With your ticket or sponsorship, in addition to supporting the vital work of the Poynter Institute, you can expect an exciting evening celebrating journalism and democracy. Poynter’s first-ever major online fundraiser for the free press will feature special appearances by celebrities and journalists, rare performances and poignant storytelling. We will also honor award-winning broadcast journalist, best-selling author and anchor of “Fox News Sunday” Chris Wallace with the annual Poynter Medal for Lifetime Achievement.This year made clear the enormous value of journalism and how the work of the nonprofit Poynter Institute supports the free press and a healthy democracy.We are all learning to navigate the pandemic and are collectively fighting an infodemic. Local and national journalists, fact-checkers and educators are debunking bad information and shining a spotlight on the science and medicine around the coronavirus. They continue to explore the challenges of staying healthy while reopening schools and local economies. Beyond COVID-19, journalists are telling stories about the nation’s conversation on racism and social justice, voting safety and security, and how communities are charting a path to a better quality of life.All the while, Poynter supported these efforts — empowering both journalists and citizens with fact-checking, just-in-time training and advice on ethical decision-making. Poynter’s staff has focused its outreach on local journalists to help them stay safe and sane during an exceptionally intense news cycle. We have been teaching media literacy to targets of disinformation, including first-time voters and those over 50 years old, so they can sort fact from fiction on digital platforms for themselves. We made more than $500,000 worth of online courses free to colleges and others in need as the pandemic changed our patterns of work.Each year we celebrate the courageous and vital work of journalists with our Bowtie Ball — which is also Poynter’s single biggest fundraising opportunity. While we can’t gather this year in person, we are moving forward with this unique online event. Will you join us in celebrating journalism in 2020?