Bainum stated
The Baltimore Banner takes its name from the
Star-Spangled Banner flag that waved over
Fort McHenry in 1814 during the
War of 1812 and gave its name to the American national anthem. It launched with 42 journalists and planned to expand to 70 by the end of the year. The
Banner has also set up a “Creatives in Residence” program to "feature the work of Baltimore-area artists and writers." At launch, this group included
D. Watkins, Kondwani Fidel, Kerry Graham, and Mikea Hugley. In August 2022, the station announced a partnership with
WJZ-TV, a
CBS-owned and operated station. The two outlets share online content and Banner journalists appear on the station's 9 a.m. newscasts.
The Baltimore Banner bolstered its school sports coverage with its August 2022 acquisition of Varsity Sports Network. In March 2024, the
Banner announced plans to expand its editorial coverage from the city into
Baltimore County, and from there to
Anne Arundel County and
Howard County. In February 2025, the Banner won a
Polk Award for its coverage of Baltimore's drug overdose crisis. Reporters Alissa Zhu and Nick Thieme, and photojournalist Jessica Gallagher later won a Pulitzer in local reporting, shared with the New York Times, for the same series of stories. In May 2025, Yoshino departed the Banner to become a managing editor at
The Washington Post.
Brian McGrory, former editor-in-chief of
The Boston Globe, chair of the journalism department at
Boston University and a board member for the Banner's parent organization, will serve as interim editor while a nationwide search is conducted for Yoshino's successor. On September 25, 2025,
Audrey Cooper, the editor-in-chief of
WNYC, was named as the Banner's new editor-in-chief. In September 2025, the Banner expanded into
Montgomery County, Maryland, launching content specific to the county under the name
The Banner. The new bureau, led by Zuri Berry, will aim to fill a perceived lack of news coverage in the
Washington, D.C. suburbs. The Banner will partner with
NBC-owned station
WRC-TV and its
Telemundo sister station
WZDC-CD in a manner similar to its existing partnership with WJZ. In February 2026, following massive staff cuts at
The Washington Post, the Banner announced that it would expand into
Prince George's County, Maryland, and expand its sports coverage to include Washington, D.C. teams, including the
Washington Nationals and
Washington Commanders. In April 2026, The Venetoulis Institute announced that it would buy the
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and associated assets to prevent it from shutting down. Bainum Jr. also announced a further investment of $30 million dedicated to expanding the
Banner and to "turning around" the
Post-Gazette. ==See also==