Kony 2012: Four Stars on Charity Navigator

The charity Invisible Children is generating much buzz right now because of their Kony 2012 video that is circulating on Facebook and the rest of the web.  While the film itself has generated some controversy for being  heavy on pathos and light on information, it's difficult to criticize a movement that is attempting to raise awareness of the plight of children in war torn countries.

The point of this post is not to add to that debate but to introduce an excellent website for evaluating a charity before you give it money.  That site is called Charity Navigator and the image below is from their rating of the "Invisible Children" charity, who get a fairly solid 3 out of 4 star rating.  Charity Navigator is an independent, non-profit organization whose aim is to help people give wisely to charities that will put the money they receive to good use.  Below is a Charity Navigator graphic depicting their rating for "Invisible Children":

The issue when giving to any charity is how much of the money they collect is going to the cause itself and how much is going to things like pay for executives, fundraising, and administrative costs. 

An example of a charity that has not fared well is one that was made famous by the book Three Cups of Tea, by Greg Mortenson, detailing his efforts to build schools in Afghanistan.  Mortenson's charity, the Central Asia Institute, has raised millions of dollars and is currently under investigation by U.S. authorities for accusations of fraud.  The Charity Navigator website has issued what they call a "donor advisory" to caution those thinking of giving to the charity.  Also, Jon Krakauer, author of Into the Wild and several other books, has written a book called Three Cups of Deceit alleging fraudulent business practices on the part of Mortenson and his charity.