Produces a structured research plan for tracing funding sources of organizations, identifying public databases and investigative techniques to uncover conflicts of interest.
How this skill is triggered — by the user, by Claude, or both
Slash command
/autopunk-media-skills:funding-source-investigatorThe summary Claude sees in its skill listing — used to decide when to auto-load this skill
Produces a structured research plan for tracing the funding sources of an organisation — NGO, think tank, campaign group, political organisation, or research institution — identifying the public databases, disclosure requirements, and investigative techniques needed to determine who is paying for the organisation's work and whether that creates conflicts of interest.
Produces a structured research plan for tracing the funding sources of an organisation — NGO, think tank, campaign group, political organisation, or research institution — identifying the public databases, disclosure requirements, and investigative techniques needed to determine who is paying for the organisation's work and whether that creates conflicts of interest.
Required: The name of the organisation; the country it is based in; what it does (advocacy, research, lobbying, grant-making, campaigning).
Optional: Any funding sources you already know about; the specific policy area or controversy the organisation is involved in; whether the organisation is a registered charity, non-profit, trade association, or unincorporated entity (affects which disclosure rules apply); the depth of investigation needed (quick check vs. deep trace).
Identifies the disclosure regime. Based on the organisation type and jurisdiction, determines what funding information is legally required to be public — charity accounts, non-profit tax filings, lobbying disclosures, political donation reports, grant databases — and where to find it.
Lists the specific databases and records to check. For each disclosure category, names the exact database or filing location and specifies what information it contains. Distinguishes between sources that reveal donor identity (e.g., tax filings listing major donors) and sources that reveal only aggregate amounts.
Provides indirect tracing strategies. For organisations that do not disclose their funders publicly, lists the indirect methods for identifying funding — following the money backwards from grant-maker databases, checking donor annual reports, searching foundation tax filings, and cross-referencing conference sponsorships, event programmes, and public acknowledgements.
Builds a conflict-of-interest checklist. Based on the organisation's stated mission and the policy area it operates in, identifies the specific funding relationships that would constitute a conflict of interest — and the records that would reveal them.
Flags the opacity indicators. Lists the organisational characteristics that suggest deliberate funding opacity — fiscal sponsorship arrangements, donor-advised funds, pass-through entities, and umbrella organisations that obscure the original source of money.
700–1,000 words. Four sections: Mandatory Disclosures (what the organisation is legally required to publish and where to find it), Voluntary and Indirect Sources (databases and techniques for finding funding that is not mandatorily disclosed), Conflict-of-Interest Checklist (specific relationships to investigate), and Opacity Indicators (patterns that suggest deliberate non-disclosure). Tone: investigative, precise, neutral. No assumptions about whether the organisation is hiding anything — the plan is designed to find facts.
Organisation: A policy research institute (think tank) that publishes reports on energy regulation and is frequently quoted in media coverage of fossil-fuel transition policies Country: United States Entity type: 501(c)(3) non-profit Policy area: Energy regulation and climate policy Known funding: The think tank lists "corporate partners" on its website but does not name individual donors or amounts Depth: Deep investigative trace
Mandatory Disclosures
IRS Form 990. All 501(c)(3) organisations must file an annual Form 990 with the IRS, which is publicly available. Obtain from: ProPublica's Nonprofit Explorer (free, searchable), GuideStar/Candid (requires free registration for full filings), or the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. The Form 990 reveals: total revenue and expenses, top-line revenue by category (grants, contributions, programme service revenue), compensation of officers and key employees, and a list of the highest-paid independent contractors. It does not list individual donors by name (that information is on Schedule B, which is not public for 501(c)(3)s).
State charity registration filings. Many US states require charities soliciting donations to register and file annual reports. Some state filings include more detailed financial information than the federal Form 990. Check: the state attorney general's charity database for the state where the think tank is headquartered and any states where it actively fundraises.
Lobbying disclosures. If the think tank engages in lobbying (permitted for 501(c)(3)s within limits), check the Senate Lobbying Disclosure database and the House clerk's lobbying records. Also check state-level lobbying registers if the think tank operates at state level.
Voluntary and Indirect Sources
Foundation grant databases. Many foundations that fund think tanks are themselves required to disclose their grants on their own Form 990 (specifically Schedule I). Search foundation tax filings on ProPublica's Nonprofit Explorer for grants to the think tank. This is the single most effective indirect method for identifying funders of a 501(c)(3) that does not voluntarily disclose donors.
Foundation Center / Candid grants database. Aggregates grant information from foundation filings. Search by recipient name to find grants from foundations to the think tank.
Corporate annual reports and CSR disclosures. Energy companies, trade associations, and industry groups sometimes list their grant recipients or "partner organisations" in annual reports, sustainability reports, or corporate social responsibility disclosures. Search for the think tank's name in the annual reports of the major energy companies.
Conference sponsorship and event programmes. If the think tank hosts events, check the event materials for sponsor logos and acknowledgements. Conference sponsorship lists often reveal funder relationships that are not disclosed elsewhere.
Academic citation and co-authorship. Check whether the think tank's publications include funding acknowledgement statements. Academic convention requires disclosure of funding sources in published research — if the think tank produces research papers, these may include acknowledgements that reveal funders.
Wayback Machine. Check archived versions of the think tank's website. Donor lists, partnership pages, and event sponsor logos are sometimes removed over time. Archived versions may show funders that are no longer publicly acknowledged.
Media reports and investigative journalism. Search news archives (Factiva, LexisNexis) for previous reporting on the think tank's funding. Other journalists may have already uncovered some of this information.
Conflict-of-Interest Checklist
For a think tank publishing reports on energy regulation and fossil-fuel transition:
Opacity Indicators
npx claudepluginhub ur-grue/autopunk-media-skills --plugin autopunk-media-skillsProduces a structured research brief on the known and probable funding sources of an NGO, think tank, advocacy group, or foundation—including disclosed donors, funding structures, potential conflicts of interest, and key questions for journalists.
Guides financial investigations for journalists: traces corporate ownership, offshore structures, budgets, and assets via step-by-step methodologies with OPSEC warnings.
Guides financial investigations for journalists with methods for tracing corporate ownership, offshore structures, budgets, and assets. Automatically activates on related queries.