Dear Neighbor,
My name is Margaret Coker, and I’m writing to introduce myself and a news organization I’m leading devoted to in-depth news about Savannah and Coastal Georgia called The Current.
Some of you may know me from my daily walks around Forsyth Park, football Sundays at Coach’s Corner or at the dog run at Daffin Park. While my family has called Savannah home for more than a decade, we haven’t been around as often as I’d like.
My 20-year career as a journalist, first with Atlanta-based Cox Newspapers, then The Wall Street Journal and finally The New York Times, has taken me around the world to cover some of the biggest stories of my generation, from the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to the 2008 global financial crisis and the war against Islamic State in Iraq.
While I was away, I always tried to keep up on what is happening in Savannah and Coastal Georgia. That proved difficult. For although we all feel inundated and overwhelmed by the din of 24-hour news and talking heads, little of the noise addresses the complex realities and challenges that face this gorgeous and economically vital corner of Georgia that more than 600,000 other people call home.
The Current aims to change that. As a team of some of the state’s best journalists, we aspire to revive public-service journalism to Savannah and Coastal Georgia by providing vital, data-driven factual in-depth local news. We will examine how our government spends our taxes and how the justice system helps and fails us. We will investigate the environmental and financial impact of our changing climate. We want to analyze the long-term effects Covid-19 will have on our children, local business and our lifestyle.
For The Current independence and nonpartisanship are crucial, which is why we’re operating our newsroom as a nonprofit organization. Local philanthropists and families are generously providing our initial funding, but make no mistake: The success of The Current depends on residents and readers like you. We are building a joint venture of citizens who believe that better informed Georgians will lead to a better Georgia. So please tell us what you want to know and what problems you and your neighborhoods face. In return, we pledge to dig deep, look beneath the surface, ask hard questions and provide you with journalism you can trust.
Come check us out at http://thecurrentga.org on Sept. 17 when we publish our first stories. Until then, take a couple of moments, watch our video telling you a bit more about The Current’s mission.
If you want to chat or share a story idea, email me at margaret.thecurrent@gmail.com or find us on Facebook and Twitter at @thecurrentga.
Warm regards,
Margaret Coker
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