VTDigger announced Monday that it has hired Jake Perkinson as general counsel.
For the past 18 months, Perkinson has served as secretary of the Vermont Journalism Trust, the nonprofit that does business as VTDigger.
In his new role as general counsel, he will support human resources, newsroom and business operations for the organization.
Perkinson is an attorney licensed in the states of Vermont and Maine and is admitted to practice in numerous federal jurisdictions including the U.S Supreme Court. He has served as a leader on nonprofit boards for many years, including as vice chair of the Vermont Conservation Voters, president of Champlain Valley Dispensary, Inc., president of Lake Champlain International, Inc., and chair of the Vermont Democratic Party.
He has also served on numerous government committees, such as the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Marijuana (co-chair) and the Vermont Secretary of State’s and Attorney General’s Committee on Campaign Finance Education and Reform (chair). Perkinson has also been appointed by two successive governors to serve as supervisor of Buel’s Gore.
In addition to over 25 years of legal practice, Perkinson has deep business experience gained through managing his own companies and providing capital investment and advice to numerous local start-ups.
Perkinson lives in Burlington with his family and is an active volunteer in the community as a trail adopter for the Green Mountain Club, commissioner and former chair of the Burlington Fire Department, and former president of the Greater Burlington Girls Soccer League.
As VTDigger has grown from a startup to a news institution, it has sought to further its mission of rigorous journalism to support government accountability and democratic engagement statewide.
“I am very excited to join the dedicated team of professionals at the helm of VTDigger,” Perkinson said. “Now, more than ever, accountability through rigorous journalism presented without fear or favor is essential to foster the core principles needed to preserve our democratic republic. I am pleased and humbled to have the opportunity to further the mission of the Vermont Journalism Trust and VTDigger.”
Perkinson will play a critical role in further professionalizing and growing VTDigger’s operations at an inflection point for local news, said Anne Galloway, the organization’s founder and executive director.
“I am thrilled that Jake is joining the organization at this critical juncture,” Galloway said. “He has the business acumen and legal expertise we need to further a sustainable model for local journalism at a time of great uncertainty for the news industry.”
As general counsel, Perkinson will work closely with VTDigger’s management team and will also assist VTDigger’s continuing efforts to facilitate access to public records initiatives for the public good.
Perkinson joins the management team of Galloway, chief revenue officer Jim Lehnhoff, managing editor Paul Heintz, and director of community engagement and strategic partnerships Libbie Pattison.
VTDigger is one of a handful of nonprofit news organizations in the nation that has developed a promising model of sustainable funding for journalism. The organization has grown from a one-person operation to a 26-member staff over the past 11 years, becoming the newspaper of record for the state of Vermont.
As a 501C3 educational charity, VTDigger is dedicated to watchdog reporting that is funded by members, underwriting, grants, e-commerce, events and philanthropic gifts.
