Gift to benefit The Daily Northwestern

The Daily Northwestern has received a substantial gift from Holly and John Madigan, publisher Students Publishing Company (SPC) has announced.

The Madigan’s gift is in response to the paper’s ongoing fundraising effort, The Campaign for The Future of The Daily Northwestern. It includes a $250,000 challenge grant that will match, dollar for dollar, additional gifts to The Daily’s campaign.

The gift will help ensure that The Daily continues to train and inspire journalists, including reporters, writers, editors, photographers, videographers and graphic designers. In gratitude, The Daily’s newsroom is being renamed the Holly and John Madigan Newsroom.

John Madigan, a Northwestern University trustee, is the retired chairman and chief executive officer of Tribune Company. He also is past chairman of both the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and the Commercial Club of Chicago, Madigan serves on the boards of Rush University Medical Center, New Schools for Chicago, the Robert R. McCormick Foundation and Gilead Sciences Inc. Holly Madigan, a 1962 Northwestern graduate, is a director and the former chairwoman of the Family Institute at Northwestern University. She also is a trustee of the Ravinia Festival and a member of the Northwestern Women’s Board.

“The Daily Northwestern is one of America’s greatest journalistic training grounds, so this gift is truly intended as an investment in the future of journalism,” said John Madigan. “Holly and I are very excited to be able to give back to a field that is so crucial to society in so many ways.”

The five-year campaign, launched with a $1 million goal last October, has received $1.25 million in gifts and commitments from more than 100 donors. Thanks to the Madigans’ gift and challenge grant, the Students Publishing Company board raised the campaign’s target to $2 million.

The current fundraising total includes a $200,000 bequest commitment from longtime SPC director Ed Bryant, a 1963 Northwestern graduate who wrote commentary for the paper during the 1960s and has served on its board since 1972.

“The early success we’ve experienced gives us the opportunity to secure The Daily’s future in a way that we never imagined was possible when we launched this effort last year,” said Bryant, a retired attorney.

“Our board is supporting this effort because we believe passionately in the importance of a vital and independent campus press and a reflection of the essential role The Daily Northwestern plays on campus and in the community. We would encourage others who feel the same way to support this effort,” he said.

Bryant encouraged donors considering including Northwestern in their estate planning to designate some of those funds to The Daily, as he did.

The Campaign for The Future of The Daily Northwestern has three primary objectives:

• To ensure that The Daily and its staff have access to the best newsgathering and storytelling technology currently available;
• To fund student stipends that ensure that staff members with limited financial means are not prevented from working at The Daily;
• To establish a sound financial footing that will allow The Daily to remain focused on what it has always done best: training and inspiring young reporters, writers, editors, photographers and others looking for a career in the media.

Founded in 1881, The Daily Northwestern ranks among the top college newspapers in America, both in terms of the many prestigious awards it has won, including seven Pacemaker Awards in the last 10 years, and a remarkably accomplished alumni network that includes leaders in most of America’s major news organizations and in many non-journalism fields as well.

Gifts directed to The Daily through Northwestern will be counted toward We Will. The Campaign for Northwestern, thanks to support from Northwestern University Alumni Relations and Development. Gifts may be made online.