Jeff Reifman

Seattle Times Hits Amazon Hard, Gives Microsoft a Pass

I've had personal meetings with The Seattle Times' Executive Editor David Boardman and his journalists about Microsoft's $1.51 billion dollar Nevada tax dodge. Despite David's spoken intent to cover the issue, the paper never has.

So, I thought it was a bit surprising that The Times hit Amazon with a front page article on its poor record of corporate giving in Seattle. The article ran on April Fools Day - so perhaps this was The Seattle Times treating its readers for fools.

But seriously, doesn't paying your taxes come before corporate giving? Isn't tax dodging a bigger sin than failing to make donations to your community?

When newspapers fail to cover the problems in our tax system and the former-Microsoft employee turned legislator that contributes to the problem, then the region's safety net falls apart and we depend more heavily on corporate donations. But surely The Times should do a better job of covering this issue first.

Shame on The Seattle Times. Shame on Microsoft.

 

 

Microsoft's Tax Dodging Killing Education in Washington State

How Governor Gregoire, the legislature, the courts and The Seattle Times have enabled Microsoft's hypocritical stance on education and tax dodging to lead to $693 million in cuts to Washington State's education system:

    When John Burbank, a columnist in the Everett Herald, wrote that Microsoft’s unpaid royalty taxes “could be funding high-quality schools for Washington's children,” the company demanded a correction from the paper but refuses to release data that would prove its position. Listen to Brad Smith acknowledge the company's Nevada tax practices in this clip from our 2004 interview for Citizen Microsoft (Seattle Weekly).

Full story at Microsoft Tax Dodge

Asking Microsoft to Back Up Its Attacks on My Investigative Reporting

Update: Microsoft refuses to release the amounts of its royalty tax payments to Washington State.

In December, John Burbank of the Economic Opportunity Institute wrote in The Herald that,"By running its licensing sales through a shop in Reno, Nev., it avoids royalty taxes that could be funding high-quality schools for Washington's children." Microsoft's Jeffrey Reading asked The Herald for a correction "Much of the information regarding this issue is misinformation primarily spread by a blogger [me]."

I've written an open letter to Microsoft's General Counsel and Senior Vice President for Microsoft to release its Washington State Royalty Tax payments for the years 1998 - 2010 so they can prove their case against me.

Dear Brad Smith, Did Microsoft Pay Royalty Taxes in Washington 1998 - 2010?

Last month, Smith wrote a column in The Seattle Times in which he expressed concern that falling tax revenues are hurting education: "Like many states, Washington continues to battle significant budget challenges. Unlike many states, however, our constitution declares that it's the state's paramount duty to provide for the public education of all children. Unfortunately, steady declines in public resources now threaten our ability to live up to that commitment."

To Refute Claims, Microsoft Should Disclose Its Royalty Tax Payments

Last week, after John Burbank, Executive Director of the Economic Opportunity Institute, wrote an editorial condemning the company's hypocritical record of tax dodging while advocating for more education funding, Jeffrey Reading, Microsoft's Senior PR Manager wrote The Herald to refute the claims Burbank made (Burbank based his article on my reporting):

"Mr. Burbank does not include sourcing to support his claims regarding Microsoft’s Nevada licensing, which is part of a very complicated piece of state tax law. Much of the information regarding this issue is misinformation primarily spread by a blogger, and no state official has ever provided any factual data supporting his claims."

I stand behind my research and all of my claims. If Microsoft wishes to prove that it paid Washington State Royalty Taxes during the years 1998 - 2010, it should disclose its worldwide licensing revenue and its Royalty Tax payments for this time period. It would be quite simple for the company to provide these two sets of numbers and would put the issue to rest once and for all (as I have done here). 

Read the full post

 

My take on the typical NPR affiliate programming and business model...

My take on the typical NPR affiliate's programming and business model is one of providing the frog a pleasant dissociative experience as the water in the pot it's in slowly warms to a boil while occasionally pausing to ask it for money.

Dignity Therapy: For The Dying, A Chance To Rewrite Life

Loved this NPR story on dignity therapy: 

The something that Chochinov decided to create was a formal written narrative of the patient's life — a document that could be passed on to whomever they chose. The patients would be asked a series of questions about their life history, and the parts they remember most or think are most important. Their answers would be transcribed and presented to them for editing until, after going back and forth with the therapist, a polished document resulted that could be passed on to the people that they loved.

 

Geekwire on King5's open source contest that wasn't

Open source developer objects to news hackathon’s 11-page contract

Come hear about some radically new approaches to social change

I'd like to strongly encourage you to come hear Thomas Linzey speak on Tuesday evening October 4th at Town Hallor meet him Wednesday evening October 5th at our smaller gathering in the University District. Thomas is the Executive Director at the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) which helped Pittsburgh ban fracking and strip corporations of judge-made "Constitutional" rights. He also helped Spokane author its community bill of rights on this November's ballot. And, he helped Ecuador add rights for nature to its Constitution.

I think it's the shear desperation of the failed progressive political movement in America that leads us to shine our spotlights on Occupy Wall Street, a semi-anarchical movement which I applaud and support, but which currently lacks much focus. On the contrary, Thomas' group is the effort I see that's actually analyzed the roots of our problems and systematically takes action in hundreds of communities around the country, largely by making and passing laws.

Learn more about Thomas' appearances in Seattle this week.

Photos from fun presentation in Saint Petersburg

Some fun photos from our lecture in Saint Petersburg, Russia put on by our friends at iUni.ru. View the entire album. Video coming soon.

 

Not very public radio: KUOW - three gatekeepers, 11% original material

Quick analysis of Seattle's NPR affiliate KUOW shows that only 11.9% of airtime is local original material produced by three gatekeepers who get to decide what views get aired and what don't.