The Knight Prototype Fundsupports early-stage ideas related to media, data and information, nurturing them to the prototype stage. Last week Knight announced the latest round of winners.

Some of the winning projects that might prove useful for community news and information efforts include:

• Talkbox.Involve local communities in news stories by repurposing phone booths in specific neighborhoods that will provide residents with a direct, two-way line to the New York Public Radio newsroom. A "Talkbox" can help with engaging new audiences or gathering information in a neighborhood where a reporting project is taking place.
• Public Record: Advanced Emergency Radio Scanner and Repository.This tool will allow journalists to better track current events and investigate past events. Newsrooms and community organizations can record interactions on police/emergency radios, set alerts and listen to archived content.
• OpenStreetMap Plugin for Open Data Kit. Enabling easier collection of open geographic data, even in places with connectivity issues, by combining Open Data Kit's data collection with OpenStreetMap's data community.

Each quarter, the Knight Prototype fund offers small teams with an early-stage idea grants of $35,000 to build key components of their project to test a critical hypothesis in six months.

Next deadline to enter: Aug. 1
Learn more and apply now