We’re going to be totally transparent: After months of working hard to improve FAIR’s finances, we’re still struggling, set to end this fiscal year deep in the red for the third year in a row. Our fiscal year ends at the end of this month, and without some serious help, we will have lost $200k in the past year alone.
We’re not going to tell you this is a code-red emergency just yet, since we still have a small savings buffer. But it's dwindled by almost half, and we need all hands on deck to start turning this around ASAP.
We are working incredibly hard to fill the fundraising gap—and fast. Our budget is as bare-bones as possible: We have a small staff of four, two interns each semester and about a dozen freelancers, cranking out our core programs of Extra!, CounterSpin and FAIR.org. All of these people and all of this work are indispensable. There really isn’t anything more we can cut without significantly changing our work and impact.
We’re vigorously applying for grants, but foundations are facing shortfalls as well, forced to make difficult funding choices amid floods of worthy applicants. Plus, our individual donor base has always been our backbone.
While our society faces the injustices of war, free speech violations, a climate catastrophe and threats to our democracy, we believe independent, nonprofit media—and corporate media watchdogs like us—are vital. Unfortunately, we’re not the only group of our kind facing fundraising shortages during a time when our message is more crucial than ever.
We know these past few years have been difficult for many financially. We aren’t asking you to dig into your pocket and give us your last dollar, but if you are able, we are asking you to be as generous as possible. If you can’t give, please share our work with a friend and invite them to!
We’ve also set a goal to gain 100 more recurring monthly donors. Donations of all amounts at all times are crucial, but ongoing pledges will help us sustain our work throughout the year. For less than the cost of a New York Times or Washington Post subscription, you can ensure dissenting voices and viewpoints can continue to be heard, and that FAIR can continue to fight corporate media bias!
We rely so heavily on donations, and that’s by design. From our inception, we knew we wanted to make independent, reliable news accessible to all. We wanted to provide information for the good of the public—not profit. We don’t have paywalls or pesky ads that compromise our independence. We’re loyal to the public—and that’s who funds us!
We have an incredible audience that we are so grateful for. We have faith we can turn this around, but we need your help.
