Ford Foundation Gives $100,000 to Aid Rural Papers with Digital

By: The Ford Foundation is donating $100,000 to a West Virginia University effort that helps rural newspapers adapt to the digital age.

The Perley Isaac Reed School of Journalism runs the West Virginia Uncovered program, which began last fall.

Students and professor John Temple travel the state to help papers create multimedia content for their Web sites.

The team also conducts training sessions for reporters.

So far, partners have included the Hampshire Review, the Parsons Advocate, the Nicholas Chronicle and the Charleston Daily Mail.

Temple says the grant will help lay the groundwork for expanding the project beyond West Virginia.