Let’s say you’re Bob Iger, CEO of the Walt Disney Company and owner of the ABC television network.

You’ve helmed one of the most powerful media companies in the world. You’ve gone toe-to-toe with Trump on the Muslim ban, walked away from his President’s Advisory Council over Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accords, and slapped DeSantis around for his “Don’t Say Gay” crusade.

You’ve got guts. You’ve got principles. You’ve got a legacy.

But then Charlie Kirk dies, Jimmy Kimmel cracks a joke, and suddenly, you’re fielding FCC threats, network affiliate rebellion, shareholder anxiety, two major distributors of ABC’s programming with a $6.2 billion merger teetering on Trump’s mood swings—and an election season barreling toward you like a freight train. So, what do you do?

You pre-empt Kimmel’s show. Indefinitely—and fortunately last  as of tonight– temporarily.

The Trump DOJ didn’t lock Jimmy up. His goons didn’t march him off the stage. The mafioso conduct of the FCC chair simply intimidated Bob Iger into taking away Jimmy’s audience by pre-empting his platform.

The Hard Truth About Platforms

And that’s the trap not only for media companies but for every organization that deals in speech—comedic or otherwise.  Not the public shame or the moral compromise involved in a single act—but the slow, quiet removal of your platform. The space you, you staff  and your donors have  spent years building–the audience that gives your words and content weight.

Kimmel wasn’t silenced with a muzzle—he was silenced with a switch. And when the lights went off, the lesson was clear: without a platform, principle doesn’t travel. Not in TV. Not in advocacy. Not in life.

Fortunately, Disney has reversed course—but not because they suddenly remembered the First Amendment. No, the reversal came after overwhelming backlash from Hollywood, ex-presidents, comedians, writers’ guilds, advertisers, and the outrage of the subscription-buying general public

The consensus among pundits is that Disney’s reversal was a reluctant but necessary response to overwhelming public and industry pressure; and the episode is being held up as a cautionary tale about the fragility of free expression in the current media landscape.

What This Means for Nonprofit Leaders

If Bob Iger were running a nonprofit, he might’ve played the game differently. Because in the nonprofit world, your platform isn’t made of shareholder equity, ad slots, and affiliate contracts. It’s made of:

• Donor trust
• Community reputation
• Mission clarity
• And your ability to speak truth when it’s uncomfortable

But just like Iger, many nonprofits are in danger of folding—not out of cowardice, but because they’re trapped.

If your budget depends on two foundation grants and three major donors, you’re not an executive—you’re a tenant. And your lease has a speech clause. When that major donor calls you and says, “Advocacy? Fine. But not that advocacy,  not in this election year, and certainly not if it calls out the practices of that company I invest in.”

And what do you do?  You preempt the mission and muzzle the message.  You fold.

Diversify or Be Domesticated

Here’s the brutal truth: if you want freedom to speak, you need freedom to walk away.   Walk away from donors who want compliance instead of courage. Walk away from grants that require strategic silence. Walk away from board members who think your job is to keep them comfortable.  But, you can’t walk away without what Grandma Craver called “F***k You money.” And that precious resources comes from diversification.

I realize it may may be late in the game to focus on this, but better late than never.

Start now:

• Build monthly giving programs for predictable, unrestricted revenue.
• Launch crowdfunding campaigns to expand your base.
• Develop earned income streams not beholden to anyone’s politics.
• Cultivate partnerships rooted in shared values—not donor vanity.

Yes, sector-wide donor counts have dropped… and “yes”, more money is coming from fewer, wealthier sources… and yes, that concentration of fewer-but-larger gifts have made many look good on paper but feel nervous in today’s political climate. That’s the trap.

Maybe the fewer-but-larger-gifts strategy is working for now, but when the controversial moment comes—and it will—you’ll probably hear some major donors say: “That’s my piece on the chessboard. Don’t touch it.”   That’s when you’ll realize: you don’t have a platform. You have a permission slip.

Build the Platform They Can’t Take

Bob Iger folded because he had little structural room to maneuver. But you? You can make room. Your fiduciary duty is not to shareholders—it’s to the people you serve, the mission you’re obligated to protect, your donors and the community that counts on your voice when no one else will speak up.

Don’t let fear of IRS audits or grant reviews or major donor emails silence you before the opposition even knocks. Don’t self-preempt. No one shows up for silence, but many will show up—and give generously—for truth– If you give them the chance.

Start building.

Roger