2025 MEDIA IMPACT

Below are short case studies of national and local media campaigns HIS team members executed last year:

New Yorkers for Reparations (NY4R)

In April 2025, Human Impact Solutions partnered with New Yorkers for Reparations -a 100+ member coalition including NAACP Legal Defense Fund, National Action Network, and New York Civil Liberties Union - to generate strategic media coverage for their advocacy work advancing reparative justice across New York State. As the coalition's PR agency partner, we immediately mobilized to support the release of groundbreaking statewide polling data demonstrating reparations' growing popularity and its emergence as an increasingly decisive ballot issue for New York voters. Our directive focused on engaging both local and national press, with particular emphasis on local outlets given the direct impact on the state and city political environment.

Human Impact Solutions developed comprehensive press materials, including press releases and media briefing documents, and coordinated virtual deskside conversations with journalists who had previously covered reparations as well as those covering New York politics and economics more broadly. This strategic approach generated media coverage reaching over 215 million people (combined publication-wide audience figures) with an estimated 600,000+ article views based on audience reach and social media engagement rates. Top-tier placements included mentions in The New York Times and USA Today, alongside a letter to the editor in The New York Times and op-eds in City Limits, New York Amsterdam News, NY1, New York Daily News, and Capital B News. This successful campaign resulted in Human Impact Solutions' contract extension through 2026, as the coalition continued its advocacy work leading up to the anticipated release of the State Commission's reparations recommendations report.

Sample News Hits:

• ​​”Will Zohran Mamdani Make New York the First City to Confront Its Debt to Slavery?” Capital B News (November 2025)
• “Letter-to-the-Editor: Confronting Our History With Courage, Not Shame,” New York Times (August 2025)
• “Mamdani Triumphed Without a Majority of Black Voters. Where Does That Leave Them?” New York Times (June 2025)
• “Opinion: Why Reparations Must Be A Priority Issue in the NYC Mayoral Election,” City Limits (May 2025)

Leadership LINKS, Inc.

In 2025, Human Impact Solutions partnered with national nonprofit Leadership LINKS, Inc. to develop and execute a comprehensive media strategy for their cross-country historical travel experience serving Black and brown youth. HIS led all aspects of the PR campaign, including journalist research and outreach across six key U.S. states and Canada, press release and pitch letter development, media briefing materials, and coordination of live and pre-recorded interviews spanning television, digital, radio, and alternative media platforms. The campaign generated exceptional results: an audience reach of 77.5 million people with an estimated 360,000+ article views. Media coverage was secured in high-profile national outlets including USA TODAY (3 feature articles), NPR, Essence Magazine, Nonprofit Quarterly, and Success Magazine, alongside local news coverage in each tour city. The campaign's success led to contract renewal, with HIS continuing to craft and execute the media strategy for the tour's November 2026 return.

Sample News Hits:

• “We explored the 'uncomfortable' and inspirational truths about the Underground Railroad,” USA Today (November 2025)
• “Journey to Freedom' brings students closer to Black history,” USA Today (June 2025)
• “A Group of Black Girls Commemorates Juneteenth by Walking in Harriet Tubman’s Footsteps,” Non-Profit Quarterly (June 2025)
• "Juneteenth celebrations across NC include quilting, tours and historical reenactments," NPR / WUNC.org (June 2025)

Black Mamas Matter Alliance (BMMA), Inc.

Since 2018 HIS has served as the PR agency of record for the Black Mamas Matter Alliance, the nation’s leading organization fighting the U.S. maternal health crisis. Over this time our public relations and marketing efforts have delivered measurable impact across earned media, strategic partnerships, and community engagement. In 2025 alone, we secured 48 pieces of national and local media coverage in premier outlets including The New York Times, NPR, CBS News, The Guardian, BET, Essence, Non-Profit Quarterly, Afrotech, Ms. Magazine, Capital B, The Grio, Black Enterprise, and TIME. This coverage generated a combined audience reach of more than 700 million people and over 3.3 million estimated views, positioning BMMA's work and message at the center of critical conversations about Black maternal health. Beyond earned media, we cultivated strategic partnerships that expanded BMMA's visibility and community presence. Last year HIS facilitated an ongoing partnership with iHeartMedia and led PSA production for the organization’s end-of-year giving campaign, which aired on stations nationwide. Additionally, we forged a media partnership with Blavity, Inc. along with a vendor spot at last year’s BlavityFest in Atlanta. HIS has been re-engaged for the eighth year to continue representing BMMA, Inc. and leading the organization's 10-year anniversary PR campaign.

Sample News Hits:

• “Doulas Provide Crucial Care to Mothers. Medicaid Cuts Could Change That,” New York Times (November 2025)
• “Fate of Black Maternal Health Programs Is Unclear Amid Federal Cuts,” Capital B News (April 2025)
• “Why Black Maternal Health Week Matters Now More Than Ever,” Blavity (April 2025)“Rising maternal mortality is fuelling distrust in the medical establishment in Georgia,” NPR (July 2025)

Forum for Real Economic Emancipation (FREE)

FREE is a community-based initiative in Tulsa, Oklahoma, that bridges scholarship and public life, making complex economic ideas accessible, relevant, and usable. The president of the organization is Clara Mattei, an economics professor at the University of Tulsa and the author of the book, The Capital Order: How Economists Invented Austerity and Paved the Way to Fascism. FREE holds various convening throughout Tulsa to highlight how economics plays into everyday life. Kristi handled media relations and PR for the events, sending out advisories and press releases and handling day-of media inquiries and interviews at the events. One such story examined how direct payment assistance helped families during the pandemic in Tulsa. The story, which appeared in New America, is here.

Sample News Hits:

• "Forum held to discuss the effects of mass incarceration on society," fox23.com (October 2025)
• "Forum for Economic Emancipation hosts event discussing food insecurity," fox23.com (December 2025)
• "Why are food costs rising in Oklahoma? Tulsa forum examines the issue," Newson6.com (December 2025)
• "New Tulsa group focuses on food insecurity and how to solve it,", Tulsa Flyer (December 2025)"Event focusing on economics of food, hunger set for Dec. 12," Tulsa World (December 2025)