JX Fund – European Fund for Journalism in Exile

Exiled journalist Rana Rahimpour writes on contacting her parents in Iran during the war. She argues that for many Iranians, this war has not brought clarity but deepened uncertainty, especially about what any postwar settlement might look like. While some once believed that external pressure might weaken the regime, something Trump had promised, there is now a growing fear that the opposite could happen.

In this article, some of the hundreds of journalists and defenders of human and land rights have told Open Democracy how their lives have changed since the state of emergency was introduced. Some remain in El Salvador, defiant in their resistance despite fearing for their and their families’ lives amid state-led persecution.

This portrait is about the media platform Amal, which is produced by refugee and exiled journalists in Germany and provides news in languages like Arabic, Persian, and Ukrainian. It shows how these journalists, often unable to work in traditional media due to language barriers, find new opportunities to continue their profession and serve migrant communities.

Media makers forced into exile share candid insights on continuing independent work from abroad in this ASC MediaRisk panel discussion. Contributors reflect on safety challenges, digital threats, audience engagement and sustaining journalistic identity while displaced. Their perspectives highlight resilience and the complex realities of reporting beyond borders.

Exiled Afghan journalists are keeping critical reporting alive through Amu TV and its flagship show Jan-e-Gap, broadcasting from studios in the U.S., Canada, France, and Turkey. Host Sadaf Rahimi and co-founders Lotfullah Najafizada and Sami Mahdi connect millions of Afghan viewers to open debate, exposing abuses and giving a voice to those silenced under the Taliban.

Paraguayan journalist Jazmín Acuña, co-founder of El Surtidor, reflects on building impactful journalism in challenging environments. She discusses how independent media navigate political pressure, engage audiences and measure real-world impact. Her insights highlight how journalists across Latin America adapt their work under constraints that often push reporters toward exile or cross-border collaboration.

Authoritarian repression is forcing civic actors out of their countries, yet the support available to continue their work from abroad remains limited and inconsistent. This analysis argues for a comprehensive, systematic framework to help relocated civil society leaders maintain influence, access funding and navigate digital and legal barriers as they work overseas.

Nicaragua’s historic paper La Prensa celebrates its centenary amid ongoing repression, marking 100 years of reporting that now includes operating its newsroom in exile. The anniversary reflects its long struggle for press freedom, the impact of state pressure on independent media and the resilience of journalists continuing to publish from abroad.

New News CN is a solo independent news outlet launched amid China’s tightening press environment. Its founder – operating largely from outside the firewall – aims to carve out an independent Chinese‑language voice, reporting on human rights struggles and censorship while navigating severe restrictions that have forced many journalists into exile or freelance work.

This Coda Story feature shares four powerful accounts of journalists forced into exile from Venezuela, Russia, Cuba and Afghanistan, showing how repression and censorship uproot reporters and reshape their work. Despite separation from home, they continue to report – adapting methods and confronting the personal costs of exile and resilience.

Myanmar‑focused outlet People’s Spring – launched in exile after the 2021 coup – has found that digital platforms can be a viable revenue source even under challenging conditions. By mid‑2025, income from Facebook, YouTube and audience membership helped cover about half its operating costs, offering a rare model of financial resilience for independent media in exile.

This first‑person account follows a journalist with a disability as they build an independent media project in exile, navigating barriers to access, technology and audience engagement. It highlights how physical and structural challenges intersect with repression and displacement, offering insight into resilience, innovation and inclusion among exiled media practitioners.

The Cuban government has blocked independent news outlet El Toque, further shrinking information space for citizens already cut off from uncensored reporting. The move highlights ongoing efforts by authorities to suppress critical journalism, deepen digital censorship, and limit access to diverse sources – complicating efforts by exiled and independent Cuban journalists to reach audiences.

In Costa Rica’s capital San José, a hidden TV station called Nicaragua Actual is broadcasting news aimed at audiences inside Nicaragua, where independent reporting is widely suppressed. Operating discreetly from exile, its team produces and distributes content to counter state censorship and provide alternative information to people facing media repression at home.

This Reuters Institute report shows how Cuban journalists based abroad continue covering their homeland despite strict censorship and information blackouts. Through remote sourcing, social media, clandestine networks and verification techniques, exiled reporters work to pierce state control and deliver news to audiences inside and outside Cuba, revealing both innovation and the obstacles they face.

Journalist Alma Guillermoprieto reflects on turning conflict and upheaval into lasting narratives, drawing on decades reporting across Latin America and beyond. She speaks to the emotional terrain of covering repression, displacement and forced migration, and how deep immersion and empathy help independent and exiled journalists connect fractured moments into cohesive, meaningful journalism.

This comprehensive guide from Deutsche Welle Akademie explores strategies for exiled media outlets to remain financially viable, true to their mission and influential. Drawing on examples and expert advice, it covers sustainability models, audience engagement, digital tools, safety and collaboration – offering a practical roadmap for independent journalism operating from abroad.

The rollback of press freedom programs, as well as the loss of some funding from European nations refocused on security closer to home, has left exiled media outlets from Myanmar, Belarus, Afghanistan, South Sudan, and other countries that lack a free press facing the same question: When decades-long donors pull out, what comes next?