Americans Lack Trust in Charities, Poll Finds

Only 1 in 10 Americans believes that charities are ethical in their use of donated funds, reports NBC News.

The poll, conducted by Harris Interactive, also found that nearly one in three Americans believes nonprofit groups have “pretty seriously gotten off in the wrong direction.”

Charity scandals and increased Congressional oversight of tax-exempt organizations are part of the reason for public skepticism about charities, say nonprofit experts, but the vast array of choices in giving may also be overwhelming to many donors. More than one million groups now have charity status.

The wealth of options has left smaller organizations struggling to raise money.

“The larger organizations—megachurches, universities, hospitals, major philanthropic organizations—they’re all getting better at how to do this . . . but the smaller organizations, they don’t have that kind of horsepower,” said Kevin McCarthy, chief executive officer of the United Way of Inland Valley, in Riverside, Calif.