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HuffPo's Investigative Journalism Effort Struggling?

By Matthew Vadum on 6.2.09 @ 8:07PM

Arianna Huffington (L) with Code Pink co-founder Jodie Evans (R)

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The Huffington Post Investigative Fund is struggling, according to the Business Insider.

Arianna Huffington unveiled plans for her left-leaning gossip website's foray into investigative journalism in March but so far the site is reportedly having trouble generating content.

The evidence of internal chaos is somewhat thin so far but respected writers claim they were treated poorly by the outfit. One unhappy writer suggests that the Huffington Post Investigative Fund doesn't have much cash.

In March it was revealed that the program's startup budget would be $1.75 million. The money would be provided by the Huffington Post and the Atlantic Philanthropies. The Bermuda-based Atlantic Philanthropies is headed by Gara LaMarche, who used to be a vice president of liberal uber-philanthropist George Soros's Open Society Institute. LaMarche is a member of Soros's Democracy Alliance, a billionaires' club that is organizing to turn America into a European-style socialist state.

Meanwhile, Capital Research Center (the think tank at which I work) has had two articles out in as many months on the state of American journalism.

This month Tim Cavanaugh penned "Bailing Out the Press: Can Non-Profit Status Save American Newspapers?" Here's a summary of the Foundation Watch article:

Could a bailout of the newspaper industry be on its way? A new Senate bill would offer financially struggling newspapers non-profit status in order to save investigative journalism. Critics say it probably won't work, gives nonprofit media a tax advantage, could subject the free press to IRS oversight, and could open the door to more serious government interference in the media. But when has that ever stopped a crusading politician?

Last month Cheryl K. Chumley wrote "ProPublica: Investigative Journalism or Liberal Spin?" Here's a summary of that Foundation Watch article:

The press is filled with sad stories about venerable for-profit newspapers that have been forced to declare bankruptcy and shut down. So it's striking that the billionaire liberals Herb and Marion Sandler have decided now is the time to fund a new nonprofit group called ProPublica whose mission is to serve the public interest by funding independent investigative journalism. Too bad Pro Publica churns out little more than left-wing hit pieces about Sarah Palin and blames the U.S. government for giving out too little foreign aid.