JX Fund – European Fund for Journalism in Exile

The JX Fund, in collaboration with the Center for Sustainable Media and Gazzetta, is launching a transformative pilot program to provide venture support to seven exiled and independent media organizations. Media outlets from Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Russia, and Syria are eligible to apply.

The JX Fund invites established independent exiled media from Belarus to apply for financial support for securing sustainable operation in exile. The two open calls – one of which is organized in cooperation with International Fund for Public Interest Media (IFPIM) – aim to support media outlets of various sizes and capacities.

For three years, we’ve supported exiled media outlets from countries where independent journalism is no longer possible due to repression, persecution, and censorship. In a review article, we share key insights that have shaped our work and continue to guide our response to the evolving needs of exiled media.

Independent Nicaraguan media operate almost entirely from exile, with over 25 journalistic initiatives providing news coverage mostly from Costa Rica, Spain, and the U.S. The first mass relocation began in 2018, when the Ortega regime violently repressed protests. This included a brutal attack on the independent press, forcing many journalists into exile.

In times of shifting geopolitics and increasing challenges for independent journalism, supporting exiled media is more crucial than ever. Combining regional context, audience data, and nuanced insights, our country profiles on Afghanistan, Belarus, Nicaragua, Russia, and Syria highlight the critical role of exiled journalism in safeguarding truth under repressive regimes.

Whether a medium can survive in exile depends in most cases not only on whether it keeps up good work outside the country, but also on whether it is worthy of support in the eyes of large funding institutions. But who determines when a medium is worthy of support? What criteria can be used to evaluate exiled media and how can comparability be established without gray areas getting lost in the process?

With the increasing monopolization of information infrastructures on one side and targeted disinformation campaigns and propaganda by authoritarian regimes on the other, facts have become lonely things. However, for many exiled media outlets, this isn’t breaking news but rather a reality they have already adapted to. The constant need to innovate in response to new circumstances has given rise to unconventional business models.