51
Media in Exile
Since April 2022, the JX Fund has supported 51 media outlets in the process of getting back up and running in exile.
1,400
Journalists
With the support of the JX Fund, more than 1,400 journalists have been able to resume their work in exile.
25
Countries
The journalists of the supported media in exile work in more than 25 countries.
OUR ACHIEVEMENTS
- Since it was founded in April 2022, the JX Fund has supported 51 media outlets from Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine in rebuilding editorial structures.
- This support has allowed more than 1,400 journalists to resume their work in exile.
- The exiled journalists we support are working in more than 25 different countries.
- Support has been provided to well-known independent media who draw in large audiences, as well as to smaller local media outlets, and start-ups who focus more on reporting on civil and cultural issues. Maintaining a diverse spectrum of journalistic voices in exile, is of the utmost importance to the JX Fund.
- Within a few months of relaunching their operations in exile, supported media outlets have been able to reach sizeable audiences: we can point to more than 6 million subscribers on their YouTube channels, around 2.2 million on Telegram, and more than 50 million website visitors per month.
OUR MISSION
FOR PRESS FREEDOM AND FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
We strongly believe that the reporting of independent media is vital to preserving democracy, as well as a free and open society. A free press helps to hold public institutions accountable, to expose corruption and abuse of power, and to provide invaluable critical commentary on social, cultural, political, and economic processes. A free press is the bedrock of democratic discourse.
In an increasing number of countries, however, the media are restricted by state control, censorship, and repression. In many cases, journalists are no longer able to report freely and critically; they can face persecution and the threat of lengthy jail terms.
It is precisely in the places where independent media are repressed that they are needed the most. By supporting media in exile, we ensure that independent information continues to reach people in these countries. We believe that when exiled journalists are able to join forces and work together in editorial teams, not only can they present more nuanced views, these views also carry more weight. It remains vitally important in exile to preserve a multitude of voices in order to maintain a diverse civil society.
OUR VISION
TARGETED TEAMWORK
The JX Fund acts as an international clearing house for journalism in exile. We collate the various offers of help from private and institutional supporters, companies, publishers, and civil society initiatives and connect them to the respective needs of exiled media outlets. We pool the available resources and funds in order to distribute them efficiently and sustainably, targeting them towards the areas most in need. Together with partner organizations and expert advisors, we develop projects with the goal of filling gaps in the existing funding structure.
- WE BUILD BRIDGES: We help outlets to establish themselves in their country of exile, and to continue pursuing their vital journalistic work.
- WE IMPART KNOWLEDGE: We bring together diverse areas of experience and allow for the insight gained to flow into public discourse, as well as aiding in the development of concrete solutions.
- WE DRIVE DEVELOPMENT: We promote the dynamic development of flexible solutions that are tailored to the needs of media outlets in exile and can be adapted to shifting demands in the field.
- WE CONNECT STAKEHOLDERS: We act as a hub, bringing together all stakeholders to find the most effective solutions.
OUR TOOLS
THE FOUR PILLARS OF OUR WORK
To sustainably and efficiently develop an independent exile media landscape, the JX Fund employs various tools which are seamlessly integrated within the individual projects.
Expertise
The JX Fund monitors and analyzes global developments connected to journalism in exile. It collects expertise from international stakeholders – expertise that is regional, entrepreneurial, or related to media development – as well as initiating studies with the goal of finding relevant data, attaining insights, and making this knowledge accessible to the wider public.
Funding
The JX Fund pools financial resources and – through its various projects and partnerships – distributes these resources according to current need. In doing this, it utilizes public grants, institutional funding, and private donations. Because of its diverse sources of funding, the JX Fund is able to design flexible and unbureaucratic procedures that efficiently support media in exile.
Implementation
The JX Fund cooperates closely with media in exile and develops projects in collaboration with experienced partner organizations in order to close gaps in the funding structure and to come up with dynamic responses to needs which arise. These partner organizations contribute their expertise to the overall program, with many also contributing their years of relevant experience. The JX Fund ensures the seamless integration and interrelation of projects within a given program.
Communication
The JX Fund is continuously building an international skills platform for journalism in exile, for the promotion of expert analysis and the discussion of current research and perspectives. It also acts as an information point for the international public, providing insight into the relevance and impact of journalism in exile, as well as its significance for democratic developments worldwide.
SUPPORT US
PROMOTING JOURNALISM IN EXILE – HOW YOU CAN HELP
Exiled media outlets are confronted with numerous challenges. The JX Fund finances various proposals and projects that support independent media in different stages of exile.
This is how you can help:
Your donations support our work with media in exile. But you can also help in a more specific way: for example, by offering professional services and consulting, providing production structures, or offering advertising partnerships.
Would you like to donate, but still have some questions?
Are you interested in offering work equipment, space, or services?
Or would you like to become an advertiser for media in exile?
PRIVATE DONATIONS
From cameras to the financing of entire editorial structures: every euro donated goes directly to supporting media in exile. Not only that, it goes where it is needed most: one of the core tasks of the JX Fund is to respond to the current needs of media in exile through projects and support programs – in close coordination with the media outlets themselves, with our partner organizations, and in cooperation with external experts.
As a non-profit organization, we are happy to issue a receipt for any donations of 300 euro or more.
INSTITUTIONAL DONATIONS
Defending freedom of the press and information is an issue of the utmost urgency for many international institutions and foundations because it is the independent media which forms the basis for open debate within democratic societies. Supporting and promoting media organizations whose work in their home countries has been curtailed through repression therefore directly contributes to building and maintaining democracy.
Please contact us if your foundation or institution would like to support our work.
The founders
OUR STORY
COUNTERING THREATS TO PRESS FREEDOM: A NEW APPROACH
The start of the Russian war of aggression in 2022 and the accompanying tightening of Russian media laws have resulted in what is likely an unprecedented exodus of Russian media. But it is not just within Russia that journalists have faced difficulties to continue their work, there are also numerous Belarusian media organizations, some of whom had initially found refuge in Ukraine, who have once again been forced to flee – not to mention the devastating effects of the war for Ukrainian media organizations.
The JX Fund – European Fund for Journalism in Exile was established in April 2022 as an efficient means of countering this and similar crises worldwide, both now and in the future. It fills a gap in the available support for journalists and media in exile – a gap which has all too often occurred in the period between a sudden refugee crisis and media structures being rebuilt.
The JX Fund was jointly initiated by Reporters Without Borders, the Schöpflin Foundation, and the Rudolf Augstein Foundation, who all remain associated as shareholders. The JX Fund is a non-profit limited liability company, with an advisory board of up to 9 members. Its operations are financed through both public and private funds.
The JX Fund exists to support the sustainable development of an independent exile media landscape during periods of war and crisis, fostering a diversity of independent voices in their countries of origin.