Annual Giving - Investigative Reporters & Editors

Stronger Together

Your donations support a global community of investigative journalists

The COVID-19 global pandemic hit the journalism industry hard. But the strength of journalists is unwavering. IRE’s more than 6,000 members continue to work in local, national and international newsrooms to do reporting that keeps communities safe and holds the powerful accountable. Your donations support the training of investigative journalists in your community and around the world.

How to Donate

Online: Click here for IRE’s secure online donation form.

Text: Text “4IRE” to 41444

Facebook Fundraiser: Visit IRE’s Facebook page and start your own Facebook fundraiser.

PayPal: IRE is registered with PayPal’s Giving Fund. As a result, PayPal covers all transaction costs for donations made on this site, ensuring that 100% of each gift goes to the charity.

Checks: Mail your donation to: IRE, Attn: Heather Feldmann Henry, 141 Neff Annex, UMC, Columbia, MO 65211

AmazonSmile: AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support IRE every time you shop, at no cost to you. Select Investigative Reporters & Editors as your charity of choice, and whenever you shop at smile.amazon.com, Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price to our organization. Learn more.

Matching gifts: Find out if you can double the impact of your donation. Many organizations will match employees’ contributions. Ask your employer about matching gifts.

Questions: Contact Chris Vachon, IRE’s director of partnerships, at chris@ire.org or 317-371-6780.

You walk away with the motivation to challenge different systems, challenge authority and challenge the way journalism works.

- Ashley Graham, WLNS, IRE member

Donating to IRE: An investment with impact

Here are some ways IRE became stronger together in 2020...

6,592

Members were part of the IRE community this year, a record high

~3,000

Journalists attended our first-ever virtual conference

Free webinars served 4,366 journalists during the pandemic

255

Fellowships awarded to journalists, students and educators

Additional highlights include:

IRE’s finances are stable, despite the disruption of a global pandemic
The IRE training team grew from four to five trainers in order to increase reach and impact
The IRE on Campus program was created to reach students and educators at HBCU and Hispanic Serving Institutions
Pivoted IRE’s bootcamps to an online format and delivered nine virtual bootcamps
Expanded intentional efforts to continue to diversify IRE’s committees and speakers at trainings/conferences
Partnered with 12 journalism organizations on various trainings
Trained 6,846 journalists

Download our media kit

Download our media kit, to help promote IRE’s Year End Giving Campaign, for read-to-use social media posts, infographics and more.

The kit includes:

Social media graphics sized for Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
Suggested social media posts, hashtags and links
A shareable infographic illustrating why you should donate to IRE
The State of IRE 2020 – Our annual report to the membership

I learned that there was this amazing community of people that would come together even though we were all supposed to be competitors ... it was more like a family.

- Mark Greenblatt, Scripps, IRE member

Host a Facebook Fundraiser

Encourage your friends, family and colleagues to support IRE with a Facebook fundraiser.

Feel free to offer a matching gift on your Facebook fundraiser. For example, if you plan to donate $100, state that you will match the first $100 donated to your Facebook fundraiser. It will get people even more motivated to give. Don’t forget to add your donation to your fundraiser once it reaches that milestone.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Log in to your Facebook account and visit IRE’s fundraising page.
In the left navigation bar, follow the prompts.
- “How much money do you want to raise?” This is a personal question; it’s up to you. We suggest anything from $50 to $1,000 (or more). You know your audience better than we do.
- “Currency.” Select U.S. dollars.
- “When should the fundraiser end?” We recommend ending on Jan 4.
- “What is the title of your fundraiser?” A title will pre-populate. You can use it or change it.
- “Why are you raising money?” An answer will appear. Feel free to change this to your personal message.
- Click “Create.” When you click “Create,” your fundraiser is LIVE!
You will have the option to post a photo; the IRE Facebook profile image will automatically populate. We’ve made a special annual giving image you can use, if you like.
Spread the word! Invite friends, family and colleagues to donate to your campaign. There’s an option to “Invite Friends” to your fundraiser. When you do that, the people you select get a notification that they’ve been invited to contribute. Otherwise, they might not see your IRE fundraiser in their Facebook feed.

Facebook Fundraiser FAQs

Why are we asking you to set up a Facebook fundraiser for IRE’s year-end giving campaign?

It’s a fun way to raise money and spark friendly competition among members.
It’s a way to reach people who are not IRE members.

When should I set up my Facebook fundraiser?

Ideally, you would set it up before you go to bed on Monday, Dec. 2, or first thing in the morning on Tuesday, Dec. 3 (Giving Tuesday).

Once you go through the steps and click the last button, your fundraiser goes live. Your fundraiser can’t be set up ahead of time and scheduled. If you need to set it up earlier than Dec. 3, that’s totally fine, we understand.

Does Facebook keep any of the money donated?

No, Facebook charges no fees for contributions made to nonprofits.

Can people donate privately?

Yes. To donate privately, the person should select “Only me” from the privacy menu in the donation form. Fundraiser creators can see all donations, and only they can see donation amounts.

How does IRE receive the money from a Facebook fundraiser?

Facebook sends the money directly to IRE every two weeks.

How do donors get a receipt for their contribution?

After making a donation, an email confirmation will be sent, from Facebook, to the donor’s email connected to his/her Facebook account.

The email receipt shows a donation was made to a charitable organization and that no goods or services were received in return.