A-Mark Foundation Receives $10 Million Gift to Expand Support for Investigative Journalism

The donation provides significant new resources to advance A-Mark's mission at a critical moment for investigative journalism.
SANTA MONICA, CA — January 15, 2025 2 min read

Key Takeaways

  • A-Mark's founder, Steven C. Markoff, announced a new $10M gift to advance the foundation's work.
  • A-Mark grants to support investigative journalism totaled nearly $1M in 2025.
  • The new gift positions A-Mark to significantly expand investigative journalism funding in 2026.

The A-Mark Foundation announced a transformative $10 million gift from its founder and board member, Steven C. Markoff, to further A-Mark's mission of supporting and promoting investigative journalism by recognizing excellence in reporting and investing in the next generation of investigative journalists.

“This extraordinary gift is both a vote of confidence in the Foundation's mission and a powerful catalyst for what comes next,” said Justin Jampol, A-Mark's Board Chair. “With this support, we have the opportunity to deepen our impact, move more decisively on our priorities, and strengthen the programs and partnerships that reflect the Foundation's values and goals.”

The A-Mark Foundation supports and promotes investigative journalism through three programs. The A-Mark Prizes for Investigative Reporting awarded the best investigative work in 30 states in 2025. The A-Mark Journalism Master's Scholarships provided scholarships to 23 students pursuing master's degrees in journalism, and the A-Mark Student Journalism Awards launched at nine community colleges to support student journalists working for their college newspapers. 

A-Mark's 2025 work delivered meaningful impact by supporting journalists at multiple stages of their careers. The investigative journalism recognized through A-Mark's programs produced real-world results. In one instance, the prize-winning reporting led to a district court ruling that resulted in nine people being released from jail and 10 convictions erased. Other winning investigations prompted federal and state criminal probes, legislative reforms, policy changes, funding increases for public institutions, and the opening of new services for vulnerable communities.

The Foundation gave awards ranging from $5,000 to $18,500 across its three programs in 2025, totaling nearly $1 million in grants. A-Mark expects to increase its grants for investigative reporting substantially in 2026, helped by the new $10 million gift from Markoff.

“I am deeply grateful to Steven Markoff for his generosity and for his belief in the importance of investigative journalism,” Jampol added. “Markoff's leadership and commitment make it possible for A-Mark to continue to grow thoughtfully and with focus.”

For more information about the A-Mark Foundation and its programs, visit amarkfoundation.org.

The A-Mark Foundation supports and promotes investigative journalism through its three programs: A-Mark Prizes for Investigative Reporting, presented by state press groups; A-Mark Journalism Master’s Scholarships, presented by universities; and A-Mark Student Journalism Awards, presented by community colleges.

Key Takeaways

  • A-Mark's founder, Steven C. Markoff, announced a new $10M gift to advance the foundation's work.
  • A-Mark grants to support investigative journalism totaled nearly $1M in 2025.
  • The new gift positions A-Mark to significantly expand investigative journalism funding in 2026.

Related Bios

Steven (Steve) C. Markoff
Founder
Mr. Markoff is a native of Los Angeles, California, and a 1964 graduate of Los Angeles City College with an Associate of Arts degree. His affiliations include: the precious metals and numismatic business for 50 years (1954-2005); Chairman and CEO of A-Mark Financial Corporation, a Santa Monica-based financial services company he founded in 1965 (originally named A-Mark Coin Company), that purchased the Redfield Silver Dollar hoard; the A-Mark Foundation, a private foundation he founded in 1997 that became the parent of free searchable databases and other nonpartisan information covering interesting and important social issues and history, such as sites on George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Special Investigations Involving US Presidents Since 1973.

In 2004, Mr. Markoff helped found A-Mark Entertainment, a company he co-chairs; that year he also founded ProCon.org, a 501(c)(3) public charity promoting critical thinking that had been or is being used by over 10,000 schools in over 90 countries. [ProCon.org was merged into Encyclopædia Britannica on 5-29-2020]. In 2018, Mr. Markoff founded SexEd.net, a website giving straightforward, sourced information about sex and sexually related issues.

In 2020, Mr. Markoff launched SecondAmendment.org, a website that contains many of the pieces of the puzzle that make up our individual rights to arms. Markoff’s first published book, The Case Against George W. Bush, became available November 2020. Markoff was interviewed by Ralph Nader on the Ralph Nader Radio Hour about his book “where he dispassionately lays out the three major war crimes the former president committed by invading Iraq.” HANDBOOK – The First 100 Years Of The ACLU: A Compendium Of Advocacy Before The United States Supreme Court, Markoff’s second book, became available January 2023. It received a Los Angeles Book Festival runner up award in the Wildcard Category in April 2024; Misfire: The Supreme Court, The Second Amendment, Our Right to Bear Arms, Markoff’s third book, became available May 14, 2024. Markoff’s fourth work, the three-volume set of The First 100 Years Of The ACLU: A Compendium Of Advocacy Before The United States Supreme Court, became available September 16, 2025.
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Contacts

Tracey DeFrancesco
tracey@amarkfoundation.org
Chief Operating Officer