Biz journalism organization receives non-profit status

Ben Steelman of the Wilmington Star-News in North Carolina reports that the Southern Investigative Reporting Foundation, which is researching and writing investigative business journalism stories, has achieved non-profit status.

Steelman writes, “As a result, SIRF will function entirely on donations, with funds being funneled through Independent News Network. Boyd — who specializes in detailed, document-driven investigations of corporations and investments, thinks that’s important to ensure the independence and integrity of his reporting.

“A former business writer for Fortune and The New York Post, Boyd earned an M.A. in history from the University of North Carolinw Wilmington. His former website, The Financial Investigator, gained a following amont individual investors, according to the American Journalism Review. Huffington Post once called him one of the 25 “most feared” financial reporters in America.

“SIRF boasts an impressive board of directors, including Christopher Roush, director of the business journalism program at UNC-Chapel Hill, Bloomberg News columnist William D. Cohan (“House of Cards”) and former Fortune editor Bethany McLean (“Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room”). At the moment, though, the staff consists primarily of Boyd, along with some freelance researchers.

“Since forming late last year, SIRF has completed two long, detailed reports, one on the weight-loss and nutrition network ViSalus and one, posted March 11, on Toronto-based Brookfield Asset Management. Both are filed under Boyd’s byline.”

Read more here.