Reference - the European Independent Media Circle

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📣 Announcing Dataharvest 2026! Our call for proposals is open, and conference developments revealed...

We've collected all the important info you need about our European Investigative Journalism Conference in one place.
#Dataharvest #EIJC26
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What a privilege to be attending my second Global Investigative Journalism Conference, this time in Kuala Lumpur🇲🇾 #GIJC2025 representing @reportfortheworld.bsky.social & @referencecircle.bsky.social

The Loop Through interviews with members of the Reference Circle, we share best practice and experiences in a pioneering cross-border exchange of how to handle key business challenges. We hear how the media…

🎧 Need something to listen to this weekend?

The Loop podcast, from the Journalism Value Project, goes behind the scenes of Europe's independent journalism teams.

🎙️ We hear how they were founded, build communities, and pursue sustainability.

Listen now: journalismvalueproject.eu/loop/

✏️ The deadline for #CA25 fellowship applications is coming up! Midnight (CET) on 23 June 2025.

Find out more and apply: climatearena.eu/budapest-202...

Podcast alert! https:/linkcuts.org/xgpfbsfo
New Loop episode: Johanna Weidtmann, manager of Reflekt, the first independent non-profit research team in Switzerland, talks about the national media landscape, why readers lost trust, and why funding independent media is not as easy as one might think.

How to secure a healthy ecosystem of public interest journalism in Europe? The Journalism Value Project presented an analysis of this yesterday at the IJF in Perugia. "Public interest journalism is more needed than ever," said Peter Matjašič, one of the main authors. https:/linkcuts.org/cj4ihbpr

What do Europe's public service media need? The Journalism Value Project has researched the answer and launches a white-paper with recommendations tonight at the International Journalism Festival in Perugia. Take a sneak peak here!

SHAPING THE FUTURE OF JOURNALISM - Where are Europe's public interest media going, and what are their needs to survive? The Journalism Value Project has documented the state of the sector and launches a white-paper with the conclusions Friday at the IJF in Perugia https:/linkcuts.org/arxkv45i

Podcast alert! lnkd.in/ducBhqj8

This week, The Loop talks to Joanna Krawczyk, director of Correctiv.Europe, a network of 350 European media and journalists. Krawczyk tells how Correctiv.Europe can help the members publish data-driven stories on European topics, focused on the local audience.

Podcast alert! shorturl.at/qDev9

Dutch non-profit Follow the Money has no less than 45 000 subscribers. They have refined the way of getting people from the first click on a story to become subscribers. Hear how they have grown to have 45 employees and publish in two languages.

Podcast alert!
https:/linkcuts.org/ui6nzchh

This week, The Loop talks to French Disclose’s journalist Pierre Leibovici about building resilience against state persecution after reporting on the arms trade and intelligence cooperation with authoritarian regimes - and how the audience supports them.

🗣️ Don’t miss it—happening in less than 2 hours!
Join us for a dynamic discussion on whistleblowing and public interest journalism with leading experts. We'll explore how to expose corruption and demand accountability. Register now! eu01web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

Only 2 days left! ⏳

Seminar: Whistleblowing & Journalism

Join the Journalism Value Project to explore whistleblowing’s risks, challenges, and impact on journalism in their quest to expose corruption and defend democracy.

📅 Monday, 27 Jan, 16:00 CET
👉 Register: https://buff.ly/3PIFjrR

Podcast alert! linkcuts.com/0sc209to

This week, The Loop talks to Brigitte Alfter, director of Arena for Journalism in Europe, about creating infrastructure for collaborative journalism. The Loop is part of the Journalism Value Project.

💡 Seminar: Whistleblowing & Journalism

Join the Journalism Value Project for a free online seminar exploring the risks, challenges, and transformative impact of #whistleblowing on #journalism.

📅 When: Monday, 27 Jan, 16:00 CET

👉 Register here: https://buff.ly/3PIFjrR

How does whistleblowing promote public interest journalism? Join experts @vladaradomirov, @VigjilencaAbazi, Simona Levi (@X_net_), Anna Myers (@whistleblowing), & Peter Matjašič (@investigate_eu) on 27 JAN, 16:00 CET. Info: bit.ly/3CiQLHs

How does whistleblowing promote journalism in the public interest? Join this event on 27 JAN at 16:00 CET with top experts including Vladimir Radomirović, Vigjilenca Abazi, Simona Levi from @@xnet-red.bsky.social, Anna Myers from @winnetwork.bsky.social & @petermat.bsky.social bit.ly/3CiQLHs%F0%9...

Ostro’s editor-in-chief Anuška Delić on training future investigative journalists The Journalism Value Loop · Episode

Podcast alert! open.spotify.com/episode/2b3U...

The Loop visits Anuška Delić, founder and editor-in-chief of Oštro, a Slovenia-based investigative journalism project.
Oštro trains young journalists with fact-checking, but in the toxic media atmosphere, journalism comes with attacks and threats.

Podcast alert meshfor.com/3e7j03s1!
Inside Story in Athens was established after the Greek financial crisis and people were deeply distrustful of the media. It is mainly based on subscriptions, and founder and Publisher Dimitris Xenakis talks about engaging with readers.

Looking ahead: the 𝗝𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗺 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 sets the foundation for a 2025 whitepaper.

The whitepaper will present recommendations to funders and policymakers to bolster independent media and ensure their role in supporting democracy.

📖 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲: t.ly/apcW1

The Journalism Value Report: Mapping the State of Public Interest Journalism in Europe The Journalism Value Report published today shows how important the European independent public interest media are for investigative journalism. The report is based on answers from 174 newsrooms from ...

This report is part of the 𝗝𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗺 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁, a collaborative effort involving independent media organizations.

The project aims to strengthen public interest media and foster more effective support across Europe.

Read more about the project here: t.ly/Ue0p3

Key findings:

🕵️ Two-thirds of newsrooms prioritize investigative journalism.
💰 Local media face significant financial challenges, with many relying on less than six months of operational funding.
📊 Core funding and capacity-building programs are vital to sustainability.

📢 The 𝗝𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗺 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 has been published!

The report - made by @netzwerkrecherche.org - provides a comprehensive look at 🇪🇺 i͟n͟d͟e͟p͟e͟n͟d͟e͟n͟t͟ ͟p͟u͟b͟l͟i͟c͟ ͟i͟n͟t͟e͟r͟e͟s͟t͟ ͟m͟e͟d͟i͟a͟ ͟s͟e͟c͟t͟o͟r͟, highlighting funding models and i͟n͟v͟e͟s͟t͟i͟g͟a͟t͟i͟v͟e͟ ͟r͟e͟p͟o͟r͟t͟i͟n͟g͟’s role.

🗺️ Explore the 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 and 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗽 here: t.ly/zTGpL

🎙️In this week's episode, we put the spotlight on
Elisabetta Tola, co-founder and president at Facta, an Italian nonprofit organization dedicated to investigative and data journalism across the Mediterranean region.

referencecircle.eu/wp-admin/pos...

"No oligarchs. No paywall. Just your donations and our work". With this slogan on their website, @zuzanavlasata.bsky.social and @jakubpat.bsky.social at Deník Referendum set the tone for their work.

referencecircle.eu/episode-12-d...

🎙 Podcast alert:

"It was a jump in the dark. But four years later, we are growing more and more and having success that we weren’t even hoping for at the start," Cecilia Anesi explains, co-founder and manager of #IrpiMedia.

referencecircle.eu?page_id=925&...

🎙️Podcast alert: “Being a fully remote team is in the organizations’ nature because we want to cover Europe from the bottom-up,” explains @petermat.bsky.social Executive Director at Investigate Europe.

🎧Listen to the newest podcast of The Loop 🔽

referencecircle.eu/episode-10-i...

Episode 9: The Bureau of Investigative Journalism editor Franz Wild on leadership resilience and impact – Reference In this episode, we talk to Franz Wild, editor of The Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ), a non-profit newsroom based in the city of Shakespeare, London. Wild joined TBIJ in 2020 after working ...

🎙️Podcast alert: “We try to fill a really critical space in society and the democratic system and to create accountability,” explains @wildfranz.bsky.social, editor at
@tbij.bsky.social in London.

🎧Listen to the newest podcast of The Loop 🔽

referencecircle.eu/episode-9-th...

Episode 8: Mensagem de Lisboa editor-in-chief Catarina Carvalho on independence and community engagement – Reference In this episode we talk to Catarina Carvalho, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Mensagem de Lisboa, a community-focused newsroom in the heart of Lisbon, Portugal. Catarina was the Executive Editor of ...

🎙 Weekend listening: Mensagem de Lisboa is a local newsroom which aims to create empathy through knowledge.

Stories are “the social cement of the city”- Editor-in-Chief Catarina Carvalho. @catcar.bsky.social tells us about Mensagem's approach to local journalism.

referencecircle.eu/episode-8-me...

Episode 7: The Bristol Cable operations ninja Will Franklin on membership and sociocracy – Reference On this episode we speak to Will Franklin, Operations Lead at the Bristol Cable, a community-owned cooperative newspaper based in Bristol, UK. Founded by volunteers in 2014, this grassroots project ha...

🎙 Weekend listening: There aren't many democratic, community-owned newsrooms out there. But @TheBristolCable is one.

In this episode, we speak to the Cable about the lessons they've learned from 10 years of building a democratic newsroom.

referencecircle.eu/episode-7-th...