It’s a new year, and I am required by law to be optimistic. Never mind that each previous year has, in its own way, been a disappointment. Twenty twenty-four is going to be different! Those speed bumps, minor mishaps, and casual train wrecks are just growing pains. Things are off to a good start and I am compelled to regard that as auspicious.
The actual good news is that our application to file Syncopated Media, Inc. as a non-profit corporation has, as of this writing, been accepted by the State of New York. That’s the first rung of the ladder up toward achieving full non-profit status. Once the US federal government and the IRS recognize us as a 501(c)3 corporation, we can begin to accept grants and tax-deductible contributions to keep The Syncopated Times a robust and viable publication and diversify into other branches of media.
This is as it should be, since TST has been effectively a no-profit enterprise since before some guy got the sniffles in 2019. In fact, I’ve been fighting the loss of readers and advertisers almost since our inception in February 2016. Overtures to the Swing Dance community, which I saw as a way to grow our readership with younger subscribers, haven’t really panned out. It may be that people can’t dance and read at the same time.
More likely, it is that I am admittedly terrible at outreach. The nature of what I do is sedentary and solitary, an
