What do the news media think about nonprofits?

Summary:

This study done in the Seattle area includes careful interviews with key informants including editors and publishers.

The research team that put together Good News, Good Deeds in the 1990s interviewed nonprofit staff, consultants in public and media relations, and news media personnel. The authors were Stephen Silha, Marion Woyvodich and Jan Grey.

They found a troubling situation. News media people were suspicious of nonprofits and weary of being approached mostly by nonprofits seeking a favor. Nonprofit people felt there was far too much emphasis on "bad news" and not enough recognition of their challenges and accomplishments. There wasn't much in what the researchers learned that suggested a straightforward path to better understanding.

The study is available online at http://www.goodnewsgooddeeds.org/

(Putnam Barber, editor of the Nonprofit FAQ, contributed the "Forward.")