Each philanthropic cause has its own special challenges. Here we talk to fundraising pros for a behind-the-scenes look at a variety of missions and organizations.

By Margaret Battistelli Gardner

“Our biggest problem is we don’t have the dollars to promote our programs,” she says. “We’re still the best-kept secret on the dial, but somehow we’ll make do as we always have.”

Therein lies PTV’s dilemma and opportunity. While the commercial competition has evolved into relatively few media conglomerates, PTV remains fiercely decentralized. While the national networks are busy cross-promoting their own broadcast, cable and Web channels, independent PBS stations survive on a market-to-market basis. All this has caused local public TV stations to be very aware of their viewers and donors.