JX Fund – European Fund for Journalism in Exile

Online violence is often only considered a digital safety issue, but the impact of online abuse on journalists’ mental health is significant and has serious consequences for them, their work, and for press freedom. This is particularly true for women and diverse journalists who are disproportionately targeted by online attacks.

The autocratic playbook of abusing or introducing economic laws to curtail journalists and newsrooms by attacking their credibility and financial viability is sharply outlined in a new report by WAN-IFRA and the IAPA.

Cross-border investigative journalism exposes reporters to unique mental health risks. A new study highlights systemic challenges, including legal threats, remote work stress, and lack of professional support. „Most still rely on individual coping strategies, leaving many systemic challenges to be faced alone,“ says writer and researcher Belle de Jong.

What has happened to the Belarusian media and journalists since the day of the presidential elections — from 9 August 2020 until today — is an unprecedented case of the eradication of independent journalism in a single country, in the centre of Europe, in the 21st century.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has launched a new online training course for exiled journalists, in partnership with the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). The free e-learning course, which covers areas like UK media law, public affairs, writing styles and an introduction to the UK media industry, will help journalists forced to relocate to continue reporting.

Threats, repression, conflict, and unrest: across the world, these and other factors are pushing journalists into exile in record numbers. In a striking development, exiled or soon-to-be exiled journalists now make up more than half of the people CPJ assists. While exile is a global issue, three countries — Russia, Iran, and Afghanistan — stand out as places from which journalists flee only to face further insecurity. Below, find case studies on each country.

Small newsrooms need to focus on the importance of data use more than ever. But they often face numerous hurdles to this kind of work, including a lack of funding, limited human resources, and outdated thinking about what constitutes traditional journalism.

Journalists today are often primary targets of online harassment, trolling, doxxing, hacking and spyware. In addition to abuse from anonymous users online, they are also subject to surveillance, intimidation and persecution by powerful entities like large corporations, legal and local authorities, or the state machinery at large.

For journalists living in exile, emotional stress and trauma cannot be discounted. Leaving one’s home is never easy, and the mental toll is more excruciating when forced to flee. Here are three levels of support to consider when looking after your mental health as a journalist in exile.

The International Press Institute has urged Poland’s Foreign Ministry to reconsider its decision to cut the financing of Belsat, a flagship Belarusian-language broadcaster operating within Poland’s public television service (TVP), amid growing concern about the survival of exiled Belarusian media. With the budget slashed, Belsat is not alone in being in a precarious state.

In 2023, female journalists faced a disproportionate number of verbal attacks, especially online. The MFRR partners call for collaborative efforts to protect their rights and foster a society free from discrimination.

On 4 March the New York Times publisher A. G. Sulzberger delivered the 2024 Reuters Memorial Lecture. Here’s the transcript of his talk.

Paving the Way is a compilation of resources designed to assist journalists settling in Germany. You can discover a collection of resources curated by the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) with the support of Reporters Without Borders Germany (RSF Germany), aimed at helping journalists navigate their way in Germany.

Recent research suggests that, in general, about half of the public can’t tell the difference between real and AI-generated imagery, and that voters cannot reliably detect speech deepfakes. Here’s a step-by-step process for analyzing potential audio deepfakes.

They left Belarus to work in freedom as journalists. But three years after the disputed 2020 election independent Belarusian journalists abroad are struggling to survive financially.

Belarusian independent journalists have been through a lot since 2020. Many journalists have been forced into exile. A lot of media workers today are in need of mental health support. Belarusian Journalists share their experiences coping with trauma.

Emergency visa mechanisms in six countries: Restrictive policies hinder international protection, leaving endangered journalists often trapped in the very countries where they face persecution.

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the leader of democratic Belarus, states that Lukashenko’s assault on free speech continues, with exiled media facing relentless repression, leading to arrests and trials.