About The Journal

The Journal, found online at klcjournal.com, is the nationally recognized magazine published by the Kansas Leadership Center in Wichita. The publication focuses on highlighting important civic leadership issues in Kansas and beyond through in-depth reporting, investigative journalism and innovative writing, graphic design, photography, multimedia and public discussions. The Journal is nonpartisan. It seeks to educate and inform readers about issues from multiple perspectives and it does not engage in advocacy.

In 2019, The Journal received the Sigma Delta Chi Award for Public Service in Local/Regional Magazine Journalism from the Society of Professional Journalists, and the Burton W. Marvin News Enterprise Award from the University of Kansas’ School of Journalism and the William Allen White Foundation.

About the Kansas Leadership Center

The Kansas Leadership Center, publisher of The Journal, is a first-of-its-kind educational organization founded to foster leadership. for stronger, healthier and more prosperous communities in Kansas. Its programs and teachings present leadership as an activity available to anyone at any time. KLC offers training for organizations, teams and individuals as well as advanced programs for leadership development practitioners. It provides development grants for civically oriented organizations in Kansas, partners with local community leadership programs and offers customized trainings for the business sector. KLC hosts civic leadership forums and encourages Kansans to take active part in public life for the common good. It receives core funding from the Kansas Health Foundation.

The Journal provides more details about its approach to journalism on its transparency and ethics page. We also offer further explanations about our policies for corrections and clarifications.

KLC Mission

To foster civic leadership for stronger, healthier and more prosperous Kansas communities.

KLC Vision

To be the center of excellence for civic leadership development.

The Journal’s Role

To build a healthy 21st Century public square for all to lead.

How We Do It

–Provide trustworthy information that energizes civic engagement

-Help people understand areas of common ground as well as differences

-Perpetuate a culture of respect for differing viewpoints

-Shine a light on difficult civic challenges without fear or favor

-Highlight progress — and the people mobilizing it — when it occurs

-Explore when and why gaps between reality and aspiration persist

If you have questions or concerns, please write us at thejournal@kansasleadershipcenter.org.

Donor Transparency

The Journal is published by the nonprofit, nonpartisan Kansas Leadership Center. The Journal operates independently from other Kansas Leadership Center projects and personnel in making editorial decisions. Julia Fabris McBride, interim president and CEO of the Kansas Leadership Center, is publisher of The Journal. Editorial decisions are the purview of the staff, directed by the executive editor, Chris Green.

The Journal and its parent organization, the Kansas Leadership Center, are committed to transparency in every aspect of funding our organization.

Accepting financial support does not mean The Journal endorses donors or their products, services or opinions.

A copy of the most recent Form 990 for KLC can be found here.

Current Major Donors

Current supporters that have contributed or granted at least $5,000 to The Journal and/or the Kansas Leadership Center are the following:

Statement of Editorial Independence

The Journal subscribes to standards of editorial independence adopted by the Institute for Nonprofit News.

The Journal retains full authority over editorial content to protect the best journalistic and business interests of our organization. We maintain a firewall between coverage decisions and sources of all revenue. Acceptance of financial support does not constitute implied or actual endorsement of donors or their products, services or opinions.

We accept gifts, grants and sponsorships from individuals and organizations for the general support of our activities, but our editorial judgments are made independently and not on the basis of donor support.

The Journal may consider donations to support the coverage of particular topics, but we maintain editorial control of the coverage. We will cede no right of review or influence of editorial content, nor of unauthorized distribution of editorial content.

Our organization will make public all donors or grantors who give a total of $5,000 or more per year. We will accept anonymous donations for general support only if it is clear that sufficient safeguards have been put into place that the expenditure of that donation is made independently by our organization and in compliance with INN’s Membership Standards.

Avoiding and Disclosing Conflicts of Interest

What is a conflict of interest?

When someone reads a story in The Journal, they should be able to trust that the information is being presented accurately, fairly and with the proper context. Content should seek to pursue and report the truth, however simple or complex or inconvenient, and not serve agendas contrary to the public interest or the mission, vision, and values of the organization. It is through the honest, thoughtful and fair exploration of civic issues that the magazine contributes to building a public square for all to lead.

In the journalistic context, factors that get in the way of fairness and reporting truth, or risk creating perceptions that what is being reported might not be true or fair, can become conflicts of interest. Conflicts can arise because of financial holdings, family ties and relationships, non-reporting financial arrangements, among many others.

Board members and key management personnel at the Kansas Leadership Center, including the executive editor of The Journal, annually sign conflict of interest statements to help protect the interests of KLC when entering into a transaction or arrangement.

Because The Journal disseminates civic information to a wide audience, anyone submitting editorial content to The Journal – whether they are a full-time staff member, freelance contributor or guest commentator – should understand that they must meet professionally accepted standards related to conflicts of interest as detailed by the Society of Professional Journalists.

This includes, to briefly summarize the SPJ:

Avoiding conflicts of interest, real or perceived, and disclosing unavoidable conflicts.
Not accepting special treatment and avoiding activities that would damage journalistic credibility.
Not paying sources or providing favors for information.
Identifying content from outside sources.
Not providing favored coverage to advertisers, donors or other special interests or letting them dictate coverage.
Distinguishing journalistic content from promotional content and clearly labeling any sponsored content.

Freelance contributors play important roles in helping The Journal cover civic issues and are valued members of our editorial team. We expect freelance contributors to be transparent with editors by disclosing as soon as they know that their work with other organizations or clients might present a conflict of interest to reporting on a subject for The Journal. Potential conflicts will be disclosed publicly when necessary to further audience’s understanding. Whenever possible, The Journal’s editors will assign or re-assign stories to ensure that conflicts are minimized or eliminated.

The Kansas Leadership Center serves many grantees and clients who contract with the center for custom business or civic engagement services. The Journal will disclose when its coverage touches entities that KLC engages with through those initiatives.