Coming From Project

A Journalistic Exploration by NYU Studio 20

Thu Dao

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The Baffler’s decades-long history tells readers where they’re coming from

Most of the time, it is a serious matter when talking about mission statements, history or legacy. In the case of The Baffler, everything about its history, background, concerns and even financial issues is shared with splashes of humor and wit.


“The Baffler is America’s leading voice of interesting and unexpected left-wing political criticism, cultural analysis, short stories, poems and art. We publish six print issues annually, as well as online content every day of the cursed workweek,” reads the magazine’s About page.

In its History column, we learn more about where The Baffler is coming from.

“We’re owned by the tax-deductible (hint, hint) Baffler Foundation Inc., which is as charitable as a church, and a whole lot more fun. This foundation means we rely on your donations and subscriptions rather than chasing advertising. It also means we can’t endorse candidates for electoral office or try to make millions in profit. But hey, why would we want to do those things anyway?”

The Baffler
Read THE full statement

Below are a few reasons why we included The Baffler on ComingFrom.org:

Laughable, relevant criticism 

A flashback to one’s early days may be the most common way to give a brief definition of who we are. When The Baffler was born in 1988, the magazine stated its mission: to “laugh at the baffling jargon of academics and the commercial avant-garde.” Over time, its manifesto evolved:

  • The Baffler: “This magazine would move in the opposite direction. It would strive for the lucidity of independent critical intelligence. It would ‘blunt the cutting edge’ of the creative class gurus, financial journalists, entertainment moguls, cyber-entrepreneurs, and postmodern theorists who were said to be delivering the country from the pesky struggles and conflicts of the Cold War and singing a sweet and blissful lullaby they called the ‘end of history.’ Where there was money to be made.” 

Talk money like The Baffler

With no pie chart, no revenue stream, no angel investor and no other financial buzzwords, The Baffler describes its relationship to the tax-deductible Baffler Foundation, Inc. (plus a call for support), as well as its untraditional history with potential investors.

  • The Baffler: “The [magazine] was a cultural success, so the big money never touched it. The founders didn’t exactly cozy up to benefactors.”

At the same time, readers can skim through significant (and tragic) incidents that led to changes in the magazine’s operation, like a 2001 fire that swept through The Baffler‘s Chicago office, but not its ethos.

  • The Baffler: “The regular publication never resumed. But the magazine never folded. … Around Labor Day in 2010, though, the founding crew had had enough, and decided to turn over the keys to the operation neither to a university creative writing program nor to a great publishing house, but to a smaller, poorer, and less experienced crew in Cambridge, Massachusetts.”

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‘The goal of our journalism is a fundamental honesty’: How Talking Points Memo stays true to its values

As an independent newsroom that keeps tabs on American politics, public policy and political culture, Talking Points Memo states its goal as “neither balance nor objectivity but accuracy, fairness and a fundamental honesty with our readers and members at all times.” This mission is not only reflected in the articles TPM publishes but also presented loud and proud on its About page.

READ THE FULL STATEMENT

Here is what we can learn from the Talking Points Memo approach for ComingFrom.org:

Keep your goals simple (but don’t forget to elaborate)

TPM doesn’t bury its goals in a bunch of jargon. Instead, the mission is crisp and catchy with three straight forward bullet points.

  1. Do great journalism
  2. Be a great place to work
  3. Make enough money to do both

At the same time, TPM explains how to achieve these objectives and nurture its values. 

  • TPM: “Great journalism also means transparency — transparency not just in who we are or what we believe as an organization, but what we know at any given time. Our never-ending objective is to keep our readers as informed as we are.”

If you believe in your approach, say it out loud 

TPM embraces the audience-centric approach to journalism and strives to create an impact for the reader. By including this practice in the statement, the publisher commits to staying true to that value.

  • TPM: “As a member-funded publication, building and maintaining a community is critical to us. We think important communication goes both ways. We are constantly engaging with readers and incorporating their feedback not just into our reporting but also the way in which we build our site and present our work.”

Talk money 

Largely funded by members, TPM makes clear that its money goes toward quality journalism. Pie charts work well to explain the business model and assure readers that their support benefits journalists.

  • TPM: “As a fully independent organization, TPM has no corporate overlords. TPM is not beholden to or controlled by any outside interests. ”

Source: https://talkingpointsmemo.com/about#financials

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Why ‘The Conversation’ is transparent about its editorial process

Founded in Australia in 2011, The Conversation is a world-renowned outlet of news and analysis collectively crafted by academics and journalists. Serving the mission of informing public debate through explanatory journalism, The Conversation upholds transparency about factors that may impact the reporting process.

“Authors are allowed to write only on subjects in which they have proven expertise.”

The conversation
Read the FULL Statement

Here is what we can learn from The Conversation in the context of ComingFrom.org:

Be clear about your purposes

Amid eroding trust in journalism, the more transparent news outlets are about their purposes, the more impactful their work can be. 

  • The Conversation: “All our work is free to read and free to republish under Creative Commons. We do this as a not-for-profit company guided by a clear purpose: to provide access to quality explanatory journalism essential for healthy democracy.”

Be open about affiliated institutions

Because any funding or affiliation can lead to bias in analyzing and reporting, The Conversation presents a detailed list of its partners and donors. There is also a disclosure statement under each author’s name and annual stakeholder reports, helping readers to get to know how reporting might be affected.

  • The Conversation: “All authors and editors sign up to our Editorial Charter. Contributors must abide by our Community Standards. … Potential conflicts of interest must be disclosed.”

Make sure your process is clearly understood by the audience

The Conversation wants to make sure its audience is clear about how an article is composed and published. To achieve that, an animated video was created to cut through the editorial process and make it understandable and memorable.