Idaho Press Club

What Idaho Press Club does

Idaho Press Club is a private nonprofit professional association serving journalists, editors, broadcasters, public relations professionals, and student journalists across Idaho. Founded circa 1965 and headquartered in Boise, the organization operates as a member-supported community of more than 200 professionals governed by a volunteer board of directors and led day-to-day by Executive Director Martha Borchers. Its mission centers on improving the practice and conditions of journalism in Idaho through four interlocking lines of activity: (1) recognition via the annual Best of Awards contest and gala banquet at Boise Centre East; (2) professional development through the quarterly Communicator newsletter, recurring Journalists' Institute on Covering the Courts (in partnership with the University of Idaho College of Law and Attorneys for Civic Education), and the Don Watkins Memorial and Mid-Career Scholarships; (3) press-access infrastructure via the Capitol Correspondents Association, which credentials reporters covering the Idaho Legislature under Joint Rule 14; and (4) public-interest advocacy, most prominently the 2025 media shield law proposal (House Bill 0158) led by lobbyist Ken Burgess of Veritas Advisors.

The underlying technology is deliberately lightweight: a WordPress-based informational website at idahopressclub.org hosts all member resources, event registration, awards submission, and the Communicator archive. The only third-party integrations disclosed are PayPal and credit card processing for Capitol Correspondents dues and an embedded Google Forms survey for member training feedback. There is no proprietary software, no API, and no data product. The organization's defensible asset is not technology but its regulatory and reputational position — administering the only statewide credentialing pathway for legislative press access and serving as the recognized voice of Idaho journalism in front of the state legislature, with pro bono legal support from firms including Smith + Malek.

Revenue mechanics are classic small-association economics. Income is generated from annual membership dues (amount not publicly disclosed), annual banquet ticket sales ($65 members / $70 non-members plus processing fees; $650 reserved tables), awards contest entry fees (with member discounts), Capitol Correspondents Association dues ($10/correspondent/year as a pass-through), and event co-sponsorships. Distribution is direct to members through the website, email, quarterly newsletter, and in-person events; there are no resellers and no commercial channels. Geographic scope is single-state (Idaho, USA), and the customer base consists of individual journalists and small newsrooms rather than enterprise accounts.

Name

Idaho Press Club

Legal name

Idaho Press Club

Website

https://idahopressclub.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1965

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Idaho Press Club is a nonprofit professional association serving more than 200 journalists, editors, and student journalists across Idaho with an annual Best of Awards contest, training institutes, scholarships, legislative press credentialing, and First Amendment advocacy including a 2025 media shield law push.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Journalism Association

NAICS

Public Relations Agencies (541820)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Investigative & Nonprofit News Organizations (MPAJADAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Nonprofit & Cause Communications (BPAFADAK), Event PR & Communications Support (BPAFADAO), Sports Media Relations & Rights Support Services (Press Ops, Rights Packaging Support) (MPAKAKAN)

Keywords

• Journalism professional association
• Press freedom advocacy
• Journalism awards contest
• Media credentialing services
• Journalism training programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Boise

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Membership dues: Annual membership fees from regular and student members. Membership confers a substantial discount on annual awards contest entry fees, and a member/non-member price differential on the annual awards banquet ($65 member vs. $70 non-member).
2. Event and banquet ticket sales: Revenue from the annual Best of [Year] Awards Banquet at Boise Centre East. Pricing: $65 members / $70 non-members (plus $3 processing fee); reserved tables of 10 at $650 (plus $22 processing fee). Includes social hour, dinner, and awards presentation.
3. Sponsorships and co-sponsorship revenue: Co-sponsorship of events such as the Maggie Haberman speaker event with the BSU Frank Church Institute. The Press Club's portion of the event is free to members while the Institute's dinner is a separate paid fundraiser.
4. Capitol Correspondents Association dues (administrative pass-through): Collects $10 per correspondent per year in Capitol Correspondents Association dues on behalf of the credentialing body; pass-through administrative role.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Core offering

The Idaho Press Club is a non-profit professional journalism association that serves Idaho journalists and media professionals through advocacy, training, recognition, and credentialing. It offers membership-based services including the quarterly Communicator newsletter, the annual Best of Awards contest and banquet, training programs on court coverage and trauma reporting, scholarships for students and mid-career journalists, and administration of the Capitol Correspondents Association for credentialing legislative reporters. The organization also leads legislative advocacy for press freedom issues including open records laws and a proposed Idaho media shield law.

Product overview

Idaho Press Club is a non-profit journalism membership organization dedicated to improving journalism in Idaho, offering a single integrated portfolio of advocacy, professional development, and recognition services rather than a software product. Its core offerings include: (1) the quarterly member publication The Communicator; (2) the annual Best of Awards journalism excellence contest and banquet; (3) the Capitol Correspondents Association, which credentials legislative reporters; (4) the Don Watkins Memorial Scholarship and Don Watkins Mid-Career Scholarship; (5) the Journalists' Institute on Covering the Courts training program (in partnership with the University of Idaho College of Law and Attorneys for Civic Education); (6) reference resources such as the Idaho Courts Media Guide, Idaho Open Records Law page, Idaho Pronunciation Guide, Idaho Media Links, and Cameras in the Idaho Courtroom guide; (7) member events including luncheons and the annual banquet; (8) a job postings board; and (9) the active Media Shield Law legislative advocacy initiative. Together these offerings form the Press Club's member-service platform: The Communicator is the core publication, the Best of Awards is the recognition program, the CCA is the credentialing service, the scholarships and training programs support professional development, and the advocacy/legal resources and shield law campaign are the public-interest services that bind the membership offering together.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Communicator: A quarterly newsletter publication of the Idaho Press Club that carries President's Columns, training announcements, Media Moves (industry personnel news), and feature articles on journalism topics.
• Idaho Debates

Products and services

• The Communicator A quarterly newsletter published by the Idaho Press Club that delivers the latest news, President's columns, Media Moves (industry personnel changes), event and training information, and journalism advocacy updates to its membership.
• Best of Awards (Annual Journalism Contest and Banquet) The annual Idaho Press Club journalism excellence contest and gala banquet held at Boise Centre East, with multiple divisions and categories including Spanish-language categories added in 2022. Open to entries from professional and student journalists across Idaho.
• Don Watkins Memorial Scholarship A scholarship of up to $1,500 awarded annually to Idaho college journalism students who have completed at least one year of college and wish to pursue a career in journalism or communications. Named in honor of Don Watkins, former press secretary to Idaho Gov. John Evans.
• Don Watkins Mid-Career Scholarship A $500 scholarship available to any Idaho Press Club member for any training or project that will improve the working press in Idaho. Recipients must share what they learn through a Press Club event or article in the Communicator.
• Capitol Correspondents Association Credentialing The entity responsible for credentialing news reporters who cover sessions of the Idaho Legislature pursuant to Joint Rule 14. Annual dues of $10 per correspondent grant access to House and Senate chambers, press seats, and press work space during session. Officers include President Kevin Richert, Vice President James Dawson, and standing committee members Joan Cartan-Hansen, Logan Finney, Laura Guido, and Ryan Suppe.
• Journalists' Institute on Covering the Courts A free training program for Idaho journalists on covering the courts and the rule of law, delivered in partnership with the University of Idaho College of Law and Attorneys for Civic Education, and with the U.S. Court for the District of Idaho in 2024.
• Idaho Press Club Luncheons and Events Networking and professional development events held by the Idaho Press Club, including luncheons, the Legislative Preview at the Idaho State Capitol, and the annual awards banquet, plus co-sponsored speaker events.
• Job Postings Board A free job board where employers can submit journalism and public relations positions for posting on the IPC website, available as a member service.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press: National nonprofit providing pro bono legal defense, amicus briefs, and open-government advocacy for journalists. RCFP is a natural ally and partial substitute for IPC's First Amendment Committee work, and operates at federal/cross-state scale rather than within Idaho.
• Idaho Press: Major Idaho daily newspaper (Boise bureau represented on IPC's board via Betsy Z. Russell). Comparable only as an industry participant and IPC board constituency, not as a competing organization — useful for understanding IPC's member base and demand signals.

Broad incumbents

• National Association of Broadcasters: Largest U.S. trade association for broadcasters, with advocacy, legal resources, and training relevant to Idaho broadcast journalists. NAB overlaps IPC on advocacy and professional development but is industry-wide and not state-specific.
• Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE): National nonprofit supporting investigative journalism through training, conferences, and resources. IRE overlaps IPC's training mission (notably the Journalists' Institute on Covering the Courts) and serves many of the same Idaho investigative journalists.
• Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ): Nation's most prominent journalism professional association with chapters in all 50 states. SPJ overlaps with IPC on advocacy (open records, shield laws), training, and awards, but operates at national scale with broader programming and a paid professional staff.

Direct peers

• Utah Press Association: Intermountain West state press association providing advocacy, awards, and training to Utah journalists — a near-twin to IPC in mission, with overlapping regional press-freedom concerns.
• Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association: Pacific Northwest state press association representing Oregon's newspaper industry with advocacy, legal resources, and training. Closely mirrors IPC's combination of advocacy, awards, and member services in a comparable regional market.
• Washington Newspaper Publishers Association: State-level trade association serving Washington's newspaper industry with advocacy, training, and member benefits. A directly comparable peer in mission and operating model to IPC, though operating in a larger market.
• Montana Press Association: State-level professional journalism association serving Montana journalists with advocacy, training, awards, and member services — directly comparable to Idaho Press Club in mission, scale, and structure, and a natural co-advocacy partner on regional press-freedom issues.
• Wyoming Press Association: Wyoming's state journalism trade group offering advocacy, awards, and professional development. Directly comparable to IPC in size, structure, and rural-market focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/idahopressclub
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/idaho-press-club

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Idaho Press Club