A note from our editor, Elizabeth MacBride:
In the 10 years between 2008 and 2018, the number of newspaper publishers in the United States declined to 38,000 from 71,000. Between 1,300 and 1,400 communities that had newspapers of their own in 2004 now are news deserts.
I rue the loss of these newspapers and journalists. Local journalism was never a high-paying job, and the people who did it loved their communities. Hellishly bad social media algorithms and the trust fund babies who disproportionately staff national media outlets cannot care in the same way. I say that even as I appreciate the yoeman’s work being done now by the national outlets.
Good journalism (not the kind that sings in your echo chamber) is an exercise in critical thinking, one way to keep brain cells firing after you’ve graduated from your formal schooling. Whatever happens after this period of turmoil in the United States, we will need to focus on critical thinking skills. “The main thing needed to make the world happy is intelligence,” Bertrand Russell said. “And this, after all, is an optimistic conclusion, because intelligence is a thing that can be fostered by known methods of education.”
In the midst of the election, you see how much our civil society has decayed, in heart and brain. One of the most poignant goodbyes came from Pennsylvania: The Middletown Press & Journal closed this year after 166 years in business. “As heartbroken as we are, we refuse to be bitter. We’re not going to go out throwing stones. We gave it our best shot, and it’s been a great run. And that’s how we’ll end this story.”
If communities had trusted forums to talk things out and think things through, the United States would have a middle ground – which we desperately need.
— Elizabeth MacBride, founder of Times of Entrepreneurship
Times of Entrepreneurship Stories of the Week
Startup Spotlight: HabitAware Helps With Often-Ignored Mental Illnesses, Like Trichotillomania
Times of Entrepreneurship launches a new feature, looking at a startup that recently emerged from a university entrepreneurship program and is showing signs of success.
What The Biden Administration Must Do For Entrepreneurs
The Takeaway: Six leaders say, start with immediate fixes to get capital flowing, and move on to innovation, infrastructure and tax policy. Oh, and the SBA needs an overhaul.
Opinion: Overcoming Trump’s Legacy Of Racism
A late-night text reveals a young Black woman’s fear and a parent’s pain.
Sponsored Content
Rowan University: A Blue-Collar Soul. Can a Rising Research Institution Hold On to Its Mission of Serving First-Generation Students? An impact profile produced by Times of Entrepreneurship, working with the Beeck Center for Social Impact & Innovation at Georgetown University and supported by Lumina Foundation.
Important Stories from Elsewhere
Trump Election Lawsuits Have Mostly Failed
His campaign has spent much of the past week in court with little success. Here’s what he’s tried.
John Roberts Has Heard Just About Enough Of Obamacare For One Lifetime
The Supreme Court chief justice has saved the program twice. He’s prepared to uphold it again but is growing weary of it all.
Twitter, Facebook Face Rocky Future Post-Trump
Social media companies limited and couched the president’s false posts but it’s too early to tell whether that made a difference.
Former Zillow Execs Raise $40M Seed Round For Tomo Networks To Reinvent How People Buy Homes
The Stamford, Ct., and Seattle-based startup has introduced a tech-fueled mortgage and transaction platform targeted at both real estate agents and consumers.
Universities Should Support More Student Entrepreneurs.
“In the past, a university education prepared students for a career defined by others….universities need to prepare them for careers they define themselves,” argue these academic authors.
2020 Most Disruptive MBA Startups: Thawra Network, University of Michigan
A startup aims to revolutionize the lived experiences of Arabs and Muslims in America through life-affirming content and groundbreaking stories.
COVID-19 Will Push University Startups Out Of Stealth Mode
This founder predicts closer collaboration between entrepreneurs and academic institutions.
Asia’s Richest Man Takes On Jeff Bezos and Amazon
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani obliterated rivals in India’s telecom sector by selling $2 data plans and free voice calls. Now he’s using a similar approach in e-commerce.
Singapore And Hong Kong To Start Travel Bubble Flights On Nov. 22
Passengers will be required to undergo a Covid-19 test within 72 hours of departure to enjoy quarantine-free leisure travel.
You May Have Missed
Analysis: How Real Is The Threat Of Political Violence?
Signs emerge across different sectors and organizations, from an increase in automatic weapons fire to boarded up storefronts, that the United States is on the brink of a new paradigm.
This Business Owner Refused To Board Up Her Windows
Rhetoric at the national level has painted urban areas as zones of anarchy and lawlessness. Mandy Arnold wanted to show her community, York, Pa., that she believed in it.
Voices Of Immigrant Entrepreneurs: I Vote As A Businessman
Across the Midwest, these business owners face rising racism but look to the future with their dreams intact.
How To Keep the Poison Of Politics Out Of Your Company
One of the world’s leading peacemakers, John Paul Lederach, has worked in conflict zones from Colombia to Myanmar. Here’s his advice for navigating the next few weeks.
Venture Capital Spotlight
Chingona Ventures
Chicago, Illinois
What it is: Founded in 2019, Chingona Ventures is a pre-seed fund that makes investments in founders in nontraditional backgrounds that position them to create businesses in markets that are growing and often overlooked.
Leadership: Founded by Samara Mejia Hernandez, previous early-stage investor with MATH Venture Partners and Goldman Sachs
Minimum investment: $250,000
Investment style/track record: The firm makes seed stage investments of $100,000 to $250,000 to pre-seed and seed stage companies that have typically raised under $1 million in outside funding. The fund seeks companies where the founders do not fit a traditional mold.
Since 2019, the fund has invested in 15 startups.
Chingona Ventures is one of the eight early-stage, Latinx and Black-led venture capital funds that will receive a portion of $50 million from PayPal Holdings (NASDAQ: PYPL) in an initiative that was announced in Oct.
Quote: “The Latino market is one of the most overlooked opportunities in the venture capital and startup community. Currently, very little money goes into fund managers – 0.5% of all VCs are Latinas who raised their own funds and that translates to less than 0.4% of all Latina CEOs who receive VC money,” said founder Samara Mejia Hernandez.
Events
Building A High-Revenue One-Person Business In Challenging Times
Date: November 12, 1 pm ET
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, many freelancers found that their experience with remote work helped them keep their businesses going—and often, growing. Now many of these one-person businesses are raising their game. Learn how to grow your business from three seven-figure solo entrepreneurs and Alex Wilson-Campbell, founder of the Remote Work Life Podcast, in this free webinar.
Mexico: Opportunities for Reinvestment and Economic Recovery
Date: Nov. 12, 11 am to 3 pm ET
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
Leaders of the public and private sector will discuss the government’s plan to boost economic activity and foreign investment in the country’s recovery at this event, a collaboration between the Americas Society/Council of the Americas and the Ministry of Finance.
Resonate to Revenue: Build Credibility to Drive Sales in 2021
Date: Nov. 12, 4:30 pm ET
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
Learn how to showcase your expertise to build the credibility you need to attract media coverage and revenue at this free event.
Concordia 2020 Africa Initiative
Dates: Nov. 16-17
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
This event, launched in 2018, aims to foster, elevate and sustain cross-sector partnerships for social impact on the African continent. Speakers include H.E. Olusegun Obasanjo, former president of Nigeria; Madame Monica Geingos and First Lady of the Republic of Namibia.
The Future of Fintech
Dates: Nov. 16-18
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
SEC Commissioner Hester Pierece, Plaid founder Zach Perret, Gusto co-founder and CEO Joshua Reeves and Anand Selva, CEO of US Consumer Banking at Citigroup are among more than 125 speakers at this event, organized by CB Insights.
Global Entrepreneurship Week
Dates: November 16-22
Location: Live, hybrid and virtual
Information available here.
This collection of thousands of events, powered by the Kauffman Foundation, takes place in more than 170 countries around the world. This year there will be more than 35,000 events, focused on making entrepreneurship available to all.
Path Forward: Your Money
Date: November 17, 2 pm.
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
Top experts in personal finance will provide advice at this CNBC conference on spending and saving and the psychology behind decision-making. Speakers include Suze Ormon and NFL New England Patriots linebacker and professor at University of Pennsylvanaia Brandon Copeland.
Startup Lehigh Valley Pitch Competition
Date: November 18 (Deadline to apply: October 28, 2020)
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania entrepreneurs are invited to compete in this virtual competition. Only 10 spots are available. Prizes total $10,000.
Leap the Valley of Death: Making It Past SBIR Phase 1
Date: November 18, noon to 1 pm
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
Winning a Small Business Innovation and Research grant can be a critical milestone but it’s not a guarantee of long-term success in federal contracting. This workshop is focused on taking the next step to Phase 2 and from Phase 2 to long-term contracts.
Fundraising for Early Stage Founders in Emerging Countries
Date: November 19, 2020, 5 pm in Paris (GMT+1)
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
This webinar looks at how early-stage startups from emerging countries can find investors, offering guidance from Mélanie Keita, cofounder of Melanin Capital.
Look Forward to Your Exit in 2021
Date: December 2, 2020, noon to 1 pm
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
Aimed at business owners who are looking to exit, this webinar focuses on maximizing the value of your business, the pros and cons of selling internally versus externally, leadership and succession strategies and avoidance of top deal-killers.
Sight Tech Global
Date: Dec. 2-3, 2020. Registration is free and opening soon.
Information available here.
This virtual conference is dedicated to fostering discussion among technology pioneers about how rapid advances in AI and related technologies will create a more accessible world for people with blindness and visual impairments.
LinkUp Conference Show
Date: Dec. 8, 2020
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
This digital networking conference is focused on providing opportunities for leaders in fintech and telecom. Speakers include venture capitalist Tim Draper and Dr. Roshwanna Ellis, founder and CEO of EnrichHER.
MIT Enterprise Forum Arab Startup Competition
Deadline for applications: December 15, 2020
Location: Virtual
Information available here.
This annual competition, founded in 2006, is designed to empower entrepreneurs and foster the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Arab Region. The winners receive equity-free prize money.
Baylor New Venture Competition
Date: March 25-27, 2021; Applications open September 1, 2020
Location: Baylor University; Waco, Texas
Information available here.
Baylor New Venture Competition offers applicants business plan feedback, mentorship, and a chance to compete for more than $250,000 in prizes. Collegiate entrepreneurs from around the globe are eligible to participate in the competition, hosted by Baylor University.
Rolling:
MassCEC’s InnovateMass Program
Deadline: Rolling
Information available here.
This program offers up to $250,000 in grant funding and technical support to applicant teams deploying new clean energy technologies or innovative combinations of existing technologies with a strong potential for commercialization. Applicants must run Massachusetts-based companies or have a location in the state and have a technology that fits specific guidelines.
This story and others on Times of E are made possible by a sponsorship from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is a private, nonpartisan foundation that provides access to opportunities that help people achieve financial stability, upward mobility, and economic prosperity – regardless of race, gender, or geography. The Kansas City, Mo.-based foundation uses its grantmaking, research, programs, and initiatives to support the start and growth of new businesses, a more prepared workforce, and stronger communities. For more information, visit www.kauffman.org and connect with www.twitter.com/kauffmanfdn and www.facebook.com/kauffmanfdn.
