Dallas Observer Kicks Off Summer Membership Drive

Election season is upon us. We're here to make sense of it –– but we need our readers' support.

This year, back-to-school season also means back-to-an-election season. And so, we have a responsibility to cover election happenings as much as possible. This means we’ll not only cover local news, but also try to make sense of national news and how it affects our community. We’ll present you with the facts in a way you can understand, so that you can make your own conclusions.

Producing independent journalism isn't cheap. We're proud to offer our coverage without a paywall, and recently introduced a website redesign to reduce pop-up ads in order to improve your online experience as you read our news.

But we could not erase this main point: We can not rely solely on advertising support to keep us moving forward.

Today marks the first day of our summer membership drive — and we have big plans. From August 5-25, we’re aiming to raise $5,500 to help our newsroom provide crucial coverage during this unprecedented election cycle, and we are asking for your support. Join our membership program by contributing any amount to support our newsroom — and you’ll get cool perks!

Your contribution isn't just an investment in our current election and political coverage; it will allow us to continue this coverage as an independent, free local news source, and could lead to an increase in freelance writers or photographers. Investments from our readers are particularly important when it comes to providing our communities with exclusive coverage.This doesn't come without a cost, but together we can continue to make it happen.

Since our founding in 1980, if you want to know what's happening in Dallas, keep your eye on the Observer. We've evolved a lot over the years, but our mission for our news coverage remains strong: to be an unparalleled source of information and insight about local government and politics.

This is a role we take seriously. We believe that being informed means being empowered. With access to reputable information, readers like you are better able to make educated choices, engage thoughtfully with others and connect meaningfully with the rest of the world.

We often hear from our readers that you want to see more reporting about politics and the election. It’s clear that the time is right to bolster our efforts in this area, which is why we are crowdfunding.

With this campaign, you’re providing more than money. You’re showing our newsroom that our publication matters to you. You come to us for stories you can’t get anywhere else. And to us, that’s more encouraging and motivating than any dollar amount ever will be.

Thank you.