About
A love letter to public goods, wrapped in a picture of someone’s cat.
The James Cowan Smith story
In 1919, a wealthy Scotsman named James Cowan Smith left over £52,000 to the National Galleries of Scotland on one condition: they must permanently display a painting of his dog. That painting still hangs in the Scottish National Gallery today, alongside a plaque that explains what else they were able to buy with the money.
Rich people used to spend their money on eccentric public goods for the sake of image and legacy. Now there’s an entire industry catering to the ultra-wealthy: megayachts, private islands, political influence. The public gets nothing. The rich become isolated, resented by the public, and resentful in return.
NotAYacht is a statement website that modernizes the idea that the wealthy can buy positive public perception through patronage. Anyone can donate any amount of money, upload a picture of their pet, and we use that money to buy ads that support ethical, independent news outlets (starting with NPR). The ad features their pet’s photo and links to a dedicated page on this site telling the pet’s story and explaining the project.
Every dollar funds independent journalism. Every pet gets immortalized.
Where the money goes
All donations go to NPR via their self-serve sponsorship portal — no Google middleman. NPR’s minimum campaign is $100, so:
- $100+ donations become solo NPR campaigns. Your pet gets all ~16,669 impressions.
- Sub-$100 donations pool together. When the pool hits $100, a batch campaign with up to 20 pet creatives goes live on NPR.
Every dollar’s journey is documented: Stripe processing fees, BuySellAds’ cut, NPR’s share, total impressions delivered. Radical transparency is part of the project.
Who we support
NotAYacht only buys ads from outlets that meet at least one of the following:
- Nonprofit or trust-owned
- Employee or cooperative-owned
- Independently owned (not hedge fund or private equity)
- Member of INN, the American Journalism Project, or LION Publishers
Who we don’t
We will never place ads on outlets owned by:
- Gannett / USA Today Co.
- Alden Global Capital / MediaNews Group / Digital First Media
- Chatham Asset Management (McClatchy papers)
- Sinclair Broadcast Group
- Lee Enterprises
- Any hedge fund, PE firm, or billionaire with political conflicts of interest