Evan Smith & John Thornton launching the Texas Tribune

(Community Matters) Evan Smith, president & editor-in-chief of Texas Monthly, today announced his resignation to launch the Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, non-partisan public media organization being founded with Austin Ventures’ general partner John Thornton.

“The media landscape has changed before our eyes, and the challenges facing serious journalism will still be with us when the economy comes back,” Smith says. “While the for-profit business model isn’t going away, we must compliment the good work that newspapers and other media outlets are producing by coming up with innovative methods of funding journalism in the public interest. We hope to forge strong partnerships to ensure that all Texans are talking and thinking about the issues of the day. Civic engagement is too important to leave to the vagaries of market forces.”

The Tribune has raised more than $2 million to date and expects to raise double that amount by year’s end – meaning the organization will have the resources to cover, at a minimum: the 2010 election cycle, the 2011 legislative session, the next round of redistricting and the 2012 election cycle – including the presidential election. At that point, the Tribune will consider expanding its focus into other areas of life in Texas demanding deep-dive coverage.

Austin Ventures’ John Thornton is the Tribune’s founding Chairman. “We want to build a trusted and self-sustaining media brand over the next ten years,” says Thornton. “While we hope to make an important contribution to the future of journalism, what’s important is that the people of Texas feel a sense of ownership in the Tribune.”