Record Community News Group (RCNG) is a news organization founded in 2020 that covers local news in five northern suburbs of Chicago. Started with a Kickstarter campaign and fundraising from local businesses, RCNG began online publication of The Record North Shore in October 2020. ¹

RNCG has close relations with the left-leaning Institute for Nonprofit News (INN). ² RNCG used INN to collect and manage donations and RNCG states it follows the standards of editorial independence adopted by INN. ³ Additionally, INN authors publications on how to launch a nonprofit news organization from scratch. ⁴

Finances

Since its inception in June 2020, Record Community News Group paid to partner with the Institute For Nonprofit News to collect and manage donations. ⁵ In August 2021, the IRS determined that RCNG qualifoes as a public charity nonprofit. ⁶ For the year ending 2020, RCNG reported $76,078 in revenue and $63,075 in expenses. ⁷ Major donors to RCNG in 2020 included the George Family Charitable Trust and the Potter Family Foundation. ⁸

Leadership

Jennifer Gordon is the president of the board of directors for the Record Community News Group. ⁹ Gordon is an attorney in Chicago specializing in corporate and intellectual property law. ¹⁰ She also does pro bono work on environmental issues with the Chesapeake Legal Alliance. ¹¹

Joe Coughlin is co-founder and editor in chief of The Record North Shore. ¹² Previously, Coughlin worked almost ten years for 22nd Century Media, serving as publisher and editor of community newspapers. ¹³

1. Kickstarter The Record Community News Group website. “Update 10.” www.kickstarter.com. October 12, 2020. Accessed October 3, 2021. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/therecordnews/the-return-of-local-news-to-the-north-shore/posts.
2. “The Record Achieves Official Nonprofit Status From IRS.” September 1, 2021. Accessed October 3, 2021. https://www.therecordnorthshore.org/2021/09/01/the-record-achieves-official-nonprofit-status-from-irs/.
3. The Record Community News Group website. www.therecordcng.org. Accessed October 3, 2021. https://therecordcng.org/whatwedo/. “The Record Achieves Official Nonprofit Status From IRS.” September 1, 2021. Accessed October 3, 2021. https://www.therecordnorthshore.org/2021/09/01/the-record-achieves-official-nonprofit-status-from-irs/.
4. Institute for Nonprofit News website. “Startup Guide.” www.inn.org. Accessed October 3, 2021. https://inn.org/research/guides/startup-guide-unlocked/.
5. “The Record Achieves Official Nonprofit Status From IRS.” September 1, 2021. Accessed October 3, 2021. https://www.therecordnorthshore.org/2021/09/01/the-record-achieves-official-nonprofit-status-from-irs/
6. IRS letter to The Record Community News Group. August 13, 2021. Accessed October 3, 2021. https://apps.irs.gov/pub/epostcard/dl/FinalLetter_85-1425791_THERECORDCOMMUNITYNEWSGROUP_03032021_00.tif.
7. ^[1] Illinois Form AG990-IL: The Record Community News Group, 2020.
8. The Record North Shore website. “Our Supporters.” www.therecordnorthshore.org. Accessed October 4, 2021. https://www.therecordnorthshore.org/our-supporters/.
9. ^[1] The Record North Shore website. “Our Team.” www.therecordnorthshore.org. Accessed October 4, 2021. https://www.therecordnorthshore.org/our-team/.
10. Jennifer Gordon LinkedIn profile. www.linkedin.com. Accessed October 4, 2021. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-gordon-7559a17/.
11. The Record North Shore website. “Our Team.” www.therecordnorthshore.org. Accessed October 4, 2021. https://www.therecordnorthshore.org/our-team/.
12. The Record North Shore website. “Our Team.” www.therecordnorthshore.org. Accessed October 4, 2021. https://www.therecordnorthshore.org/our-team/.
13. Joe Coughlin LinkedIn profile. www.linkedin.com. Accessed October 4, 2021. https://www.linkedin.com/in/joeacoughlin/.