BoiseDev will soon expand with a new standalone news product crafted for the greater McCall area – stretching from Cascade to New Meadows.
The product will be funded in part by a grant from Press Forward, a national initiative to boost local news. The funding came as a result of a competitive process, which awarded local news outlets with dollars to help fill coverage gaps. BoiseDev was one of the 204 outlets selected out of more than 900 applicants.
“BoiseDev has long covered the Round and Long Valleys, and we’re excited to add even more critical news coverage for these areas – free of pop-ups, intrusive ads or misleading headlines,” BoiseDev Co-founder and Editor Don Day said. “The McCall area is a special part of Idaho – and we look forward to dedicating new resources to the area as it continues to grow and change.”
The new effort is set to launch in the first part of 2025, after an extensive research process. A name will be announced at a later date.
“We’re looking forward to digging in and getting a better understanding of the types of coverage needed to serve the McCall area,” BoiseDev Co-founder and Managing Partner Kara Jackson said. “We want to be sure that we build something that serves people who live in Valley County, as well as the many people who visit or recreate there.”
BoiseDev will hire a new reporter/editor for the project. The job posting is here.
“We’ve been lucky to build a team of top-notch people, and we’re looking forward to adding another team member,” BoiseDev Managing Editor Gretchen Parsons said. “We think it will be a fun assignment.”
Press Forward has said it will invest more than $500 million to help strengthen local newsrooms. The grant funding for BoiseDev is designed to support a startup process, and the product will be supported on an ongoing basis by a mix of advertising and reader support.
