When Matt Halprin is on the board of Wikimedia, he is doing his job for Omidyar Network. So, when we read, a statement like:
> [Matt Halprin] has important nonprofit experience, serving on the boards of > organizations like DonorsChoose.org and the Sunlight Foundation. Just remember that he was put on the board of Sunlight Foundation it was the same day ON cut them a check for $2M [1], and similarly, although he is on the board of DonorsChoose, ON has given them over $6M so far [2]. I think it's good to remember that when he makes vote on the board of WM, he is doing so with as much interesest in his role as board member as he is in his roll at ON, which is to lead their Media, Markets & Transparency initiative [3]. Within those three, Wikimedia is considered to be a "Social Media," investment, and the goal that ON is tryign to achieving in investing in these kinds of initiatives is to: "We aspire to amplify the transformative character of social media and facilitate the creation, discovery, and distribution of trustworthy information and original content. We hope to enable more individuals to express themselves, make more informed decisions, connect with others, and take action on what matters to them." [4] So, yes, I think ON has bought a seat on the board, and I even think that it is likely that Matt personally orchestrated that it. But, taking a big step back, I also really trust the ON and I think the choices Matt has made on their behalf over the past year or so have been really smart decisions. I think he'll bring a lot to the board and I hope that this will be the start of a beautiful relationship for the ON and WM foundation. Best of luck to everyone! References: [1]: http://www.omidyar.com/about_us/news/2009/03/17/sunlight-foundation-announces-4-million-invesment-omidyar-network [2]: http://www.omidyar.com/portfolio/donorschooseorg [3]: http://www.omidyar.com/team/matt-halprin [4]: http://www.omidyar.com/investment_areas/media-markets-transparency/social-media _______________________________________________ foundation-l mailing list [email protected] Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
