Trusted Source

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How the Virginia Public Access Project revolutionized political transparency and won public trust In 1997, journalist David Poole launched a one-employee nonprofit to shine light on a blind spot in Virginia's lax campaign finance system. Over the next quarter century, the Virginia Public Access Project (VPAP) assumed an increasingly larger role in state politics by addressing two crises in American democracy—the decline of newspapers and the tribalization of politics. VPAP built a sustainable business model that provided paywall-free insights into state politics. Most important, VPAP adhered to a fiercely independent, fact-based approach that won the trust of Republicans and Democrats alike. Trusted Source , written by VPAP's founder, tells the unlikely story of how his organization revolutionized political transparency in Virginia. It describes the precarious early days when VPAP was financially dependent upon the same powerful interests it was