(The Center Square) – WisconsinEye has raised $30,000 through small online donations over the past two weeks and is hoping to schedule meetings soon with Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu and Gov. Tony Evens soon.
Its deadline to stop programming and take its archives offline on Dec. 15 is a week away.
WisEye President and CEO Jon Henkes told TCS on Monday afternoon that, had he known what changes would occur in the philanthropic environment since Wisconsin lawmakers approved $10 million in matching donation funds to go toward the company’s endowment, he would have requested less stipulations on the matching language for the funds.
Instead, the company is working to raise the $300,000 to fund it through the first quarter of 2026 along with receiving firm commitments for the $887,000 it says it will cost to carry on operations for all of 2026.
“We understand that this is going to be a process that is going to take some time,” Henkes told TCS. “… We’ve been out there very public with what the need is and what our timeline is. We’re grateful that there is money in this account with WisconsinEye’s name on it with the match requirement.”
Henkes knows the funds were put into the Wisconsin budget to secure the long-term financial health of WisconsinEye but said that the donation environment has changed so much in the meantime that the company has not been able to separately raise the funds for the 2026 budget.
He said that taking the more than 30,000 hours of archives offline is to show donors the value of WisconsinEye’s work and the fiscal situation for the company. Henkes hopes to make that strong case to state leaders soon and close on a few larger scale donations to “get us over the hump.”
“We’re optimistic of a positive outcome, it’s just a really difficult season for us,” Henkes said.
Henkes said that support for the company and its mission of providing nonpartisan live video and archives of news conferences, government conferences and state government meetings in the state remains strong, including in meetings with vendors such as the company’s internet provider, which is currently owed money.
“I can’t give you the name of one person or group that says ‘We don’t want you to succeed,’ “ Henkes said. “It takes work and it takes some time.”
Henkes said that expenses relate more to staffing concerns of producing live coverage than the archived video but that the archives are also a valuable resource for everyone in the state.
“If we’re going to make a strong statement on the need for support, then we have to do what’s in our best interest and that is to apply the right kind of pressure that we are a cause worth of support and I would say that that is aimed more at the philanthropic community who give all kinds of money to campaigns, candidates and causes,” Henkes said.
