Frank Lin

NLGJA's executive board convened Wednesday to discuss a host of issues confronting the organization, including stagnating membership numbers and the uncertain state of the organization's finances.

"As everyone here already knows, we're facing some tremendous challenges," said David Barre, the NLGJA's executive director, as he began his remarks to the board.

According to budget figures, NLGJA's expenses may again exceed revenues for the third year in a row.

The organization's leadership generally attributed its challenges to the broader problems facing the current state of journalism, with one board member observing: "Our industry is a disaster right now."

"The declining membership numbers are a reflection of broader industry trends," said Barre. "We may end up with a smaller membership and just stay there. We may have to become a different organization."

Information published by the Foundation Center, a public database of nonprofit organizations' sources of funding, revealed NLGJA's assets have steadily declined since 2005. During the meeting, Barre admitted the revenue generated by sponsorship and advertising fees for the convention are off-target and not expected to cover expenses.

"One of our priorities this year is diversifying our funding bases," Barre said. He cited as an example the new distribution service OutNewsWire, which is dedicated to delivering news about the LGBT community.

Whether NLGJA's budget balances at the end of the year depends heavily upon the success of the convention. This year, NLGJA has asked participants to supply some of their own audiovisual equipment wherever possible to help control costs.

NLGJA also has reduced the size of its full-time staff in Washington from five to three.

The convention, which is expected to draw up to 450 participants, consumes approximately half of NGLJA's annual expenditures, while money raised from corporate sponsors and convention exhibits account for roughly the same percentage of NLGJA's annual income.

"Some of our major sponsors don't even exist anymore," said David Steinberg, the treasurer of the executive board, who cited Knight Ridder as an example of a major corporate sponsor that fell victim to the recent industry downturn.

Barre's strategy for stabilizing the organization includes increasing the membership retention rate, which he said was especially low for new members. During the meeting, a board member suggested offering trial memberships to introduce lapsing members to some of the new career tools offered by NGLJA, including Career Watch, a successful monthly newsletter launched last year.

"We want to make sure that we're offering things of value on a regular basis," Barre said. "It's a message we need to send out to old members and new members alike. We all need to stay together."