Editor’s Note: The following is an editorial announcement from Vivian Bostick, Project Director of Muncie Independent Media Service (MIMS), a fiscally-sponsored project of the Alternative Newsweekly Foundation (ANF). This article was not written by the ANF.
MUNCIE, Ind. (MIMS) - I serve my community through journalism.
On March 31, 2025, I launched Vivian Bostick News (VBN). That little website, now The Cardinal Independent (The CI), has served over 35,000 readers in its first year of service.
One question I’ve heard consistently from my student colleagues is how The CI plans to operate after I graduate Ball State University in 2028.
I’ve listened, and I have an answer.
In February 2026, I applied to three foundations for fiscal sponsorship as Muncie Independent Media Service (MIMS)—housing The CI, CI Radio and The 765+. In simple terms, a fiscal sponsor is a nonprofit organization that backs community projects and provides back-office operational support for a reasonable rate. We’re not a nonprofit ourselves—we’re supported by an existing one.
Our charitable mission?
“To ensure the Muncie community maintains an independent, non-state voice, and to empower the student journalists who make that possible.”
Two foundations scheduled interviews with me. Both foundations approved MIMS.
Ultimately, I signed a contract with the Alternative Newsweekly Foundation (ANF) on March 15, 2026. With this relationship, MIMS is able to accept tax-deductible gifts, apply for nonprofit grants, and expand its community service—welcoming in a team of Muncie journalists and establishing an Advisory Board.
Policies and applications are actively in the works and will be released publicly. If you’re interested in volunteering as a Muncie Multimedia Journalist or an Advisory Board Member, and would like to share your resume before applications open, email board@CIMuncie.org.
If you’re able, please make a tax-deductible gift to MIMS, a fiscally-sponsored project of the Alternative Newsweekly Foundation. Support from everyday people like you sustains our reporting, on-the-ground coverage, live broadcasting and recording for CI Radio and The 765+, and the infrastructure we need to stay operating and independent.
Give by Texting muncie to +1 (870) 800-GIVE (4483).
Muncie Independent Media Service is a fiscally sponsored project of the Alternative Newsweekly Foundation, EIN 30-0100369. All donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Learn More.
This has grown bigger than me alone—I’m incredibly grateful for the kind people working with the ANF, and I’m looking forward to the future of independent journalism in Muncie.
Whether you’ve been reading since VBN or just found out about us from this post: Welcome, neighbor! We hope to earn your trust through our independent work. Feel free to email your tips and Op-Eds to newsroom@CIMuncie.org. Your voice matters, and we work for answers.