Can non-profits work?
In an article published last month, Toronto Star former Publisher John Honderich considers whether the recent cutbacks and layoffs in the Canadian newspaper industry will result in the decline of serious, investigative journalism.
Why should we care? For Honderich, this threatens the quality of our democracy. We may need to look at new ways of producing the kind of investigative journalism that we need. Of the various scenarios that he presents, the non-profit model has generated lately much attention in the U.S.
Although this concept is still in its relative infancy, some U.S. organizations have already embraced it. Still, there are many questions concerning its effectiveness and long-term sustainability. Whether such a model could work in Canada remains to be seen.
Here is a selection of articles that explore this concept in greater detail.
NPR: Stopping the Press
New York Times : Web sites that dig for news rise as watchdogs
Huffington Post : How to fix American journalism
Associated Press : Decline in newspapers renews idea of non-profits supported by large endowments
New York Times : Mother Jones tests nonprofit model in race to survive the recession
Valleywag : Who would fund America’s largest nonprofit newspaper?
New York Times : News you can endow
New Yorker : Nonprofit newspapers and More on nonprofit newspapers
Christian Science Monitor : Nonprofit journalism on the rise
Mother Jones : Nonprofit journalism
The Business Insider : LA Billionaire wants to turn LA Times into a nonprofit