Two Unsettling Conversations About Upcoming Assignments

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“You’re gonna wanna have a car and driver. It’s not that safe.”

“We’re going to have to figure out where we could possibly interview people. We’re seeing them disappear on a regular basis, the ones who have the courage to talk about it.”

Looks like I’m probably headed out of town again in early April. This trip is going to be even more sensitive than most, and if I were having any doubt about that, two preparatory conversations I just had with sources made it crystal clear.

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OUR DEADLINE MATH PROBLEM

It’s risky, but also unavoidable: A full one-third of the dollars that we need to pay for the journalism you rely on has to get raised in December. A good December means our newsroom is fully staffed, well-resourced, and on the beat. A bad one portends budget trouble and hard choices.

The December 31 deadline is drawing nearer, and if we’re going to have any chance of making our goal, we need those of you who’ve never pitched in before to join the ranks of MoJo donors.

We simply can’t afford to come up short. There is no cushion in our razor-thin budget—no backup, no alternative sources of revenue to balance our books. Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the fierce journalism we do. That’s why we need you to show up for us right now.

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