Jewish News Service Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
450949784
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Newton Centre, MA, USA
Phone
6172213191
Rating
67
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Education N.E.C.
Affiliation
Judaism

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,552,377
Expenses
$4,867,895
Assets
$8,881,518
Liabilities
$351,500

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JOSHUA W KATZEN (PRESIDENT AND CHAIRMAN)
  • AMELIA KATZEN (VICE PRESIDENT & CLERK)
  • RUSSEL PERGAMENT (VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • MENACHEM WECKER (EDITOR): $126,000 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

See schedule o

What it reported doing in 2024

Jns maintains a website that is updated throughout each day, as necessary, and engages dozens of reporters, freelance writers, editors, videographers, podcasters and graphic designers. Jns produces daily news articles and attracts 1 million visits monthly to its website. Content is syndicated to 90+ publications and websites. The monthly reach is approximately 5 million readers, listeners and viewers. Jns produces video content in its state-of-the-art multimedia news center that is broadcast on its youtube channel, reaching 164 million viewers and over 125,000 subscribers.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 84% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most filed governance safeguards are in place. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 69
  • Transparency & Controls: 55
  • Accountability: 78
  • Sustainability: 42
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 75.3%; rating input score 75
  • Program expense ratio: 67.4%; rating input score 67
  • Fundraising efficiency: $12.28 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Scored; rating input score 0

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 62.5%; rating input score 62; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -6.9%; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.82; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.04; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.6%; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 22.9% per year; rating input score 100; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 22.9% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 26.6% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 75.3% of revenue deployed · 67.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 5 of 8 board members independent · 7 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $3.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $126K · 10 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $378K reported
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and related organizations
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 44/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 17/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Related-party transparency scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 59/100.