About The Jersey Vindicator
The Jersey Vindicator is an independent, nonprofit newsroom focused on accountability and public service reporting in New Jersey.
We explain how decisions made across the state — in Trenton, in agencies, and in local governments — affect the lives of New Jersey residents. Our reporting helps people understand how New Jersey really works, where public money goes, and what happens when transparency breaks down.
We believe residents deserve clear, factual reporting that cuts through spin and misinformation. Our work focuses on accountability, government transparency, public spending, and decisions that shape daily life — including housing, taxes, education, health care, infrastructure, the environment, criminal justice, immigration, and voting rights.
What we do
The Jersey Vindicator publishes in-depth reporting and investigations that:
- follow public money and decision-making
- explain complex government actions in plain language
- document failures of transparency and oversight
- amplify issues that may otherwise receive little sustained attention, particularly in underserved communities.
Our goal is not to tell people what to think, but to give them the information they need to understand what’s happening — and why it matters.
Why we exist
New Jersey is one of the most complex and consequential states in the country, yet many important decisions are made with little public scrutiny.
As local newsrooms shrink and coverage becomes more fragmented, accountability gaps grow. The Jersey Vindicator exists to help fill those gaps — by focusing on statewide issues that affect communities across New Jersey and by doing the kind of reporting that takes time, persistence, and public records expertise.
Independence and funding
The Jersey Vindicator is a nonprofit newsroom. Our reporting is free and accessible to everyone.
We do not accept funding from political parties or government entities. Our work is supported primarily by readers, along with grants from foundations that support independent journalism.
While our application for 501(c)(3) status is pending, The Jersey Vindicator is fiscally sponsored by The Tiny News Collective, a national nonprofit that supports local journalism organizations. This allows reader contributions to be tax-deductible.
Reader support helps ensure our reporting remains independent, accountable to the public, and focused on the public interest.
Who we are
Our newsroom
The Jersey Vindicator is produced by a team of journalists and a photojournalist, along with regular contributors across New Jersey. We also collaborate with freelance reporters and photojournalists to cover statewide and local issues that require ongoing attention.
Board of Directors
Craig Shofed
Craig is the managing director of Artworks Trenton, the capital city’s creative hub promoting artistic diversity and community engagement. After his second kidney transplant, he left a career in information technology to become a full-time artist working under the name C.A. Shofed. He previously served on the Artworks board of directors.
Heather Taylor
Heather is the manager of digital media and programs at the Dow Jones News Fund. Previously, she served as senior director of communications at The Citizens Campaign, where she developed citizen journalism training programs that helped residents use reporting and digital tools to effect change in their communities.
Krystal Knapp, Founder and Executive Director
Krystal Knapp is an investigative journalist with deep experience in public records and data-driven reporting. She spent a decade as an investigative and computer-assisted reporting journalist at The Trenton Times and is the founder of the local news outlet Planet Princeton. She has received numerous awards for accountability reporting and public-records journalism. Before launching The Jersey Vindicator, Krystal also worked for Centurion, a nonprofit that helps free the wrongfully convicted, and served as a chaplain at New Jersey State Prison.
Stay connected
You can read our reporting, subscribe to our newsletter, or support our work by becoming a contributing reader.
Independent journalism in New Jersey exists because people care enough to support it. Thank you for reading and supporting independent, nonprofit news for the Garden State.