The Everyday Philanthropist

Introduction I Part One The Good Citizen: Philanthropy and You 1 Ch 1 Why Charity? 3 Ch 2 Why Giving? 9 Ch 3 You Are a Philanthropist 13 Ch 4 The Difference Between Acute and Chronic Issues: Empathy Today vs Strategy for Tomorrow 17 Ch 5 Is There a Difference Between Giving to a Nonprofit and Giving to a Charity? 21 Ch 6 Are All Cancer Charities Alike? Services vs Solutions 25 Ch 7 Why Do You Give? Do You Really Understand Your Motives? 29 Ch 8 What’s Your Cause for Life? 33 Part Two Good Information Gathering 39 Ch 9 Find a Great Organization 41 Ch 10 The Three Essential Questions 43 Ch 11 First Question: Goals 47 Ch 12 Second Question: Progress 51 Ch 13 Third Question: How They Improve 55 Ch 14 Don’t Rely on Others for Simple Answers 63 Part Three Good Information Filtering: Don’t Be Duped by Dumbed-Down Data 67 Ch 15 Questions NOT to Ask 69 Ch 16 Stop Asking About Overhead 73 Ch 17 Overhead Ratios Tell You Nothing About Impact 77 Ch 18 Overhead Ratios Weaken Charitable Services and Programs 85 Ch 19 Overhead Measures Discriminate Against Underdog Causes 91 Ch 20 Overhead Measures Weaken Civil Society and Diminish Civic Engagement 97 Ch 21 Overhead Measures Hide Unfair Differences in Accounting 105 Ch 22 Overhead Measures Discourage Growth 113 Ch 23 Demanding Low Salaries Undermines Your Strategy to Help the Most People 117 Part Four Good Media Consumption: Monitor Truth in Media 121 Ch 24 Be Responsible and Rigorous When Learning About Charities in the Media 123 Ch 25 Case Study: CNN and Boys & Girls Clubs of America 125 Ch 26 Case Study: The New York Times and Wounded Warrior Project 133 Ch 27 Case Study: ProPublica on the American Red Cross 141 Part Five Are We Good? 151 Ch 28 It’s Time to Rethink Charity 153 Ch 29 Recap 161 Ch 30 You 165 Ch 31 Afraid You’ll Forget? 167 Ch 32 Want to See It on Film and Video? 169 Thank You 175