Which donations are eligible to be matched by NewsMatch?

Newsrooms that had operating expenses below $1 million in the prior calendar year (January 1 to December 31, 2023) are eligible for dollar-for-dollar matching funds from the NewsMatch main match fund.

All active INN members (regardless of size) are eligible to participate in NewsMatch 2024 and receive dollar-for-dollar matches from selected partner funds.

The following donations are eligible to be matched by NewsMatch's national seed funds or partner funds:

• The main fund match cap is $15,000. This is the maximum amount that a news organization with annual expenses under $1 million will receive from the NewsMatch main match fund.
• Donations received during the campaign period from November 1, 2024 to December 31, 2024 are eligible to be matched.
• NewsMatch will match up to $1,000 in donations made by a single donor within the campaign period.
• For merchandise sales, subscriptions, or ticket sales, the portion of the transaction that is considered tax-deductible is eligible for the match. This is typically calculated by the amount contributed minus the fair market value of the sale item.
• Donations made by individuals, not businesses or other organizations. Those made through donor-advised funds, family foundations, or other vehicles are eligible to be matched if they can reasonably be seen as coming from a single individual supporting your work. In general, donations made by businesses or institutions where an individual cannot be named are not eligible for the match.
• A donor advised fund (DAF) contribution is eligible to be matched by main and/or partner-matching funds up to the individual donation cap ($1,000 per donor in 2024).
• Cash gifts and in-kind donations cannot be applied towards the match, as there's no way to verify the source of the donation.
• When reporting donations, gifts may either be counted towards your NewsMatch dollar-for-dollar match or as additional (or “local”) match funds, but not both. For example, if a donor contributes $500 to match donations you receive, their gift would be considered a “local match” and could not be reported as a gift to be matched by NewsMatch.
• We will match anonymous donations of $5,000 and under up to the $1,000 individual donor match cap. INN’s member standards require that members list all donors of $5,000 and above on their websites and that anonymous donations should not make up more than 15% of an organization’s annual revenue. Anonymous donations of more than $5,000 could place an organization in violation of these standards. Newsrooms will have to certify that all submitted donations meet the required eligibility standards for this campaign.
• New recurring donor boost: Any new recurring monthly donation that begins during the campaign period (November 1 to December 31) or increases to existing recurring donations will be matched at the 12-month value of that donation up to $1,000. For example, a new member that starts a donation of $10/month in December will be matched at $120 ($10 x 12). If a new person makes a donation of $500 a month, we'd only match up to $1,000.