A Hard Look at One Telemarketing Fundraiser

In Telemarketers Keep Dollars Raised for Charity, the Chicago Tribune examines the charitable fundraising operations of telemarketer Safety Publications Inc. (“Safety”).  The main criticisms raised in the piece are summarized in the following excerpt:

Safety gave the nonprofits only about 15 cents of every dollar raised in those seven years [i.e., 2008-2014] and kept the rest for itself, a Tribune analysis of government records found. Many of those charities in turn spent their nickels on administrative overhead, leaving pennies for those in need, the records show.

 

Safety and a linked charity telemarketer also have employed at least 10 callers who served prison terms for bank robbery, forgery, child rape and other felonies since 2007, the Tribune found, despite Illinois’ prohibition against using felons to raise charity money. The law is designed to ensure the trustworthiness of nonprofit solicitors.

For those interested in more details, the article delves into the history of the telemarketer and its founders, reports on their alleged hiring of convicted felons, and raises questions about whether Safety has properly reported its operations to the State of Illinois.  More generally, the story offers a glimpse into the practices of professional telemarketers who contract with charities having trouble raising funds by themselves.  One is left with a picture that is far from flattering.   

JRB