Medium: Paper
Vehicle: New York Times
Website: www.newyorktimes.com
Reporter: Karen Weise
Date: January 17, 2019
Headline: Microsoft Pledges $500 Million to Ease Seattle Housing Crisis
Company: Microsoft
Client: Microsoft
Microsoft announced they will be donating $500 million to help support the affordable housing crisis that has followed the explosive growth of tech hubs. Both Amazon and Microsoft are located in Seattle and are both responsible for the tech boom that has led to the inequality in the area. Microsoft plans to use this donation to “help people left behind in communities transformed by the boom.”
Microsoft plans to donate $225 million to preserve as well as build middle-income housing in six cities near its headquarters. This money will fund construction for Microsoft’s own non-tech workers as well as for teachers, firefighters, and other middle-class residents. They will also put another $250 million into low-income housing in that region. The remaining $25 million will go towards local organizations that work with the homeless, including legal aid for people who are fighting eviction.
By splitting up the money into smaller amounts, Microsoft will be able to help build “tens of thousands of units.”
This is good press for Microsoft because it shows they care about the people and surrounding area of Seattle. They are acknowledging that they are apart of the tech boom that has caused the affordable housing crisis, but are showing they are taking positive steps to help solve the problem.
I would continue to release updates on the projects being built by this donation to show the progress is being made. I would include images of the projects being built and how they were benefiting the community. Posting about these projects on social media would continue to create positive discussion about Microsoft and their efforts to help the people of Seattle.
If you want to read more about Microsoft’s donation and plans, read here.