Peter Borkowski
Isthmus lives on!
I am thrilled to announce a new chapter for the paper: We are becoming a nonprofit news organization.
It’s a good fit for the values Isthmus has long upheld, and we know it will make us financially stronger as we will be eligible for support we could not previously seek.
We have been strategizing a future since we paused print production in March. We launched a reader donation program and have been extremely touched by the affection and love shown to us by the community. The enthusiastic response underscored Isthmus’ value to the community and gave us the confidence to explore this new direction. Our current publishers, Jeff Haupt and Craig Bartlett, are in full support of Isthmus becoming a nonprofit and agree that this is the best move to allow the paper to thrive for another four decades. It will allow us to pursue a mix of foundation grants, tax-deductible contributions from our loyal readers, and donations from businesses committed to ensuring journalism remains alive and well in Madison.
The details will come together over the next few months but our aspirations are high: a return to print; a strategy to diversify the voices in the paper; collaborations with other media organizations; and new reader engagement and membership opportunities.
We remain dedicated to high quality, hyper-local content and passionate about good writing, editing and presentation. We will continue our watchdog journalism, emphasis on in-depth news and political reporting, and informed coverage of the local food, music and arts scenes. We will also increase our efforts to train the next generation of local reporters.
Our efforts are not just to save Isthmus, which has been a trusted Madison institution since 1976. We are reimagining ourselves to make sure that another valued source for local news does not go extinct.
The news industry has been shrinking for more than 10 years; between 2008 and 2019 the number of newspaper newsroom employees dropped by 51%, from about 71,000 workers to 35,000, according to the Pew Research Center. COVID-19 delivered another gut punch.
Isthmus was not the only newspaper to be hobbled by the virus. The journalism organization Poynter has kept a running tally of newsrooms affected by layoffs, furloughs and closures due to the coronavirus. There are hundreds on the list, including dailies and alternative weeklies like Isthmus, as well as television and radio stations.
Losing reporters has a real consequence for communities and, by extension, the health of our democracy. There are fewer eyes on the workings of government; that means fewer reporters holding those in power accountable. Going away is simply not an option.
So yes, we are fighting for Isthmus, but also for the community we love and that loves us back. I am extremely grateful for our small editorial team and others who have helped us get to this point. Please continue to read us on isthmus.com and sign up for our newsletters. Feel free to reach out to me at jdavidoff@isthmus.com with any questions or feedback. I am excited about our future and look forward to sharing more details with you soon!
