Adapting to Survive: How Exiled Media Lead Innovation

November 21, 2024
News

A lot has been said about the global crisis in journalism and media. 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. The resulting disruption of what was once considered truth, as well as the media’s difficulties to adapt to the new realms of social media and to the changing media consumption habits of younger audiences, have raised pressing questions about how to save independent journalism.

However, for many exiled media outlets around the world, much of this isn’t breaking news but rather a reality they have already adapted to. The constant need to innovate their content, channels, formats, and technologies in response to new restrictions and circumstances has given rise to unconventional business models. These innovative approaches not only strengthen exiled media but could also serve as an inspiration for the evolution of journalism worldwide.

CHANNEL DIVERSIFICATION & AUDIENCE REACH

“Disruption requires adjustment. But adjustment doesn’t mean to compromise on our values and principles. It is an adjustment in our approach. We must come up with creative solutions to a) advance our increasing difficulty in access to information and b) ensure the Afghan people are informed and empowered through affordable means of content consumption.”

Lotfullah Najafizada, Amu TV (Afghanistan)

The fate that exiled media share with all other media is the growing irrelevance of traditional distribution channels and formats. Yet exiled media, who rely on establishing new communication pathways with their audiences, have a competitive advantage in this area as well. To make their content available to people in their home countries and bypass blockages and censorship, they must be present on every available platform. This also allows them to adapt quickly to shifting user habits and technological trends, ensuring they remain relevant in a fast-changing media landscape.

Former television stations such as Nicaragua’s 100% Noticias and Russia’s TV Rain faced the sudden loss of their entire production infrastructures when forced into exile. Despite these setbacks, both channels continued to broadcast via YouTube and produce shorter information bits tailored for social media, achieving notable success. And despite the constant looming threat of a YouTube ban – Russia already experiments with slowdowns – both media outlets were able to maintain audience engagement.

However, digital platforms are not a universal solution. For exiled South Sudanese outlet Radio Tamazuj, shortwave radio broadcasting emerged as the only viable method to bypass censorship while reaching rural populations in Sudan and South Sudan, where fewer than 30% have internet access. Globally, more than 33% of the population remains offline, with the majority living in rural regions. In such areas, shortwave radio continues to serve as a vital source of information.

IDENTIFYING NICHES & AUDIENCE NEEDS

“The foundation of any coherent business model for media organizations lies in understanding who your target audience is. In the Syrian context, this task becomes especially complex. Syrians living under regime control face one reality, while those in refugee camps in Turkey, Jordan, or Lebanon experience another. And Syrians building new lives in different European countries again face their own set of struggles. This is the challenge – balancing the breadth of representation with the depth of engagement in a way that remains meaningful to all Syrians, wherever they may be.”

Sara Ajlyakin, Al-Jumhuriya Collective (Syria)

Understanding the sometimes-peculiar needs of your (potential) target audiences is a key factor in remaining vibrant and successful. All too often, media outlets focus on well-educated, urban readers, while a significant part of the respective population either lives in rural areas or simply doesn’t belong to or identify with this group. For exiled media, audiences are not just harder to reach but often also highly fragmented due to the political situation in their respective home countries.

The media project Mostmedia, founded by exiled journalists from Belarus, has transformed this conflict into a business model. Mostmedia (from the Belarusian word most, meaning “bridge”) aims to create a link between the host country, Poland, and the numerous Belarusian exiles living there. At the beginning of the project in 2022, a coworking space was established in the Polish city of Białystok. It quickly became the epicenter of Belarusian exiles and a meeting point for all city residents. In terms of content, Mostmedia regularly published how-to guides on navigating life in Poland – such as finding housing or understanding local laws – as well as articles exploring the historical intersections of the two countries.

While Mostmedia focuses more on the diaspora, most Belarusian exile media outlets still aim to reach the civilian population within the country. A significant number of them produce content in Belarusian rather than Russian. Although speaking Belarusian is not officially prohibited, the Belarusian government actively suppresses the language in favor of Russian. Yet, 60% of the population considers Belarusian their native language. Therefore, prominent exiled media outlets such as European Radio for Belarus, Nasha Niva and Zerkalo are prioritizing coverage in Belarusian.

The exiled Myanmar media outlet The Frontier, on the other hand, focuses on target groups crucial for building subscriptions and securing funding: diplomats, CEOs, business owners, NGO leaders, academics, and journalists. Its tiered subscription model for in-depth content and exclusive features generates revenue while still providing free access to regular reporting for the public. However, The Frontier is experimenting with various models to diversify its income sources and reduce dependence on external funding. For example, a membership model is being used to foster a community around the outlet.

COLLABORATION INSTEAD OF COMPETITION

“Today’s media landscape is increasingly shaped by the competitiveness brought on by social media platforms. In contrast, Radio Sakharov is dedicated to fostering collaboration and cooperation. We see ourselves as an aggregator, redirecting listeners to podcasts, collectives, and artists whose work has been blocked, censored or removed from other platforms. By working together, we can reach broader audiences.”

Polina Filippova, Radio Sakharov (Russia)

Earlier this year, the German independent newsroom CORRECTIV and the Russian podcast platform Radio Sakharov – both of which base their business model on collaboration rather than competition – set out to create a membership and community platform tailored specifically to the needs of exiled media. Leveraging the already-existing open-source platform beabee, the team added features to enhance user security in countries like Russia and enable (anonymous) engagement more effectively.

Sharing expertise within exiled communities is also becoming increasingly common in Latin America, where at least 300 journalists have fled their home countries in recent years. To support other exiled media outlets, José Nieves, founder of the exiled Cuban platform El Toque, created the five-episode video podcast Hablando en Plata (“Speaking in Dollars”). In the podcast, Nieves identifies 10 different business models used by Latin American media in exile.

Overall, the impact of kinship within exiled media communities has proven to be enormous. It not only strengthens efforts for joint advocacy work but also empowers the community as a whole. This was clearly demonstrated by the exiled Russian news site Meduza in 2022, when subscriber payments from Russia were cut off due to sanctions, almost causing the outlet to go bankrupt. However, through a successful crowdfunding campaign in partnership with the German media outlet Krautreporter, Meduza was saved in less than a week.

OUT OF THE BOX APPROACHES

“There are always ways to develop your media business and generate revenue, even in a crisis. You just have to be open-minded, curious, and innovative. Try no matter what, and try again when there is a problem.”

Exiled Journalist (Myanmar)

It’s an amusing fact that it’s often not the excellent journalistic content that generates revenue, but rather games, puzzles, or recipes. But the exiled Russian media outlet 7×7 demonstrates that entertainment and content do not necessarily have to contradict each other. They have developed a role-playing game about how to respond to military conscription in Russia. The game operates via a game constructor on Telegram and can be adapted to different topics. While the game itself is free, the underlying technology can be scaled and sold to other interested media companies, enabling them to use it for their own content.

Another example of leveraging unconventional ideas to boost relevance is the exiled Cuban media outlet El Toque. The Cuban government has fixed the Cuban peso to the U.S. dollar, which creates a discrepancy between the official rate and the rate that foreign currencies actually sell for on the informal market. Rather than pulling up the anchored rate, most businesses instead show the AI-powered exchange rate published daily on El Toque, which has increased their website traffic by 900%.

Less unconventional yet financially viable business models include offering translation services, founding complementary book publishing houses, or creating a Public Service Announcement (PSA) initiative. While the former was a direct response to the lack of information during the COVID-19 pandemic in Myanmar, targeting broad audiences across the entire country, the establishment of a book publishing house by the exiled Russian outlet Meduza focused on the same audience already reading the newspaper. Surprisingly, this has already become profitable – perhaps because it is much harder to delete a book than a website.

TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATIONS

“We are technologically cut off from our audience, and we must fight against this. We have long prepared for the blockade of our website and other distribution channels; this has been a tradition for years. Two or three times a year, we come together and imagine the worst-case scenarios that could happen. And then, for each scenario, we develop an action plan.”

Galina Timchenko, Meduza (Russia)

When it comes to technology, security is essential for exiled Russian media. As a result, many of them provide their audiences with customized technological solutions. Because the Russian government continuously blocks VPN services to restrict access to independent content, both the exiled Russian journal Bumaga and the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta.Europe have successfully – and even profitably – launched their own. The latter’s VPNovaya enables readers to become administrators of a local VPN that, thanks to its decentralized structure, is almost impossible to block.

A similarly decentralized approach is being pursued in Hong Kong, where journalistic content is shared via blockchain. Unlike social media platforms, which governments can easily regulate or even shut down, an immutable blockchain is truly censorship-proof because no individual or entity has the power to control it. Within a blockchain, vital documents, pictures, videos, articles, and audio can live on forever.

The exiled Belarusian sports publication Tribuna was among the first to be blocked in 2020 and was later labeled ‘extremist’ by the Belarusian Ministry of Information. Due to the threat of possible prosecution, audience engagement has been decreasing ever since. One of the key platforms for the publication now is an app that allows users to access content without a VPN and offers more direct forms of engagement, such as push notifications and personalized calendars for updates on key events and matches throughout the season.

CONCLUSION

“There is no recipe for sustainability. There is no single model and that is what I have learned the most in recent years. The model is the sum of alternatives.”

José Nieves, El Toque (Cuba)

In times of repression and political backlashes, the developments that force hundreds of media outlets into exile are far from isolated events. The autocratic toolkit for suppressing and prosecuting independent journalism now serves as a blueprint for authoritarian regimes thriving across the globe. With democracy in a state of persistent decline and established media trapped in a doom loop of distrust, independent media is under threat.

Yet, as a German saying goes: Where there is danger, salvation also grows. It is therefore hardly surprising that the very media outlets forced to leave their home countries due to persecution have developed some of the most effective strategies to counter digital repression, censorship, and propaganda, placing them at the forefront of media innovation.

Rethinking business models, channels, and formats is not just a matter of monetization – it’s about survival. It’s about staying alive, relevant, and accessible to target audiences. And, with hope and perseverance, these efforts will – fingers crossed – ultimately pay off and bear democratic fruit in the future.

JX Fund – European Fund for Journalism in Exile