If you read and enjoy Crosscut, would you consider making an end-of-the-year gift? If you believe our region needs quality, online journalism, would you consider supporting us?
Like NPR and PBS, we rely on member support. We don’t charge for subscriptions, and we do the best we can to raise funds from advertisers and other funders. But your support is critically important to our sustainability.
Nearly 1,000 of our readers financially support Crosscut, but we have nearly 90,000 readers over the course of a month. Any amount you can afford to support Crosscut will get us closer to our goal of doubling the number of supporting members.
As an added incentive, a generous Crosscut board member has offered to match the first 250 readers who contribute $100.
You have no doubt read or heard about the challenging times for American journalism. Newsweek recently ceased publication. The venerable New Orleans Times-Picayune is printed just 3 days per week, and of course Seattle has already lost the print edition of the PI. The Tacoma News Tribune recently announced it will charge for its online content.
Despite these challenges, Crosscut has launched numerous member-focused efforts throughout 2012. Here are a few that rise to the top:
· Hosted a variety of member events (Bellevue Art Museum, Food Forest, Meet The Writers parties, Occupy Seattle panel)
· Redesigned the home page to include a photo-based headline story system
· Launched Art Thiel’s sports column, with exclusive video
· Hired a new publisher/CEO, Greg Shaw, this past September
· Instituted an afternoon news scan, The Daily Troll
· Launched Valerie Easton’s Book City column
· Added more video and audio to accompany stories
This past year, you may have read about complex issues related to coal ports, enjoyed Knute Berger’s Puget Sound history and culture pieces, or followed our year-round political coverage. We featured environmental articles on the Puget Sound, watchdog updates on Hanford, an investigation into debt collection, the latest on Seattle’s waterfront and tunnel plans, and a slew of essays from young writers on topics ranging from joblessness to infertility.
We have more in store for 2013, but we’re not ready to reveal everything just yet. We can say that you’ll see us delve more deeply into specific topic areas, such as education, environment, the Seattle mayoral race, the upcoming state legislative session and a new focus on Seattle’s Eastside news). You can also expect a boost in coverage both journalistically and via outreach due to partnerships with other local media in print, radio and TV.
None of this would be possible without your support. As a non-profit organization, Crosscut is reliant upon you, not just for your readership, but also for deeper support via membership.
Please consider an end-of-year gift to Crosscut today. The first twenty-five $100 donations will be matched 100 percent through a one-time matching fund. Pick from three ways to make your gift:
- Online at www.crosscut.com;
- Mail a check 105 S. Main St., Ste. 330, Seattle WA 98104;
- Call 206-382-6137 (Mon-Fri, 9:30am – 5:00pm).
All donations are tax-deductible.
Thank you for your support.
