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The Markup News Inc
New York, NY · EIN 843438375 · Form 990 · FY2024 · NTEE A30 · Arts, Culture & Humanities · Small ($100K-$1M) · themarkup.org
revenue
$610K
expenses
$4.5M
net assets
$49K
employees
27
volunteers
9
program ratio
84%
mission · from form 990

THE MARKUP IS A NONPROFIT NEWSROOM THAT CHALLENGES TECHNOLOGY TO SERVE THE PUBLIC GOOD. THE MARKUP UTILIZES AN UNPARALLELED ROSTER OF ENGINEERS AND JOURNALISTS WHO PURSUE MEANINGFUL, DATA-DRIVEN INVESTIGATIONS AND DEVELOP DIGITAL TOOLS.

profile · synthesized from sources

The Markup News Inc is a nonprofit newsroom that conducts data-driven investigations into technology companies and their impact on the public. It combines journalism with engineering to build digital tools like Blacklight and Citizen Browser, which analyze online tracking and algorithmic bias. The organization focuses on holding big tech accountable through investigative reporting and public-facing technology.

irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2024

What they reported doing

  1. #1 primary $393K
    PRODUCT & TECHNOLOGY - THE MARKUP STARTED WITH A COMPREHENSIVE REDESIGN OF THE HOMEPAGE, ACCOMPANIED BY THE CREATION OF NEW CMS FEATURES TO SUPPORT THE STRUCTURE OF THE NEW HOMEPAGE AND MAKE IT EASY FOR EDITORS TO CHANGE IT EXTENSIVELY IF NEEDED. THEY MADE EXTENSIVE FEATURE UPDATES TO THEIR PREMIERE TOOL BLACKLIGHT. THEY UTILIZED SUMMER INTERNS TO HELP MANAGE THE WORKLOAD AND THE END RESULT IS A PLETHORA OF NEW FEATURES INCLUDING THE ABILITY TO "SPOOF" SITE SCANS FROM GERMANY, SCAN AS A DESKTOP BROWSER IN ADDITION TO A MOBILE BROWSER, BYPASS CACHE OF ALREADY SCANNED SITES, AND A HOST OF PERFORMANCE UPGRADES.
  2. #2 $74K
    AUDIENCE - IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE LAUNCH OF THEIR WEBSITE REDESIGN, THE MARKUP CONTINUED TO GROW THE OVERALL BRAND IMPACT. THEIR WORK WAS REPUBLISHED ACROSS OTHER NEWS NETWORKS 1,223 TIMES AND LOCALIZED BY OTHER NEWSROOMS 8 TIMES. THEIR TOOLS CONTINUE TO HAVE IMPACT WITH THEIR AUDIENCE AS WELL: OVER 13 MILLION PEOPLE HAVE USED THE BLACKLIGHT TOOL. THEY WERE ALSO RECOGNIZED BY LEADERS IN THE INDUSTRY. THEY WON 18 INDUSTRY AWARDS, INCLUDING SEVERAL FROM SOCIETY FOR NEWS DESIGN, SIGMA, SCRIPPS HOWARD, NATIONAL PRESS CLUB, AND THE ONLINE JOURNALISM ASSOCIATION.
named programs · 5 · from sources

What they call their work

Blacklight
Tool that scans websites to reveal third-party trackers and surveillance technologies, enabling users to understand how their data is collected online
Citizen Browser
Democracy diagnostic tool that audits Facebook's algorithm to study how news and narratives are amplified or suppressed on the platform
Denied
Investigation exposing racial disparities in mortgage lending practices by major financial institutions
Pixel Hunt
Investigative series uncovering the extent of online tracking by Facebook and Google through the use of the Meta Pixel inspector tool
Still Loading
National investigation into inequities in internet access, revealing disparities in broadband speed and availability across communities
activities · 4 groups

What they do

  • Nonprofit Investigative & Community Journalism 3 activities
    • Conducts investigative reporting on technology's societal impact
      Investigates how technology systems affect society, focusing on data-driven economies, corporate and government surveillance, algorithmic bias, and digital rights. Produces journalistically authored stories using original datasets and methodological transparency.
    • Enables free republication of journalism
      Makes all journalism freely available for republication under a Creative Commons license, increasing public access to investigative reporting.
    • Produces and distributes journalism via newsletters
      Sends regular newsletters two to three times per week covering technology’s societal impacts, along with special editions providing in-depth reporting, expert insights, and staff analysis.
  • Open Research Infrastructure & Publishing 2 activities
    • Co-develops research tools with partner organizations
      Collaborates with other news and research organizations to build tools for investigative journalism, such as randomized street address sampling and joint investigations into tech platform practices.
    • Publishes open data, code, and methodologies
      Releases underlying datasets, source code, and detailed methodologies from investigations to promote transparency, reproducibility, and public reuse, while protecting privacy and sources.
  • Free and Open-Source Software Advocacy & Development 1 activity
    • Develops and maintains public-facing investigative tools
      Builds and operates digital tools that enable public scrutiny of technology systems, including website privacy scanners, social media algorithm auditors, and data-tracking detectors. Tools include Blacklight, Citizen Browser, Split Screen, Smol Links, and Blacklight Query.
  • Uncategorized 2 activities
    • Advocates for policy change through investigative impact
      Uses investigative findings to influence legislative and regulatory action, including prompting congressional hearings, lawsuits, and state-level bills related to data privacy, dating app safety, and algorithmic accountability.
    • Integrates with CalMatters to expand policy journalism
      Became part of CalMatters in 2024, joining a nonprofit news organization focused on California policy and politics to enhance investigative reach and impact.
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$610K
Contributions & grants$586K96%
Program service revenue$00%
Investment income$20K3%
Other revenue$4K
expenses
Total expenses$4.46M
Program expenses84%
Admin / overhead15%
Fundraising1%
Salaries & benefits$2.65M
Grants paid out$1.27M
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$49K
Cash$56K
Investments$0
Liabilities$0
Net assets$49K
Liquid reserves0.1 mo
4 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue -85.8%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024

Who runs it

paid leadership · 8
NameTitleHours/wkCompensation
Neil Chase CEO 40 $468K
Nabiha Syed CEO 40 $239K
Sisi Wei Editor-in-Chief 40 $177K
Monique O Madan Urrutia Journalist 40 $163K
Michael Reilly Managing Editor 40 $138K
Ali Frances Operations Manager 40 $120K
Jon Keegan Journalist 40 $118K
Ramsey Isler Product Director 40 $105K
board members · 9
  • Anil Dash — Director
  • David Boardman — Past Chair
  • Hema Sareen Mohan — Vice Chair
  • John Boland — Chair
  • Leo Wolinsky — Director
  • Melissa Harris-Perry — Director
  • Nicole Wong — Director
  • Paul Ohm — Director
  • Stuart Karle — Director
relationships · 49

Who they work with

  • American Statistical Association Network — Adopts ethical guidelines from the American Statistical Association for statistical practice in journalism.
  • Arizona Community Foundation Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Arnold Ventures Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Asian American Journalists Association Partner — Recipient of awards honoring thoughtful reporting and cultural competence in journalism
  • Basecamp Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Big Local News Partner — Collaborated with The Markup to co-develop the United States Place Sampler (USPS) tool.
  • CalMatters Network — The Markup is now part of CalMatters.
  • CalMatters Partner — Collaborated on an investigation into Meta's advertising revenue from political violence.
  • CalMatters Partner — Collaborated on an investigation into website compliance with California privacy law.
  • CalMatters Partner — Collaborated on investigations into data deletion practices and health data leaks.
  • CalMatters Partner — Collaborated with The Markup on an investigation into health data trackers on state-run health exchange websites
  • CalMatters Partner — Integrated with The Markup in 2024 to combine national and state-level journalism on technology and public policy.
  • Craig Newmark Philanthropies Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Data Science Association Network — References the Data Science Association code of professional conduct in shaping its data ethics standards.
  • DuckDuckGo Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Ethics and Governance of Artificial Intelligence Initiative Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Freedom of the Press Foundation Partner — Collaborates by referencing and linking to their guidance on securely sharing sensitive information with the press.
  • Fund for Nonprofit News Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Heising-Simons Foundation Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • John S. and James L. Knight Foundation Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • John Sperling Foundation Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Lumina Foundation Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Luminate Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • National Association of Black Journalists Partner — Recipient of the Salute to Excellence Award for journalism addressing issues affecting the Black community
  • New Venture Fund Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Omidyar Network Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Online News Association Partner — Recipient of multiple ONA awards for excellence in digital journalism
  • Open Society Foundations Funder — Financial supporter of The Markup News Inc
  • Outlier Media Partner — Co-conducted an investigation into racial disparities in Michigan's auto insurance pricing.
  • Outlier Media Partner — Jointly conducted investigation into racial disparities in car insurance pricing.
+ 19 more
strategies · 4

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Crowdsourced and Collaborative Technology Auditing
    methodology: crowdsourced_auditing
    By engaging the public and partner organizations in collecting data and conducting investigations, we expose hidden algorithmic systems and policy loopholes, because distributed participation increases data breadth, public ownership of findings, and systemic accountability.
  • Data-Driven Investigative Journalism with Scientific Rigor
    methodology: scientific_journalism
    By applying scientific methods—such as building original datasets, rigorous verification, and transparent data sharing—we produce credible investigative reporting on technology's societal impact, because reproducibility and empirical validation increase public trust and enable independent scrutiny.
  • Empirical Testing and Public Demonstration of AI Systems
    methodology: empirical_ai_testing
    By using real-world creative tasks and prompt fidelity evaluations to test generative AI, we reveal functional limitations and misrepresentations, because tangible demonstrations make abstract technological flaws understandable to the public and policymakers.
  • Privacy-Preserving Research and Communication
    methodology: privacy_protective_journalism
    By designing journalism practices that protect source and reader privacy—including avoiding user tracking and securing communications—we encourage the reporting of wrongdoing and promote public trust, because minimizing surveillance in digital engagement lowers barriers to participation and whistleblowing.