Congratulations to the sixteen winners who split $5.5. million on various projects that advance communicating news and information in the public interest using open-source digital technology focused on geographic community. The inventor of the World Wide Web, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, received a grant to address issues surrounding sourcing and accuracy online. The 2008 awards were smaller than the inaugural round last year, and many projects were internationally focused.
Now that the news is official, I can break the silence. Yes, I had a proposal that made the top 25 finalists. Of course it is disappointing to show and not place, but the winners and other finalists who didn’t get funded have amazing ideas and it is an honor to be in this company. There were 3,000 applicants this year.