Formation | February 2021 |
---|---|
Executive Director | Faiz Shakir |
Website |
perfectunion |
More Perfect Union is a progressive non-profit news media organization founded in February 2021 by Faiz Shakir. The outlet, named after a phrase in the U.S. Constitution, specializes in video reporting and opinion coverage about the American labor movement, economic policy, and corporate accountability. [1] [2]
In August 2021, More Perfect Union won the Sidney Award for outstanding investigative journalism. [3]
In August 2021, More Perfect Union won the Sidney Award for its coverage of the Frito-Lay strike. "MPU was the first national outlet to cover the strike," the Sidney Hillman Foundation wrote in awarding the prize. "They published dispatches from the ground over a three-week period which collectively generated over 4 million views and spurred follow-on coverage by outlets such as the New York Times, the Washington Post, CNN, and NPR... After a three-week strike, Frito's Topeka plant struck an agreement to end the 'suicide shifts' and forced 7-day workweeks." [3]
Also in August 2021, More Perfect Union confirmed with actor Danny DeVito that he had been stripped of his verified status on Twitter after he tweeted a message of solidarity to striking Nabisco workers: "NO CONTRACT NO SNACKS." [4] The news spread widely and contributed to DeVito and his rallying cry becoming popular labor memes. [5]
In November 2021, More Perfect Union launched an explainer series called "The Class Room". It is "aimed at providing a left-wing answer to PragerU, a YouTube titan of right-wing ideology," the New York Times reported. [1]
More Perfect Union says it receives funding from various donors and Soros foundations, including Open Society Foundations, but does not take money from labor unions or corporations. [1]
In 2023 The Class Room was awarded The Hillman Prize for Opinion and Analysis. [6]
More Perfect Union, a video-centric outlet that has a staff of 24 and backing from George Soros's Open Society Foundation, among other donors, does not take money from labor unions, Mr. Shakir said.