Oops: Newseum & Freedom Forum Paid Out $1.4 Million In Bonuses In 08

In a year the Newseum laid off about 40 people, the museum and its parent nonprofit, Freedom Forum, paid $1.4 million in bonuses to its top employees, Gannett Blog reports. Freedom Forum chairman and CEO Charles Overby received a $375,000 bonus, bringing his total pay to almost $1 million, and the museum’s then-president received a $225,000 bonus.

The bonuses were contingent on “successful completion” of the Newseum’s new building, which is, indeed, completed, as well as deferred bonus amounts from past years.