And if we’re a non-profit, we have to do so publicly.
(Disclaimer: I’m not an accountant, but the forms are simple, so I don’t think I got anything wrong here.)
NPR’s annual budget (in 2005) was $110,000,000.
Their top five on-air earners were:
Renee Montagne – $308,374 (plus $30,640 in benefits & deferred compensation)
Steve Inskeep – $301,856 ($35,572)
Robert Siegel – $288,795 ($24,480)
Scott Simon – $266,821 ($33,572)
Alex Chadwick – $235,173 ($29,564)
The CEO, Kevin Klose, made $577,325, plus $284,475 in deferred compensation & benefits.
Other information gleaned…
NPR spent $232,742 on transcription services from Berrelles Information Services
NPR spent $263,631 on lobbying services
NPR spent $11,795,300 on content aquisition from outside sources
NPR had $84,833,067 in securities, and total assets of $165,959,704
NPR’s phone bill was $2,069,720
Do I post all of this to say it’s outrageous or unbelievable? Absolutely not. I’d say if you compared this to the budget of CNN or some other, comparable operation, you’d have to say it’s a good value. As the Boston Globe points out, $300K is 1/20th what Brian Williams makes.