It’s the eleventh day of my 12 Days of Charitable Giving. Readers have suggested deserving charities over the past few weeks, and I’ll be posting one a day for – well, 12 days (I’m clever that way). Today’s charity is the Newseum.
First, a quick confession. While it’s often the case that I am not completely familiar with the charitable organizations featured in my 12 Days series (remember, I accept submissions from readers and have to dig to find out more), I happen to know a little bit about the Newseum. And here’s why: it’s my family’s favorite museum. Really. We spent an entire day here once. We closed the place down. I’ve often heard “last call” in bars, restaurants, and clubs in my day. But this? Last call in a museum. We had to drag the kids out: they were still reading the walls.
So with that caveat, let me tell you a little bit about the Newseum. The Newseum is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and promotes, explains and defends free expression and the five freedoms of the First Amendment: religion, speech, press, assembly and petition. (If you don’t know them when you get started, you’ll know them by heart when you’re leaving). If you can’t make it into the museum, there’s NewseumED, a free online learning platform for teachers and students, which helps to understand the five freedoms of the First Amendment and its relationship to learning and teaching history, media literacy and civics.
Among the most memorable exhibits are the 9/11 Gallery sponsored by Comcast featuring the broadcast antennae from the top of the World Trade Center, the Berlin Wall Gallery whose eight concrete sections are one of the largest pieces of the original wall outside Germany, and the Pulitzer Prize Photographs Gallery which features photographs from every Pulitzer Prize-winning entry dating back to 1942.
The museum is constantly changing and expanding its exhibits. A new exhibit, “Louder Than Words,” which will explore the crucial influence of rock and roll in politics and social movements around the world, opens January 13, 2017. The exhibit is a partnership with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio to explore the power of rock to change attitudes about patriotism, peace, equality and freedom. Artifacts include Jimi Hendrix’s Woodstock Stratocaster guitar; John Lennon’s May 1969 bed-in guitar; President Bill Clinton’s saxophone; Bob Dylan’s Hohner harmonica; Public Enemy’s handwritten “Fight the Power” lyrics and Madonna’s “Like A Virgin” jewelry from 1984’s MTV VMAs.
The Newseum also traces the evolution of electronic communication from the birth of radio, to the technologies of the present and the future.
And if you’re wondering what’s going on in the rest of the world, you can check out the gallery of front pages of newspapers from all over the world. You can also view a few of the exhibits from the comfort of your own home – including photos from the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.
As for the museum’s popularity? Don’t just take my word for it. TripAdvisor ranked Newseum as a “Traveler’s Choice Top 25 Museum in the U.S.”
So how can you help?
To make a donation by credit card to support public programs, interactive exhibits and education programs, head on over to the website.
You can also become a member of the Newseum. Memberships, which start at $75, provide benefits including unlimited free admission for a full year. Remember that a membership to a charitable club or organization may not be fully tax-deductible. You may only deduct the amount of your donation which exceeds the value of anything that you receive in return. That includes free admissions, coffee mugs, meals, magazine subscriptions and more. Many organizations will carve out the value of your gift and advise how much you might deduct for varying membership levels or sponsorship opportunities. If you’re not sure, just ask.
As always, you want to make sure that your donation is going to a qualified charitable organization. A search using the IRS’ Exempt Organizations Select Check reveals that Newseum is on the list.
To find out more about the work of the organization, check out their website. You can also follow them on Twitter or Instagram – or like them on Facebook. You can also find the Newseum on Snapchat or subscribe to their YouTube channel.
I often suggest checking out third-party sites like Charity Navigator for more information about charitable organizations, including evaluations and access to tax forms and other financials. Newseum is not rated by Charity Navigator. Charity Navigator explains, “This organization is not eligible to be rated by Charity Navigator because, as a service for individual givers, we only rate organizations that depend on support from individual contributors and foundations. Organizations such as this, that get most of their revenue from the government or from program services, are therefore not eligible to be rated.” You can find out more about how to evaluate charities not listed on the site by using Charity Navigator’s handy guide here.
Remember: submissions to the 12 Days of Charitable Giving are made by readers, and in most cases, I can’t personally vouch for the good work that these folks do. So be generous. But be smart. Do your homework.
For more on making charitable donations, check out this prior post.
