Another fundraiser goes well

July 15, 2009 in Trend, USA | 1 comment

Folio reports that Paste magazine’s last-ditch fundraiser “The Campaign to Save Paste” has been successful, earning $250,000 from 10,000 donors.

Donors do get more out of the deal than just feeling warm and fuzzy – exclusive rare tracks from big-name artists, and their names in a draw to win stuff – and Paste apparently still needs another $50,000 to get out of their hole. Still, all power to them for getting so much already.

It’s not the first such fundraiser, as regular Blogsplosion readers will know. Bitch magazine was successfully saved through reader contributions, as was Arthur – albeit briefly, as it went into hibernation a few months later regardless.

Currently, there’s also the Screw The Man fundraiser from NEED, and others to come I’m sure.

Two observations:

Firstly, this is so far entirely for magazines with devoted followings owned by small, independent publishers. Domino probably had the support to do this kind of thing, but being owned by Conde Nast might have lost them the sympathy vote. Living in America has made me accustomed to public radio and TV funding appeals – that independent magazines do them too now isn’t such a big societal leap as it would be in the UK, which is perhaps why most if not all seem to be working.

Secondly, in pretty much every case, almost no information is being given to readers during these appeals about how things will change thanks to their donations, other than paying off creditors and paying overdue salaries. In other words, can the magazine ever become sustainable in the current climate, or will the donations just help keep things afloat until the next fundraiser?

At least Paste makes an effort to explain how things are changing in the Folio piece linked to at the start of this post, but why don’t they do so to their own readers? Why do they assume that their own readers/potential donors don’t deserve as much of an explanation beyond “You love us. Now save us”? Answers, wrapped in a ten-dollar note, to the usual bank account please.