FFRF’s “Secular Spotlight” welcomes back YouTuber Taylor Leigh (The Antibot) for a new episode tracking the rising trend of religious influencers — and how they enrich themselves.
Can Christian influencers run ministries, monetize YouTube channels, sell products and still claim nonprofit, tax-exempt status? FFRF Deputy Legal Director Liz Cavell and FFRF Staff Attorney Sammi Lawrence join The Antibot to unpack the legal questions surrounding the rise of faith-based influencer businesses.
“The temptation is great for these self-employed missionary types to just say, ‘Hey, I’m a religious entity, I can just not pay taxes and take my chances,’” Cavell begins. “That risk calculus has gotten, I think, a lot friendlier to the exploiters because we have an administration and IRS that’s signaling they’re not interested in enforcing a lot of requirements against religious organizations.”
You can catch this episode of “Secular Spotlight” on FFRF’s YouTube channel, as well as by watching on your smart TV after downloading FFRF’s free app, Freethought TV, which also highlights FFRF’s other video programming. Our recent episodes include a guest appearance by YouTube content creator Tim Whitaker to examine the religious and political rally “Rededicate 250”, and three FFRF staff members discussing their work to counter a religious organization that is devouring public school students’ education hours. Make sure you’re subscribed to FFRF’s YouTube channel for all the latest updates!
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to defending the constitutional principle of separation between state and church and educating the public on matters relating to nontheism. With more than 41,000 members, FFRF is the largest association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics and humanists) in North America. For more information, visit ffrf.org.
