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Is there a key link we skipped, or a part of the story we got wrong?</p> <p><a href="http://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/improve/">Let us know</a> — we’re counting on you to help Encyclo get better.</p> </div> <div class="encyclo-altentry-sharing-chunk-3"> <div class="encyclo-section-header-naked">Put Encyclo on your site</div> Embed this Encyclo entry in your blog or webpage by copying this code into your HTML:<br /><br /> <textarea rows="4" cols="20"><iframe src="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/california-watch/?widg=mini" class="encycloembed" width="256" height="140" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" align="right" style="margin:10px 0px 10px 20px;"></iframe></textarea> </div> </div> <div style="clear: both;"></div> </div> <div class="encyclo-altentry-wrapper">   <div id="encycloentryheadertopper"></div> <div id="encyclo-altentry-header"> <div class="encycloheadline-wrapper"> <img src="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/404891544/cwicon_bigger.png" width="73" height="73" alt="California Watch logo" class="encycloheaderimage2" /> <a href="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/california-watch/" class="encycloheadline2" rel="bookmark">California Watch</a> </div>  </div>  <div id="encycloblockbelowheader">  <div class="encycloleftnarrativewing"> <div class="encyclo-section-header">Key links:</div> <div class="encyclo-section-header" style="font-size: .9em;">Primary website:<br /> <a href="http://www.californiawatch.org/">californiawatch.org</a></div> <div class="encyclo-section-header" style="font-size: .9em;">Primary Twitter:<br /><a href="http://twitter.com/CaliforniaWatch">@CaliforniaWatch</a></div> <div class="encycloactionbutton"><a href="https://pinboard.in/u:niemanlab/t:californiawatch/">All key links »</a></div><br /> </div>  <div class="encyclonarrative instapaper_body"> <div class="encyclowarning" style="border: 5px solid #800000; padding: 15px; margin: 10px 0 25px; background: whitesmoke;"><strong>Editor’s Note</strong>: Encyclo has not been regularly updated since August 2014, so information posted here is likely to be out of date and may be no longer accurate. It’s best used as a snapshot of the media landscape at that point in time.</div> <div class="beforemore"><p><a href="http://www.californiawatch.org/">California Watch</a> was a nonprofit investigative news organization that focused on public affairs issues in California. Its work <a href="http://cironline.org/onenewsroom">has been subsumed</a> under that of the nonprofit <a href="http://cironline.org/">Center for Investigative Reporting</a>, which founded it.</p> <p>California Watch was founded in 2009 and is based in Berkeley, Calif. In March 2012, CIR <a href="http://cironline.org/news/center-investigative-reporting-bay-citizen-agree-merge">merged</a> with the Bay Area nonprofit news site <a href="http://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/bay-citizen/">The Bay Citizen</a> under the auspices of CIR. The new organization had a <a href="http://www.baycitizen.org/media/story/bay-citizen-center-investigative-merge/">combined staff of 70</a>, of which about 40 had been CIR staff, and a 2012 budget of $10.5 million. CIR’s staff <a href="http://www.baycitizen.org/about/merger/">works out of offices</a> in Berkeley, Sacramento, and Orange County and focuses on <a href="http://cironline.org/blog/post/focusing-anew-high-impact-investigative-reporting-4548">local, state, and national investigative projects</a>.</p> <p>Nearly all of California Watch’s initial <a href="http://cjrarchive.org/img/posts/Drew_Revenues_CJR.jpg">$2.1 million annual budget</a> was provided by three foundations, which funded the organization with <a href="http://www.niemanlab.org/2009/11/california-watchs-revenue-model-charge-news-outlets-target-donors/">$3.7 million in startup grants</a>. Since then, it has worked to broaden its funding base and has <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/67467835/CIR-Industry-Report-Reinventing-Journalism">increased its annual budget</a> to a projected $4.8 million in 2011. It hopes to <a href="http://www.niemanlab.org/2010/01/california-watch-the-latest-entrant-in-the-dot-org-journalism-boom/">eventually develop a model</a> that’s also based on individual memberships, sponsorship, and licensing.</p> <p>Through California Watch, CIR charged a <a href="http://www.cjr.org/feature/the_new_investigators.php?page=all">small per-story fee</a> to provide its stories to other news outlets. The Watch had a regularly updated website, though its primary focus is on collaborating with other California news outlets. Its editors referred to it as a “<a href="http://www.niemanlab.org/2010/04/reading-between-the-lines-collaboration-panel-all-smiles-but-subtext-tells-more-nuanced-story/">boutique wire service</a>,” and they often <a href="http://californiawatch.org/watchblog/california-watch-reaches-new-partners-seismic-story">edited various versions</a> of an investigative report to personalize it to each news outlet, including several <a href="http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2009/12/california-watch-says-yes-to-open-networked-investigative-reports351.html">translated versions</a> for local ethnic media.</p> </div><div class="readmoretrigger encycloactionbutton instapaper_ignore"><a name="#">Keep reading »</a></div><div class="aftermore"><a name="below"></a><p>California Watch also had a <a href="http://www.centerforinvestigativereporting.org/blogpost/20091109californiawatchandkqedannounceeditorialcollaboration">partnership</a> with the San Francisco-based public radio station <a href="http://www.kqed.org/">KQED</a> that includes exclusive radio reports and shared Capitol Bureau office space.</p> <p>The organization used <a href="http://www.poynter.org/how-tos/community-engagement/136476/california-watchs-engagement-efforts-show-staffers-what-hard-to-reach-audiences-want/">unorthodox methods</a> of publicizing its stories, including distributing coloring books and offering lead testing at events.</p> </div><div class="readlesstrigger encycloactionbutton instapaper_ignore"><a name="#">Show less »</a></div> <script type="text/javascript"> jQuery(document).ready(function() { jQuery(".aftermore").hide(); jQuery(".readlesstrigger").hide(); jQuery(".readmoretrigger").click(function() { jQuery(this).next(".aftermore").slideToggle(500); jQuery(".readmoretrigger").toggle(); jQuery(".readlesstrigger").toggle(); }); jQuery(".readlesstrigger").click(function() { jQuery(".aftermore").slideToggle(500); jQuery(".readmoretrigger").toggle(); jQuery(".readlesstrigger").toggle(); }); }); </script> </div> </div> <div id="encycloentrymiddlestrip"> <div id="encycloentrymiddlestriptext"> <div class="encyclo-pac-title"><strong>Peers, allies, & competitors</strong>:</div> <div class="encyclo-pac-list"> <em><a class="pac-have-encyclo" href="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/center-for-investigative-reporting/">Center for Investigative Reporting</a></em>, <em><a class="pac-have-encyclo" href="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/los-angeles-times/">Los Angeles Times</a></em>, <em><a class="pac-have-encyclo" href="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/bay-citizen/">The Bay Citizen</a></em>, <em><a class="pac-have-encyclo" href="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/new-england-center-for-investigative-reporting/">New England Center for Investigative Reporting</a></em>, <em><a class="pac-have-encyclo" href="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/san-francisco-chronicle/">San Francisco Chronicle</a></em>, <a href="http://www.kqed.org/">KQED</a><br /> </div> <div style="clear: both;"></div> </div> </div>  <div id="encycloleftcolumn"> <div class="lab-stories-pull"> <div class="encyclo-section-header">Recent Nieman Lab coverage:</div> <div class="lab-stories-pull-datesource">April 18, 2013 / Ken Doctor</div><div class="lab-stories-pull-summary"><strong><a href="https://www.niemanlab.org/2013/04/the-newsonomics-of-pulitzers-paywalls-and-investing-in-the-newsroom/">The newsonomics of Pulitzers, paywalls, and investing in the newsroom</a></strong> — Noteworthy in the 2013 Pulitzer announcements are the multiple winners. The New York Times won four and the Star Tribune two. Having just wrapped up a session on paywalls at the NAA mediaXchange conference in Orlando, on...</div><div class="lab-stories-pull-datesource">Dec. 20, 2012 / Ken Doctor</div><div class="lab-stories-pull-summary"><strong><a href="https://www.niemanlab.org/2012/12/the-newsonomics-of-2013-wizardry-tribune-buffett-murdoch-paton-bloomberg-and-more/">The newsonomics of 2013 wizardry: Tribune, Buffett, Murdoch, Paton, Bloomberg, and more</a></strong> — 2013 could end up making 2012 seem calm by comparison....</div><div class="lab-stories-pull-datesource">Nov. 29, 2012 / John Keane</div><div class="lab-stories-pull-summary"><strong><a href="https://www.niemanlab.org/2012/11/john-keane-the-new-muckrakers-are-challenging-democratic-institutions-in-a-good-way/">John Keane: The new muckrakers are challenging democratic institutions — in a good way</a></strong> — "The new muckraking isn't the effect of new media alone...Yet buried within the infrastructures of communicative abundance are technical features that enable muckrakers to do their work of publicly scrutinising power, mu...</div><div class="lab-stories-pull-datesource">Sept. 13, 2012 / Ken Doctor</div><div class="lab-stories-pull-summary"><strong><a href="https://www.niemanlab.org/2012/09/the-newsonomics-of-the-quartz-business-launch/">The newsonomics of the Quartz business launch</a></strong> — Atlantic Media's new business site has the advantage of starting with a strategic clean slate. Now, it's all about execution....</div><div class="lab-stories-pull-datesource">Aug. 2, 2012 / Ken Doctor</div><div class="lab-stories-pull-summary"><strong><a href="https://www.niemanlab.org/2012/08/the-newsonomics-of-syndication-3-0-from-newscred-and-newslook-to-ok-com-and-upworthy/">The newsonomics of Syndication 3.0, from NewsCred and NewsLook to Ok.com and Upworthy</a></strong> — The web may make syndication easier, but it hasn't yet made it into a great business. A new wave of startups are trying to change that....</div> <div class="encycloactionbutton"><a href="http://www.niemanlab.org/tag/california-watch/">All Lab posts on California Watch »</a></div><br /> </div>  </div>   <div id="encyclorightcolumn"> <div class="mediagazer-pull"> <div class="encyclo-section-header">Recently around the web, from Mediagazer:</div> <div class="encycloactionbutton"><a href="http://mediagazer.com/search/query?q=%22california watch%22">All Mediagazer posts on California Watch »</a></div><br /> </div>  </div> <div id="encycloentryfooter"> <div id="encycloentryfootertext"> <strong>Primary author</strong>: Mark Coddington. <strong>Main text last updated</strong>: May 23, 2013.<br /> </div> </div> </div>  <div class="encyclo-altentry-improvebar"> <div class="encyclo-altentry-improvebar-chunk-1"> <div class="encyclo-section-header-naked">Make this entry better</div> <script type="text/javascript">var submitted=false;</script> <iframe name="hidden_iframe" id="hidden_iframe" style="display:none;" onload="if(submitted){window.location='http://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo-improve-thanks/';}"></iframe> <form action="https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/formResponse?formkey=dHlvX3hwbVE2aXJQRksyd3VZc1ltTlE6MQ&embedded=true&ifq" method="post" target="hidden_iframe" onsubmit="submitted=true;"> <div class="encyclo-improve-single-questiontext">How could this entry improve? 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The center was founded by Charles Lewis in 1989, who was its director until 2005. Its staff has fluctuated between 25 to more than 50 throughout the 2000s and 2010s; most recently, it laid…</p> </div> </div> <div style="clear: both;"></div> </div>  <div class="encyclo-altentry-bottombar"> <div class="encyclo-altentry-bottombar-chunk-1"> <div class="encyclo-section-header-naked">Put Encyclo on your site</div> Embed this Encyclo entry in your blog or webpage by copying this code into your HTML:<br /><br /> <textarea rows="4" cols="20" id="encyclo-embed-bottom"><iframe src="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/california-watch/?widg=mini" class="encycloembed" width="256" height="140" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" align="right" style="margin:10px 0px 10px 20px;"></iframe></textarea> </div> <div class="encyclo-altentry-bottombar-chunk-2"> <div class="encyclo-section-header-naked">Recently updated entries</div> <a href="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/corporation-for-public-broadcasting/">Corporation for Public Broadcasting</a>  <a href="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/tribune-publishing/">Tribune Publishing</a>  <a href="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/upworthy/">Upworthy</a>  <a href="https://www.niemanlab.org/encyclo/e-w-scripps/">E.W. 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