The Center for Investigative Reporting

Emeryville, CAUnknown exempt organizationEIN 94-2434026

The center for investigative reporting (cir) engages and empowers the public through investigative journalism and groundbreaking storytelling that sparks action, improves lives and protects our democracy.

70¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
Run by 18 volunteers and 92 employees.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Programs: Part IX · People: Part I, lines 5–6

Before you give

FY2024 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
Latest return
FY2024
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2024, 2 tax years back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
1 of 5
filings with a surplus
Average deficit $728K a year · 9% of revenue · last 5 filings
Concern: a surplus in 1 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
70%
of spending
Fine: 70% of spending went to programs; 65% to 75%.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$140K
to officers and key staff · 14% of spending
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 14% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
Named funders
9
named funders · $301K
Looks good: 9 funders name it on their filings; 3 or more.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$0
total owed
No data yet: the filing does not give total assets.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
8
of 9 voting members
Looks good: 8 of 9 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$533K
-93% vs prior year
Spent
$978K
To programs
70%
Net assets
$0
By yearFY2020–FY2024
Revenue
$533K
FY2024▼ -93%
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$8.4M
FY2021$13.6M
FY2022$10.9M
FY2023$7.5M
FY2024$533K
Expenses
$978K
FY2024▼ -89%
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$11.3M
FY2021$11.9M
FY2022$11.5M
FY2023$8.8M
FY2024$978K
Net assets
$0
FY2024▼ -100%
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$1.7M
FY2021$3.3M
FY2022$2.7M
FY2023$1.3M
FY2024$0

From the FY2024 Form 990 (year ending January 2024) · see the original

Give Claim

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

70 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 70% · $689K Management & general 19% · $186K Fundraising 10% · $103K

Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.

Who runs it and what they're paid

14 people listed on the 990; $140K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Chief Operations Officer
$46,875Pt VII · Sec A
Director of Tv and Doc
$32,553Pt VII · Sec A
General Counsel
$30,625Pt VII · Sec A
Chief Development Officer
$29,477Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Chair
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 8 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Christa Scharfenberg———$292,307$286,106
Diana Baranetsky—$240,719$218,702$209,153$194,018
Annie Chabel——$225,583$225,583$182,250
Matthew Thompson————$223,322
Kaizar Campwala——$219,153——
Maria Feldman—$217,563$152,696——
Sumi Aggarwal——$172,211$216,667—
Rachael Brown—$205,156$36,298——

Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.

See The Center for Investigative Reporting executive salaries →

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Questions the 990 asks

The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.

  • Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
  • Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes

Programs and updates

Investigative journalism sparks action and improves lives through groundbreaking storytelling.

Provided by the organization

This section is blank until The Center for Investigative Reporting claims this page.

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1 program service account for $689K of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

The Center for Investigative Reporting produces the public radio show and podcast REVEAL which airs on over 500 public radio stations. REVEAL is a co-production with PRX and features investigative reporting from our newsrooms as well as stories from other newsrooms and freelance reporters.

$689Kprogram expense

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Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2024
See all 9 funders →

By the numbers

The FY2024 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$533K
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$393K
Other incomeLn 4–11$126K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$14K
Money outPt IX
$978K
Ln 25
Programscol B$689K
Managementcol C$186K
Fundraisingcol D$103K
Owns and owesPt X
$0
net assets · Ln 32
Total assetsLn 16$0
LiabilitiesLn 26$0
PeoplePt VI, VII
14
listed · VII A
PaidVII A4
Voting boardVI 1a9
IndependentVI 1b8
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$393K
Government grantsLn 1e$0
Noncash giftsLn 1g$197K
Fundraising eventsLn 1c$0
Fees for servicesLn 2g$14K
Investment incomeLn 3$302
Other incomeLn 4–11$126K
Gains on assetsLn 7$0
Total revenueLn 12$533K
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$0
SavingsLn 2$0
InvestmentsLn 11–13$0
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$0
Other assetsLn 15$0
Total assetsLn 16$0
LiabilitiesLn 26$0
Net assetsLn 32$0
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 592
VolunteersI 618
Fiscal year endsHeaderJanuary
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY24End FY24
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$1.1M$0
InvestmentsLn 11–13$0$0
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$3K$0
Total assetsLn 16$2.4M$0
LiabilitiesLn 26$1.0M$0
Net assetsLn 32$1.3M$0
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1$0$0
Grants to domestic individualsLn 2$0$0
Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3$0$0
Benefits paid to or for membersLn 4$0$0
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$76K$0$47K$29K
Pay of disqualified personsLn 6$0$0$0$0
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$531K$445K$40K$46K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$11K$8K$2K$1K
Other employee benefitsLn 9$54K$40K$9K$5K
Payroll taxesLn 10$42K$26K$10K$6K
Management feesLn 11a$0$0$0$0
Legal feesLn 11b$11K$10K$1K$0
Accounting feesLn 11c$51K$0$51K$0
Lobbying feesLn 11d$0$0$0$0
Professional fundraising feesLn 11e$0$0
Investment management feesLn 11f$0$0$0$0
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$46K$46K$0$0
Advertising and promotionLn 12$0$0$0$0
Office expensesLn 13$11K$8K$2K$1K
Information technologyLn 14$3K$3K$0$0
RoyaltiesLn 15$0$0$0$0
OccupancyLn 16$88K$65K$14K$9K
TravelLn 17$12K$9K$2K$1K
Travel and entertainment for public officialsLn 18$0$0$0$0
Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19$0$0$0$0
InterestLn 20$4K$0$4K$0
Payments to affiliatesLn 21$0$0$0$0
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$0$0$0$0
InsuranceLn 23$28K$21K$5K$3K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$8K$8K$0$0
All other expensesLn 24e$0$0$0$0
Total functional expensesLn 25$978K$689K$186K$103K

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2024 Latest Viewing $533K$978K−$445K$0 990 PDF
FY2023 $7.5M$8.8M−$1.4M$1.3M 990 PDF
FY2022 $10.9M$11.5M−$582K$2.7M 990 PDF
FY2021 $13.6M$11.9M$1.7M$3.3M 990 PDF
FY2020 $8.4M$11.3M−$3.0M$1.7M 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
See the full FY2024 990 (4 parts)
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $533,200 across 16 lines filed
VIII-1a Federated campaigns$0
VIII-1b Membership dues$0
VIII-1c Fundraising events$0
VIII-1d Related organizations$0
VIII-1e Government grants$0
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$393,097
VIII-1g Noncash contributions (included above)$197,005
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$393,097
VIII-2a-f Program service revenue, itemized rows (sum of 2a–2f as filed)Related to mission $13,511 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $0$13,511
VIII-3 Investment incomeRelated to mission $0 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $302$302
VIII-5 RoyaltiesRelated to mission $0 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $0$0
VIII-6 Net rental income or lossRelated to mission $0 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $56,365$56,365
VIII-7 Net gain or loss on sales of assetsRelated to mission $0 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $0$0
VIII-8 Net income from fundraising eventsUnrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $0$0
VIII-11a-d Other revenue, itemized rows (sum of 11a–11d as filed)Related to mission $69,925 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $0$69,925
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $83,436 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $56,667$533,200
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $978,325 across 31 lines filed
IX-1 Grants to domestic organizationsPrograms $0$0
IX-2 Grants to domestic individualsPrograms $0$0
IX-3 Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsPrograms $0$0
IX-4 Benefits paid to or for membersPrograms $0$0
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $0 · Management $46,875 · Fundraising $29,477$76,352
IX-6 Pay of disqualified personsPrograms $0 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$0
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $445,046 · Management $39,585 · Fundraising $46,104$530,733
IX-8 Pension plan contributionsPrograms $8,014 · Management $2,072 · Fundraising $1,355$11,441
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $40,280 · Management $8,709 · Fundraising $5,443$54,432
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $25,538 · Management $9,765 · Fundraising $6,267$41,569
IX-11a Management feesPrograms $0 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$0
IX-11b Legal feesPrograms $9,950 · Management $1,427 · Fundraising $0$11,377
IX-11c Accounting feesPrograms $0 · Management $51,158 · Fundraising $0$51,158
IX-11d Lobbying feesPrograms $0 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$0
IX-11e Professional fundraising feesFundraising $0$0
IX-11f Investment management feesPrograms $0 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$0
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $45,703 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$45,703
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $0 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$0
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $8,213 · Management $1,776 · Fundraising $1,110$11,098
IX-14 Information technologyPrograms $3,196 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$3,196
IX-15 RoyaltiesPrograms $0 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$0
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $65,121 · Management $14,080 · Fundraising $8,800$88,002
IX-17 TravelPrograms $9,163 · Management $1,981 · Fundraising $1,238$12,383
IX-18 Travel and entertainment for public officialsPrograms $0 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$0
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetingsPrograms $0 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$0
IX-20 InterestPrograms $0 · Management $4,233 · Fundraising $0$4,233
IX-21 Payments to affiliatesPrograms $0 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$0
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationPrograms $0 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$0
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $21,012 · Management $4,544 · Fundraising $2,840$28,396
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $8,252 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$8,252
IX-24e All other expensesPrograms $0 · Management $0 · Fundraising $0$0
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $689,488 · Management $186,205 · Fundraising $102,634$978,325
Part X · Balance sheet $0 assets, 24 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $849,323$0
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $202,134$0
X-3 Pledges and grants receivableStart of year $846,954$0
X-4 Accounts receivableStart of year $19,316$0
X-8 Inventories for sale or useStart of year $0$0
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $114,194$0
X-10c Land, buildings and equipment, netStart of year $2,553$0
X-11 Publicly traded securitiesStart of year $0$0
X-12 Other securitiesStart of year $0$0
X-13 Program-related investmentsStart of year $0$0
X-14 Intangible assetsStart of year $0$0
X-15 Other assetsStart of year $323,710$0
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $2,358,184$0
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $646,560$0
X-18 Grants payableStart of year $0$0
X-19 Deferred revenueStart of year $0$0
X-20 Tax-exempt bond liabilitiesStart of year $0$0
X-24 Unsecured notes and loans payableStart of year $44,983$0
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $317,013$0
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $1,008,556$0
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $749,397$0
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $600,231$0
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $1,349,628$0
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $2,358,184$0
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $0 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$533,200
XI-2 Total expenses$978,325
XI-3 Revenue less expenses−$445,125
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$1,349,628
XI-5 Net unrealized gains (losses) on investments$0
XI-6 Donated services and use of facilities$0
XI-7 Investment expenses$0
XI-8 Prior period adjustments−$16,160
XI-9 Other changes in net assets−$888,343
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$0

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2024 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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