Three Things for the week of October 19

Three items from journalism, media and the nonprofit sector worth noting.

The Pandemic Has Not Helped Nonprofits Who Are Struggling With Technology

Hopelab, a nonprofit that uses technology and design to improve the lives of young people, has released a survey that highlights the challenges facing nonprofits efforts to effectively manage technology.

The report, released last week notes that the pandemic has done little to help organizations who were struggling to manage technology prior to the coronavirus outbreak. The need for organizations to work remotely has exacerbated the problem for many nonprofits by making the gaps “more apparent and have a larger impact on how groups serve their clients and meet their missions.”

According to the group’s Nonprofit Digital Readiness Survey, only 26 percent of the 155 groups surveyed in May had a C-level leader responsible for technology. Prior to the Covid crisis, 72 percent of the nonprofits surveyed did not have a digital strategy. About half of those groups have created one since March.

Donor-Advised-Fund Giving at Large Community Foundations Soars 42%

The Chronicle of Philanthropy is reporting that large community foundations are seeing giving from donor-advised-funds up by 42 percent in the period from March through August compared with the same period last year..

This increase came as a surprise to many community foundation leaders, although, not surprisingly, most of the increase was directed to to help nonprofits and people hurt by the Covid-19 pandemic.

In the article, Jason Baxendale, chief development officer at the Chicago Community Trust, is quoted saying that he was uncertain whether donors were advancing rather than increasing the amount they distribute. However, he said the money flowing into donor-advised-fund accounts has been growing rapidly in recent months, suggesting that donors are increasing their overall giving this year.

Baxendale also noted that he sees the giving as new money to support the increased need for nonprofits to address the economic and healthcare challenges that started in March.

According to the Lilly School of Philanthropy at Indiana University, community foundations and local United Ways have raised more than $1.05 billion for Covid-19 relief funds and distributed at least $589 million so far.

Before Trump Tested Positive for Coronavirus, Republicans’ Attention to Pandemic Had Sharply Declined

The most recent release of Pew Research Center’s American News Pathways project report notes that about two-thirds of Republicans say the U.S. has controlled the outbreak as much as it could have; 88% of Democrats disagree.

Six months into a pandemic that has claimed more than 200,000 lives in the United States and profoundly impacted daily life — and before President Donald Trump tested positive for the coronavirus — about six-in-ten Americans say the country has not controlled the coronavirus outbreak as much as it could have. At the same time, about four-in-ten also believe that the outbreak has been made into a bigger deal than it really is.

On these two issues, there is deep disagreement between Democrats and Republicans. And within the GOP, opinions vary considerably based on where people get their political and election news, according to a survey of 9,220 U.S. adults conducted Aug. 31-Sept. 7, 2020 (prior to the first presidential debate and Trump’s subsequent positive test for the virus).

For example, Republicans and those who lean toward the GOP are much more likely than Democrats and Democratic leaners to say the U.S. coronavirus outbreak has been controlled as much it could have and that it has been overblown. And among Republicans, those who cited Fox News and/or talk radio as their only major sources among eight sources asked about are far more likely than others to take these positions.

Meanwhile, Americans’ attention to coronavirus news has declined, from a high of 57% following that news very closely in late March to 35% who say the same in September. And the degree of attention that Americans are paying to news about the coronavirus also reveals partisan differences, with substantially fewer Republicans now following that coverage closely than Democrats.

Large party divides in views of severity of COVID-19 outbreak, adequacy of response While those partisan differences were small in previous months, that gap has since grown significantly.