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Warren Buffett Tops Slate 60 List of Biggest Charitable Donations

Warren Buffett Tops Slate 60 List of Biggest Charitable Donations

Published 02-16-07

Submitted by Slate Magazine

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Slate, the daily Internet magazine, today announced that Warren E. Buffett tops the Slate 60 list with the largest charitable donation in history. Buffett pledged $36.4 billion in 2006 to charitable foundations including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Other notable names on the annual list, compiled by The Chronicle of Philanthropy, include #6 David Rockefeller with $252 million, #9 Mayor Michael Bloomberg with $165 million, #18 Mort Zuckerman with $100 million, #31 George Soros with $60 million and #35 Oprah Winfrey with $58.3 million. The full list can be found at www.slate.com.

"The smallest charitable donation on the Slate 60 list has grown from $10 million in 1996 to $30 million in 2006," said Jacob Weisberg, Editor, Slate. "To me, that growth reinforces the importance of a list like this. It encourages the wealthy to do more, and inspires the rest of us to give what we can."

In addition to publishing the list, Slate is launching a searchable database of Slate 60 honorees from the past eleven years. Nearly 700 donors can be sorted by donor name, recipient, or the amount pledged. In addition, the Slate 60 will now be an interactive list that allows readers to click on a donor name or recipient to see the complete database results for that particular name or place.

"We have seen an increased interest in the Slate 60 in recent years, especially during the Slate 60 Conference we held last November, and an explosion in innovative philanthropy," said Cliff Sloan, Publisher, Slate. "That excitement is why we have decided to hold a second Slate 60 conference later this year at the William J. Clinton Presidential Library."

The first conference, held at the William J. Clinton Presidential Library in November 2006, and co-sponsored by Slate Magazine, the Clinton Foundation and the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service, featured speakers including former President Bill Clinton, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Bill Gates Sr., Steve Case, Ted Turner, Justin Rockefeller, Larry Page of Google and more. The second annual Slate 6O Conference on Innovative Philanthropy will be held on October 21 and 22, 2OO7 and will again be co-sponsored by Slate Magazine, the Clinton Foundation and the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service.

Top 10 Donors in 2006:

1. Warren E. Buffett, $36.4 billion
(Note: Buffett is on the Board of Directors of the
Washington Post Company, parent company of Slate.)
2. Herbert M. and Marion O. Sandler, $1.3 billion
3. Bernard A. and Barbro Osher, $723.2 million
4. Jim Joseph, $500 million (bequest)
5. Hector Guy and Doris Di Stefano, $264 million (bequest)
6. David Rockefeller, $252 million
7. Mary Joan Palevsky, $212.8 million (bequest)
8. T. Boone Pickens, $171.5 million
9. Michael R. Bloomberg, $165 million
10. Lorry I. Lokey, $163 million

CITGO is the exclusive advertiser on Slate on Friday, February 16, 2007, the day of the Slate 60 announcement.

About the Slate 60:
The Slate 60 attempts to fuse two essential but conflicting aspects of the American character: generosity and competitiveness. So, it's not surprising that the inspiration for the list came from a man rich in both qualities, Ted Turner. In 1996, Slate editor Michael Kinsley was struck by remarks Turner made in an interview with Maureen Dowd: The CNN founder bemoaned the influence of the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans, saying it discouraged the wealthy from giving away their money for fear of slipping down the rankings. Turner suggested that a list of charitable contributions could inspire rich Americans to compete in a more beneficial way. Kinsley thought such a list would be an important contribution to American journalism and civic life, and launched the list in 1996, Slate's first year in existence. In 2000, Slate partnered with the Chronicle of Philanthropy, who now compiles the data for the list. For more: http://www.slate.com/id/2136385/

About Slate Magazine:
Slate Magazine is an award-winning Web site that offers fresh angles on stories in the news and innovative entertainment coverage. Slate won the 2006 and 2005 EPpy awards for Best Internet News Service (over 1 million monthly visitors) and the 2005 EPpy award for Best Internet Entertainment Service (over 1 million monthly visitors). Slate can be found on the Web at www.slate.com and is owned by The Washington Post Company. Slate attracts over five million unique visitors each month.

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