Support fiercely independent coverage of culture and politics in Madison.
We answer to our readers, and only to our readers. Your donations are our most crucial source of income, providing direct support for journalists in Madison.
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A message from Scott Gordon, publisher
We’re here because readers in Madison value our work. It’s as simple as that. The more you help us out, the more we can focus on creating journalism that enriches our community, digging into some hard truths and exploring plenty of weird tangents along the way. Thanks for giving us a sense of purpose and a path forward—we’ll keep working hard to be worthy of your support.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is my donation tax-deductible?
As of 2019, yes. Our partnership with Communication now allows us to fundraise as a non-profit.
What if I want to give more than $1,000? / How can I contribute to a local matching fund?
If you are interested in making a bigger gift (in excess of $1,000), we’ll also have a chance to roll that into an additional matching fund, tripling the impact of that donation. Please reach out directly to [email protected] if that is something you’re considering.
How is this money used?
Most of the revenue Tone Madison brings in goes toward paying our contributors for the writing, illustration, and other work they do as part of our coverage of music and culture in Madison. We believe journalists and artists should be paid for their work. When you donate, you’re helping that happen. We have some basic costs to cover in the form of hosting costs for our website, but all in all we’re a very lean organization and do not take on wasteful overhead—we don’t even pay rent on our office space, which is provided through a partnership with Madison venue and arts incubator Communication.
Why do you need donations?
We believe that our work will be more sustainable in the long run if we can pay for it through multiple sources of revenue. In addition to donations, Tone Madison brings in some money through business sponsorships, merch sales, grants, and events. Each of these revenue sources inevitably has its ups and downs; if you rely too much on any given one, the ups and downs can make life really difficult. Media outlets that rely on advertising have had an especially hard time.
We also believe that journalism as a whole is stronger when the people who value it help to pay for it. But just as importantly, we see our membership program as a way for readers to feel more involved and invested in the work we do.
Is your website secure?
All payments are processed through Stripe. Stripe is a PCI Service Provider Level 1 which is the highest grade of payment processing security. All credit card information is encrypted, sent directly to Stripe and is never sent to our website server. This means that we are PCI compliant and any breach of our website won’t result in stolen credit card information. Learn more here.
We also believe that journalism as a whole is stronger when the people who value it help to pay for it. But just as importantly, we see our membership program as a way for readers to feel more involved and invested in the work we do.
I already contribute. How can I increase my monthly or yearly donation?
Right now, our payment platform doesn’t allow you to adjust your monthly or yearly donation amount. Please cancel your existing donation, then sign up for a new monthly or yearly donation.
I already contribute. How do I cancel my subscription?
If you would like to cancel your monthly or yearly support, please log into the website here. Once logged in, click on the icon at the bottom right of the page and click “Subscriptions”, then select “Cancel” subscription. If you don’t know your password, you can reset your password here. Still having trouble? Get in touch by selecting “Customer Service” on our contact page.
I already contribute. How can I update my credit card?
If you would like to update your credit card information, please log into the website here. Once logged in, click on the icon at the bottom right of the page and click “Payment cards” and edit your credit card. If you don’t know your password, you can reset your password here. Still having trouble? Get in touch by selecting “Customer Service” on our contact page.
What if I have a different question?
Get in touch by selecting “Customer Service” on our contact page.
Illustration credit: Maggie Denman
Our focus is on journalism that treats culture in Madison as the complex subject it is—not as fodder for promotional fluff. We champion things we love, but we also ask annoying questions and throw the occasional brick.
