Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity is an online media network partnered with media organizations to circulate articles advocating left-of-center policies relating to poverty. ¹ It also publishes articles from its partner organizations that discuss policy issues on welfare funding and other socioeconomic topics. ²

Background

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity is a media advocacy network formed in 2007 to share articles from media sites that promote left-of-center policy advocacy towards issues of poverty. Following the 2008 election cycle, the site began reporting and promoting additional policy initiatives. ³

Contributors to the network include the AARP Foundation, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Atlantic Philanthropies, the Gates Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and the Open Society Institute. ^{3 4} It also reports being managed by Freedman Consulting, LLC and The Hatcher Group .⁵

Advocacy

Blog Posts

In October 2024, Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity published a blog post on its website advocating for legislation to federally mandate a minimum amount of paid leave. The post claimed that such policy would increase labor force participation for women. ⁶

In November 2022, Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity published a blog post by Insight Center for Community Economic Development vice president Jhumpa Bhattacharya and its director of research Yvonne Yen Liu. The article advocated for “publicly funded guaranteed income programs,” claiming that “poverty is a policy choice” due to a lack of publicly funded welfare programs. In addition, the post advocated for more public programs for “fixing people” that would include guaranteed income programs for individuals below certain income levels. ⁷

Guaranteed Income

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity has linked to media articles promoting welfare programs ⁸ such as monthly cash payments to individuals based on income level. The group claimed such policies would address socioeconomic and health issues for impoverished individuals. ^{9 10 11}

In January 2020, Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity published an article from the Colorado Sun which advocated for providing additional Medicaid and welfare funding to low-income families. ²

Abortion

In April 2022, Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity published an article from its partner organization Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting which criticized the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson decision that overturned Roe v. Wade. The post claimed that access to abortion care was needed to address poverty, while further advocating for increased donations to Plan A Health mobile health clinics to provide free prenatal care and birth control. ²

1. Staff, Spotlight. “Journalism Partners.” Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity. Accessed December 8, 2024. https://spotlightonpoverty.org/journalism-partners/.
2. “Journalism Partners on Poverty and Opportunity.” Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity. Accessed December 8, 2024. https://spotlightonpoverty.org/journalism-partners-on-poverty-and-opportunity/.
3. “Spotlight On Poverty and Opportunity.” Arkansas State Legislature, 2009. https://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/Home/FTPDocument?path=%2FAssembly%2FMeeting+Attachments%2F995%2FI7881%2FExhibit-E_Jodie+Levin-Epstein_Spotlight+one-pager11.09FINAL.pdf#:~:text=We%20bring%20together%20diverse%20perspectives%20from%20the,launched%20in%20October%202007%20by%20major%20U.S.
4. “Funders.” Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity. Accessed December 8, 2024. https://spotlightonpoverty.org/about-us/funders/.
5. “About Us.” Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity, Accessed December 8, 2024. https://spotlightonpoverty.org/about-us/.
6. Milli, Emily Andrews and Jessica, and Gabriella Chiarenza. “Working People Need Access to Paid Leave.” Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity, October 23, 2024. https://spotlightonpoverty.org/spotlight-exclusives/working-people-need-access-to-paid-leave/.
7. Bhattacharya, Jhumpa, and Yvonne Yen Liu. “To Solve for Poverty and Inequity, Guaranteed Income Must Be Targeted.” Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity, November 16, 2022. https://spotlightonpoverty.org/spotlight-exclusives/to-solve-for-poverty-and-inequity-guaranteed-income-must-be-targeted/.
8. Staff, Spotlight. “News Posts Archive.” Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity. Accessed December 8, 2024. https://spotlightonpoverty.org/news/.
9. Castleman, Terry. “Low-Income Residents to Receive Debit Cards in Oakland’s ‘Universal Basic Mobility’ Program.” AOL, July 12, 2024. https://www.aol.com/news/low-income-residents-receive-debit-204130676.html.
10. Balch, Bridget. “Could Giving Low-Income Patients Cash Improve Their Health?” AAMC, May 30, 2024. https://www.aamc.org/news/could-giving-low-income-patients-cash-improve-their-health.
11. Stripp, Sarah, and Aisha Nyandoro. “How to Move Guaranteed Income from Program to Policy – Non Profit News: Nonprofit Quarterly.” Nonprofit Quarterly, November 20, 2024. https://nonprofitquarterly.org/how-to-move-guaranteed-income-from-program-to-policy/.