Non-profit

Honolulu Civil Beat

Website:

www.civilbeat.org

Location:

Honolulu, HI

Tax ID:

81-2803662

Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(3)

Budget (2021):

Revenue: $4,574,284
Expenses: $4,055,421
Assets: $3,542,480

Type:

News Outlet

Formation:

2010

Budget (2022):

Revenue: $5,225,718
Expenses: $4,857,221
Assets: $4,135,321 6

 

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Honolulu Civil Beat is a Hawaii-based digital media outlet founded and financially supported by Pierre Omidyar, the founder of the multinational e-commerce corporation eBay and an active financier of left-wing organizations. Honolulu Civil Beat is a member of the Institute for Nonprofit News and receives funding from a variety of largely left-of-center nonprofit foundations. 1 2

History and Activities

Honolulu Civil Beat was launched in 2010 as a digital media platform by Pierre Omidyar, the founder of the multinational e-commerce corporation eBay and an active financier of left-wing organizations. Omidyar is the creator of the Omidyar Network and the Omidyar Network Fund which support organizations and initiatives that push left-wing critical race theory principles and left-of-center economic policies. 1

In 2016, Honolulu Civil Beat became a nonprofit and removed its paywall to provide free access to its content. At that time, Civil Beat joined the Institute for Nonprofit News, formerly the Investigative News Network, a left-of-center network of nonprofit media organizations including Mother Jones, ProPublica, and The Intercept. 1

Honolulu Civil Beat publishes news and commentary on CivilBeat.org, hosts public events, produces a morning newsletter called Morning Beat, and has a Facebook page to facilitate conversation and debate. 3

Most articles Honolulu Civil Beat publishes on CivilBeat.org focus on local issues. In June 2024, there were articles on the aftermath of the 2023 Maui wildfires, the dismantling of the Haiku Stairs hiking path, and a report on the backlog of Honolulu building permits. However, Civil Beat also publishes left-of-center political commentary, including a June 6, 2024 piece that argued the felony conviction of former President Donald Trump would not “save us from Trump’s clutches.” 3 4 5

People

The editor and general manager of Honolulu Civil Beat is Patti Epler. In 2022, Epler received $166,144 in compensation. 6 7

The managing editor of Honolulu Civil Beat is Kimberlie Gamel. Gamel was previously an Asia-Pacific correspondent at Stars and Stripes, a correspondent and editor at Associated Press Cairo, the Iraq news editor at Associated Press, and a reporter at Moscow Tribune.  In 2022, Gamel received $135,381 in compensation. 6 8 7

The vice president of operations and philanthropy at Honolulu Civil Beat is Ben Nishimoto. Nishimoto was previously the vice president of advancement and director of business support at PBS Hawaii, the manager of annual giving at Hawaiian Humane Society, and a clerk at the sports desk of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin. In 2022, Nishimoto received $149,296 in compensation. 7 9 6

Financials

In 2022, Honolulu Civil Beat reported $5,225,718 in income, $4,857,221 in expenses, and $4,135,121 in assets according to tax filings. That same year, $2,793,319 of the organization’s expenses were directed to salaries and wages, $733,667 to pension plans and employee benefits, and $392,067 to consulting fees. Nearly the entirety of Honolulu Civil Beat’s revenue that year was derived from gifts, grants, contributions, and membership fees ($5,070,944). 6

Civil Beat receives what it describes as “substantial” financial support from Pierre Omidyar and his wife, Pam, through the Omidyar Ohana Fund, a donor advised fund hosted by the Hawaii Community Foundation that transmits grants to benefit the residents of Hawaii. The Omidyar Ohana Fund is sponsored by the Omidyar Group, an umbrella LLC for members of the Omidyar Nexus, a collection of nonprofit and for-profit organizations connected to Pierre Omidyar. Other financial supporters of Honolulu Civil Beat include the Abrams Foundation, ACLU of Hawaii, the Cades Foundation, Cooke Foundation, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Dorrance Family Foundation, Frost Family Foundation, Google News Initiative Equity Fund, Gregory and Anna Mackenzie Family Charitable Foundation, Hawaii Community Foundation, Institute for Nonprofit News, Kinzie Family Fund, Lipman Family Foundation, The Pulitzer Center, The William K. Reid Foundation, States Newsroom, and the Weissman Family Foundation. 1 10 11 2

References

  1. “About Civil Beat.” Honolulu Civil Beat. Accessed June 7, 2024. https://www.civilbeat.org/about/.
  2. “Our Supporters.” Honolulu Civil Beat. Accessed June 7, 2024. https://www.civilbeat.org/about/our-supporters/.
  3. “About Civil Beat.” Honolulu Civil Beat. Accessed June 7, 2024. https://www.civilbeat.org/
  4. “Civil Beat.” Honolulu Civil Beat. Accessed June 7, 2024. https://www.civilbeat.org/.
  5. Milner, Neal. “Neil Milner: Trump’s Hush Money Case Was a Fale Promise That The Law Will Save Us.” Honolulu Civil Beat. June 6, 2024. Accessed June 7, 2024. https://www.civilbeat.org/2024/06/neal-milner-trumps-hush-money-case-was-a-false-promise-that-the-law-will-save-us/.
  6. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Honolulu Civil Beat Inc. 2022.
  7. “Our Team.” Honolulu Civil Beat. Accessed June 7, 2024. https://www.civilbeat.org/about/the-team/.
  8. “Kim Gamel (She/Her).” LinkedIn. Accessed June 7, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimgamel/.
  9. “Ben Nishimoto (He/Him).” LinkedIn. Accessed June 7, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/in/bnishimoto/.
  10. “Organizations.” Omidyar Group. Accessed June 7, 2024. https://www.omidyargroup.com/organizations/.
  11. Search: California Secretary of State. Omidyar Group LLC. Search conducted June 7, 2024. https://bizfileonline.sos.ca.gov/search/business
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Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: December - November
  • Tax Exemption Received: October 1, 2016

  • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2021 Dec Form 990 $4,574,284 $4,055,421 $3,542,480 $372,458 N $4,571,369 $0 $523 $0
    2020 Dec Form 990 $4,473,068 $3,815,258 $3,052,945 $401,786 N $4,469,314 $0 $1,273 $0
    2019 Dec Form 990 $4,261,435 $3,725,190 $2,346,754 $353,405 N $4,253,881 $0 $1,814 $0 PDF
    2018 Dec Form 990 $4,093,959 $3,494,544 $1,807,677 $350,573 N $4,091,952 $0 $978 $0 PDF
    2017 Dec Form 990 $1,402,449 $3,503,520 $1,147,440 $289,751 Y $1,385,935 $0 $737 $0 PDF
    2016 Dec Form 990 $5,116,814 $2,158,054 $3,071,397 $112,637 Y $4,881,233 $0 $134 $0 PDF

    Honolulu Civil Beat

    3650 WAIALAE AVENUE 200
    Honolulu, HI 96816-0000