Two types of journalism
Cash-strapped Humane Society retains public relations firm
Locals are getting dizzy watching the Olympic Peninsula Humane Society (OPHS) chase its tail since the organization announced the closure of its canine facility in July.
First, the agency said it was closing and selling the Bark House in Agnew. The plan was to move dog operations to Kitty City in Carlsborg, which it couldn’t do for at least two years. OPHS then changed plans and announced that it would abandon Kitty City, which it bought three years ago, and move felines to the dog facility. Another surprise came this week when KSQM radio reported that “OPHS has reversed its intention to move the cats.”
Weeks after telling KONP radio, “We’re not just trying to up and run from everybody,” Executive Director Jason Stipp unexpectedly resigned and moved to Alaska. According to a Sequim Gazette article, this was done to “free up funds that were previously allocated to his salary.” However, the same article reported, “The organization plans to hire an operations manager and an outreach and development lead.” A money-saving move that eliminated one position only to create two more left many in the community scratching their heads.
Communication over the past months hasn’t improved as “rogue posts” on social media have been made “without authorization.”
A mix of support, confusion, and criticism from the community led to a lockdown of comments on the OPHS Facebook page.
OPHS also pulled out of a contract with Clallam County that promised the animal shelter $125,000 annually in taxpayer dollars. Then, the County and OPHS reached a new, limited-scope “handshake agreement.”
With OPHS’s unexpected closure, reports of abandoned pets soon proliferated on social media. Community organizations and private citizens scrambled to pick up where the organization had abandoned its mission. Public concern led to increased scrutiny of events leading to the OPHS financial implosion. Compensation for the agency’s employees drew particular criticism.
The Executive Director’s salary, which was $73,217 in 2016, ballooned to $141,933 last year. Compensation for all other employees combined grew from $342,635 in 2015 to $767,105 last year, and employment rose from 17 in 2015 to 31 employees in 2022. Tax forms show in 2023, the “Total number of individuals employed in calendar year” swelled to 50.
That may be why OPHS secretary Martha Ireland committed to doing a week’s worth of live interviews on local radio last week. "Scared about what I might say?” she teased on Facebook. “Listen live to my KSQM interviews the rest of this week… KSQM is loving my being on air with them and I'm loving being there."
Listeners weren’t scared; they were eager to hear from OPHS leadership about the direction of an institution that has served animals in our County since 1947. However, after one interview, the rest were canceled.
Ireland also advertised that OPHS would have a booth at this weekend’s “Pets in the Park” event. “It’s interesting to me that we haven’t had anybody else commit to help me man that booth except for one of our volunteers,” she explained to KSQM radio’s Sassy Susan. “But I think there are some people who are a little afraid to be there. I hope everybody will be kind, and we will be there.”
However, after one community member came forward offering to help with the event, OPHS canceled at the last minute.
Before the interviews were canceled, Ireland said OPHS had received a large estate donation of about $400,000. She told Sassy Susan, “We thought immediately: We’re going to be able to do some big things with this. But because the donations from living people have been so low, and expenses have been so high, that just had to go right into the checking account.” Listen to the full KSQM interview here.
Despite the large donation, Ireland criticized the community for not being generous enough. “Y’all paid no attention until the Board took drastic action,” said Ireland. “Now that they’ve got your attention, it’d be good if y’all pitch in to help.”
After criticizing the community for not pitching in, Ireland announced that “OPHS does not expect donations until after the Board works out ‘what’s going on.’”
Ireland disclosed that the crisis is so dire that board members are having to work unpaid (board members are unpaid, but don't usually work in day-to-day operations).
According to Ireland, OPHS did not cause the problems that have besieged the agency.
Despite OPHS’s money woes, the broke nonprofit has retained the services of Seattle-based GreenRubino, an advertising and marketing agency that is helping the beleaguered organization navigate the crisis.
After CC Watchdog published an article reporting the enormous pay raise OPHS Director Luanne Hinkle received before retiring, GreenRubino reached out. The PR firm did not ask for changes to the article or a response; they merely wanted to “provide context” regarding OPHS challenges and the average cost per animal ($3,000).
GreenRubino also explained that OPHS input multiple salaries under the executive director’s compensation on the IRS form, which is why the number seemed inflated. Additionally, a line item on the IRS form had been mislabeled.
“All expenses at OPHS go directly towards facilitating care to the animals,” explained a GreenRubino public relations representative. “This includes administrative costs by trickle-down effect. All staff are essential to provide timely life-saving care, as well as staff that facilitate our adoptions.”
OPHS Executive Director Jason Stipp was still employed then, and GreenRubino instructed that all quotes should be attributed to him, not the PR firm.
GreenRubino’s motive became apparent when they emailed again, asking that CC Watchdog change the article. “Hoping we can expedite corrections to the humane society story and get those live today — what is the ETA to get those factual errors corrected?”
CC Watchdog replied, “I didn't see any corrections. If you can cut and paste anything I got wrong in the article, and provide the correct data, I'll be happy to correct it.” CC Watchdog also asked, “Has OPHS hired GreenRubino to do PR work for them?”
GreenRubino doubled down with instructions to change information that CC Watchdog had sourced from federal IRS documents.
CC Watchdog defended and supported its reporting but chose to update the original article with a press release from the OPHS Board President. Still, GreenRubino had not answered one crucial question: Was OPHS paying the firm for its services?
Then, GreenRubino answered the question — the PR firm was offering its services to OPHS for free.
Still, people close to the agency contacted CC Watchdog and said that OPHS was paying thousands to a PR firm for “damage control.” CC Watchdog decided to contact OPHS secretary Martha Ireland for clarification.
Ireland, who had previously said confusion had been spread by a blogger who didn’t “understand what he was looking at,” didn’t respond to the email from CC Watchdog. The following day, GreenRubino sent an email.
“OPHS let us know you were questioning our arrangement with them and asking how much we were paid,” said their public relations representative. “We are truly trying to help OPHS navigate comms needs during their transition time period and nothing more.”
CC Watchdog attempted to verify four times, via email and phone, whether OPHS was paying for the marketing agency’s services. Finally, GreenRubino replied. “We are unable to disclose specifics of our service agreements with our clients across the board, both pro bono/nonprofit clients and for-profit entities.”
OPHS, a nonprofit funded by generous private donations and your tax dollars, is unwilling to disclose whether it has hired a PR firm.
GreenRubino also applauded CC Watchdog’s reporting, saying that “deep journalism is alive and well.” However, there are at least two types of journalism: “investigative journalism” and “churnalism.”
Investigative journalism often exposes matters that are purposely hidden from the public. Churnalism, a combination of “churn” and “journalism,” is a blend of rehashing press releases and pre-packaged content without much original reporting or verification. Not only can this practice lead to a lack of depth and reduced accountability, but it can also lead to biased reporting if not critically examined.
Remember GreenRubino’s initial email to CC Watchdog? It issued instructions to correct the following statements:
The total figure for the year ($141,933) includes payment for an Executive Director hired to replace Luanne Hinkle when she retired. They worked in tandem for 3 weeks while this person was training. Unfortunately, this person wasn’t a good fit and was only with the non-profit for a few weeks.
The "amounts" are the gross amounts, which include taxes paid by Olympic Peninsula Humane Society, not the net received by the Executive Director.
In 2023, Luanne Hinkle’s compensation included her 2022 bonus (paid in 2023), as well as the Board approved bonus' for 2023.
The total figure also includes retro pay from Jan 1st; increased annual wage to $105K (2023) from $96K (2022)
The “Animal Care expenses” line item on the 990 form is for animal food only.
All expenses at OPHS go directly towards facilitating care to the animals. This includes administrative costs by trickle-down effect. All staff are essential to provide timely life-saving care, as well as staff that facilitate our adoptions.
Compare GreenRubino’s instructions to articles that the Sequim Gazette and Peninsula Daily News published. Only a portion of the articles has been copied below (emphasis has been added in bold).
Humane Society leaders reevaluate dog shelter sale
By Chris Urquia Olympic Peninsula News Group • August 7, 2024
Oldham clarified misunderstandings arising from the agency’s nonprofit 990 tax form for 2023.
“The ‘Animal Care’ expenses line on the 990 form is specifically for animal food,” Oldham said. “All other expenses go towards facilitating care for the animals, including administrative costs that support timely, life-saving care and adoption facilitation. Unfortunately, the line item for food was termed animal care and not specifically food.”
The closure of Bark House has prompted a reassessment of OPHS’ financial situation.
“The average cost per animal is $3,000,” Oldham said. “This includes everything from medication, veterinary care, grooming, any necessary training, staff costs for taking care of the animals and working to get them adopted.”
Recent scrutiny also highlighted a significant increase in executive director compensation.
“The total figure for the year ($141,933) includes payment for an executive director hired to replace Luanne Hinkle when she retired,” Oldham said. “They worked in tandem for three weeks while this person was training. Unfortunately, this person wasn’t a good fit and was only with the non-profit for a few weeks.”
The total is the gross amount, which includes taxes paid by OPHS, not the net received by the executive director, Oldham said.
“In 2023, Luanne Hinkle’s compensation included her 2022 bonus, paid in 2023, as well as the board-approved bonus for 2023. The total figure also includes retroactive pay from Jan. 1; increased annual wage to $105,000 in 2023 from $96,000 in 2022.”
Oldham said all donations are meticulously managed and that OPHS adheres to strict accounting standards and regular audits to ensure transparency.
The PR firm’s pre-packaged quotes appear in both articles verbatim. While CC Watchdog was instructed to attribute the quotes to Executive Director Jason Stipp, both newspapers attributed them to OPHS Board President Marti Oldham.
OPHS is experiencing much more than a financial crisis — a reputation 77 years in the making has been damaged. Hardworking OPHS employees are bearing the brunt of poor decisions and low morale. The agency’s mission to provide the highest level of compassion to animals has been compromised, and it has lost the community’s trust.
The opposite of transparency is secrecy. The opposite of accountability is irresponsibility.
You’ll never get churnalism from Clallam County Watchdog.
During her sole radio interview, OPHS Secretary Martha Ireland was asked if the animal shelter would hold a public forum as a “good faith move” to quell community concerns. Ireland replied, "Sometimes you have the crisis of the moment, and it keeps you from doing the things you really need to do."
Excellent article Jeff. I know your articles have ruffled some feathers, but I appreciate reading a perspective that isn’t being reported in our local newspapers. You certainly have given people something to think about…
FIGURES DON'T LIE - LIARS CAN FIGURE
Thanks Jeff for your deep dives into county figures.