Did The Daily D Violate Tax Laws?

On January 26th, the Daily Dartmouth endorsed John Edwards for President of the United States. This, however, may run afoul of federal laws governing 501(c)3 not-for-profit organizations; according to its website, “The [Daily] Dartmouth is owned and published by The Dartmouth, Inc., a student-run nonprofit corporation.”

The United States Code is fairly explicit in this regard: a 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization “does not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distributing of statements), any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office.” According to a memorandum from the Internal Revenue Service entitled “Charities May Not Engage in Political Campaign Activities,” this code prohibits organizations maintaining the 501(c)3 designation from endorsing candidates for political office; violators are subject to stiff fines.

If someone with more knowledge of tax law can weigh in, I would be grateful.