JX Fund – European Fund for Journalism in Exile

CONTEXT

BELARUSIAN MEDIA IN EXILE SINCE 2020

Following the crackdown on the independent media sector in the second half of 2021, most independent media left Belarus. It is estimated that at least 42 active independent media currently operate from exile (see definition and criteria), with at least 400 media workers who fled the country after 2020. Most of the Belarusian media in exile have found their new homes in Poland and Lithuania, from where they continue to serve Belarusian audiences.

While some of the media left the country due to the political repression of 2020, most of the teams fled in the second half of 2021. This was related to three main reasons. First, due to the physical pressure on journalists and media at the end of 2020, when several media workers were put behind bars for covering protests. Second, the crackdown on the largest independent media TUT.by (now defunct), coupled with the detention of its employees, followed by the hijacking of the Ryanair flight with the journalist Raman Pratasevich on board, which not only demonstrated the capacities of the regime to prosecute journalists but also put aviation above Belarus on hold. Thirdly, a practice of recognizing independent media as publishing “extremist materials” or being “extremist formations” has also prompted relocation. Starting in 2021, this measure was used to criminalize the production and consumption of independent reporting in Belarus.

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“Belarusian media have shown themselves to be resilient in exile, with few media projects being shut down. On the contrary, the rise in new projects since 2020 suggests a relatively vibrant sector.”

JX Fund, Silenced but Resilient – Belarusian Exiled Media Since the 2020 Revolution

FIGURES & TRENDS

MEDIA PROFILES

Belarusian independent media in exile are primarily focused on the national news agenda (38 out of 50 assessed), although close to a quarter work primarily on their region of origin. Media launches spiked during and after the 2020 protests, with 13 new outlets founded in 2020–2023. Many of the older outlets were also launched following large opposition protests to the regime, highlighting the sector’s consistent political engagement.

Given that Russian is the primary language for a majority of the population, most independent media in exile publish in this language. However, a disproportionate amount of media have decided to have Belarusian-language versions (often, but not exclusively, in parallel to a Russian-language one), with over half of media publishing in Belarusian, which is spoken by a quarter of the population (although this share is rising).

Media are primarily focused on politics, news and society, in terms of topics, primarily publishing classical-text based journalism. However, there is also a significant use of investigative, online broadcasting and audio journalism.

FIGURES & TRENDS

REACH & DISTRIBUTION

Independent media in exile continue to have a high level of consumption, as evidenced by the cumulative number of visits on the primary websites of outlets (due to the practice of using mirror sites, among others, this number may significantly undercount the actual volume of monthly traffic).

This does not necessarily translate into following media on social platforms, or liking posts, given that consumption of extremist materials or content produced by extremist formations can lead to administrative or criminal charges, respectively. As a result, many consumers try to avoid leaving traces of their media consumption habits either on public forums or on their phones, which can be assessed by law enforcement at random controls.

FIGURES & TRENDS

COMMUNITY

Prominent organisations working across the Belarusian media sector, helping carry out advocacy, organising collective actions, sharing learnings or insights, or providing research services.

• Belarusian Association of Journalists
• Press Club Belarus
• Digital Skills Coalition Belarus
• Media IQ Belarus

“Only media like us, who are working from exile right now, can give some truthful information about the political situation. No one inside can do this.”

Nastassia Rouda, Nasha Niva

EXPERT COMMENT

PERSPECTIVES & PREDICTIONS

The Independent Belarusian media sector in exile has experienced major transformations since 2020. The political crisis in the country and the external political decision of the Lukashenka regime substantiated the consequences for the media sector. The number of independent media in the country has significantly decreased due to censorship and repression, which resulted in dozens of media employees sentenced to prison terms and hundreds of journalists leaving the country.

To overcome censorship, several large independent media transferred their web pages to the clouds of Amazon and Google – the solution in practice prevents the Belarusian regime from blocking the webpages. Additionally, to continue reaching out to Belarusians, the independent media proposed new forms of content, such as multiple TikTok channels that cover news in the country.

As social media turned into the main source of new consumption for Belarusians, independent media face a challenge from the side of tech giants, such as Google, Meta, that prioritise content from state sources over independent media pages. To tackle that, the independent media continue to advocate for the support for their content distribution within the Belarusian informational space.

As the Belarusian expert Artyom Shraibman summarises: “Belarusian independent media have been agile in finding technical ways to minimise the effects of government attempts to block them. Taken together, these tools remain the most important source of free information for Belarusians, while the risks for individuals of accessing them is, in theory at least, relatively manageable.”

Despite the challenges posed by the Belarusian regime, the Belarusian independent media in exile have started to adapt their ways of working to the new circumstances and preserved a significant share of their audience, impacting the popularisation of the Belarusian language. At the same time, as the financial needs of the media in foreign countries increase, the pressure on media teams is also substantiated by a new financial model, leading to the outflow of media employees, and mental health issues.

Against the backdrop of organizational and external challenges, the Belarusian independent media, which have shown to survive over the so far harshest period of repression, require assistance from international stakeholders in advocating for their needs among private and public actors.

By Alesia Rudnik, Belarusian Political Scientist and Media Scholar

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