to nonprofit or not to noprofit

Is editorial leadership worth more than nonprofit status?

As a 501(c)(3), an IRS designation, the company is not allowed to endorse candidates for election (see footnote). The nonprofit status was something we were thinking about putting in place when we create a news organization to fill the local information gap in Wisconsin Rapids.

The designation will allow people to become members, much like on PBS, and have a tax deduction for helping out the community by keeping an independent information gathering source in the community.

The community needs editorial leadership, that's no doubt. For the months of February the past two years, there has only been five editorials written each month. And only one of the locally written editorials the past four Februarys took on an issue (in 2006 when the actions of the newly elected Wisconsin Rapids Public School Board members were called into question).

When How many local editorials
Feb. 2009 5
Feb. 2008 5
Feb. 2007 8
Feb. 2006 12

The decline in locally written editorials shows the cutbacks at the Daily Tribune that were already evident by picking up the paper every day. Through no fault of the local staff, less information has been distributed to the community. Frankly, the staff doesn't have the time to write because of the parent company's cutbacks.

It's not the local staff's fault there is less editorial leadership. Gannett just doesn't make it a priority anymore.

With editorial leadership comes a voice to help during elections. Newspapers have the access to candidates to make an informed decision about which one would do the best job. Those at the newspaper involved in the process — the editorial board is normally more people who don't work for the newspaper than do — get a chance to interview candidates. From these interviews, editorial boards determine who they think the best candidate is and pass that on the the readers.

But there are plenty of nonprofit news organizations out there: National Public Radio, Public Broadcasting System, Mother Jones, and Poynter. And across the country, nonprofit news organizations are springing up to fill the local information gap, much like what we want to do. Check out www.voiceofsandiego.com and www.minnpost.com, for starters.

Not being able to endorse does not mead we can't criticize, which is crucial in a democracy.

So how important is endorsing candidates? Very, but is it more important than being a nonprofit?


IRS code:
Under the Internal Revenue Code, all section 501(c)(3) organizations are absolutely prohibited from directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for elective public office.