January 3, 2002

Biography of Rob Levine

Rob Levine, a native of Duluth, Minnesota, graduated with a BA from the University of Minnesota-Duluth in Journalism in 1980. He attended graduate school in Mass Communication and Journalism at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, from 1980-1983. He worked as a staff photographer at the Minneapolis Star-Tribune from 1983-1987, and has worked as a freelance photographer in Minneapolis since that time.

In 1988 Levine began a secondary career as a computer systems analyst and programmer, and created his own Microsoft Windows program called Grip (http://www.gripsoftware.com/), a photo-studio management program for professional photographers. Grip is still sold today, and is one of the top photo studio management programs available, according to a review in Photo District News, the industry’s leading monthly publication.

In 1994 Levine co-founded Northwired, Inc., an Internet Service Provider (ISP) and development company. The primary purpose of this company was to provide hosting for the customers of Grip Software, and an Internet testing and hosting environment.

In 1998 Levine, Mike Tronnes, and others founded Cursor, Inc., a Minnesota non-profit corporation dedicated to media education and criticism, and began publishing www.Cursor.org. Later, in 1999, Levine created the website www.MediaTransparency.org, itself an outgrowth of a project begun by the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP) that analyzed the grant making of a dozen conservative philanthropies (See The Strategic Philanthropy of Conservative Foundations at http://www.mediatransparency.org/movement.htm ).

MediaTransparency.org contains a database of grants made by the conservative philanthropies over a range of years. Currently the database has a total of over $1.1 billion in over 18,000 grants made to more than 2,300 recipients. Levine has procured all the original documentation for the grants, as well as executed the design, website development, and grant entry for MediaTransparency.org The website includes an advanced search mechanism where it can be searched by funder, dates, grant purpose, and/or recipient. The database at MediaTransparency.org is truly unique and has proven to be a useful resource to many journalists and citizens around the world.

In 2000 Levine re-wrote the articles of incorporation and bylaws of Cursor, Inc., and filed with the IRS to obtain 501(c)(3) status, which was granted by the agency in July of 2000.

Levine works in a studio in the warehouse district of downtown Minneapolis, and lives in Minneapolis with his wife.