wing orientations, and by pointing to story selections that critique power structures across administrations. For example, in its 2000 report, the project highlighted U.S. weapons facilitating the destruction of Kurdish villages in under President , while its 2004 edition covered the U.S. government's removal of pages from a UN report on under President Bush. In response to accusations of conspiracy orientation, Project Censored distinguishes its focus on evidence-based instances of information suppression—such as corporate or governmental omissions—from unsubstantiated macro-theories, defining censorship broadly to encompass structural barriers to information flow. The organization defends inclusions like physicist Steven E. Jones' 2009 peer-reviewed study in the Open Chemical Physics Journal questioning the official explanation of the World Trade Center collapses, arguing that mainstream media's neglect of such findings illustrates systemic underreporting. Following controversies, such as the resignation of two judges over the inclusion of 9/11-related , Project Censored has upheld its selections by reiterating a multi-stage process involving researchers, faculty evaluators, and independent judges who assess stories for newsworthiness, evidence, and media coverage gaps. The project continues to publish on unresolved 9/11 questions, including pre-warnings and structural failures, as exemplars of censored discourse. Project Censored frames its overall mission as advancing media accountability and First Amendment protections rather than partisan advocacy, with director Mickey Huff underscoring the need for independent journalism to counter elite-driven narratives in corporate media.

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