Project Oasis

📩 Whether you’re a seasoned industry leader, contemplating the launch of a new media organization, looking for opportunities, or keen on investing in quality journalism, #SustainableConnections is for you.

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Let’s talk about newsletters! Newsletters have emerged as a popular publication format for connecting with audiences on a personal level. Join us in this engaging conversation about the strategies that have worked, particularly for a deeper understanding of the digital media business landscape. With Peter Erdelyi, Priti Patnaik, Sham Jaff and Moreno Osório. Hosted by Sanne Breimer and Lela Vujanić. Do not miss our events and conversations. Subscribe to our Sustainable Connections newsletter here: https://bit.ly/3YOByFo

📩✨ Rewatch the “Let’s talk about newsletters” webinar!

You’ll learn about this popular publication format for connecting with audiences on a personal level, the strategies that have worked, and the digital media business landscape 👇

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🟠 Want to learn more about Mašina?

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🗨️ @markomiletic.bsky.social, co-founder and editor-in-chief, explains that as a media outlet that emerged from an activist background, they try to serve the public interest—”which for us means representing social groups excluded from mainstream media.”

Mašina tries to fill the vacuum of public interest media while carving its own space.

It focuses on labor rights, trade union struggles, feminism and environmental protection—not only reporting on these issues, but also staying in active contact with the groups leading them.

📩🇷🇸 The last edition of Sustainable Connections explores the work of Mašina, a media organization based in Belgrade that has been accompanying the student movement in Serbia since it began 7 months ago 👇

YouTube video by SembraMedia Let’s talk about youth! Engagement strategies in digital media

📌 Youth disengagement from news media has been a worrisome trend. But digital natives are testing new approaches that sometimes go against common trends.

Watch our discussion on youth engagement and monetization in the digital native media landscape to learn more 👇

youtu.be/Zch4KSdxmbE?...

🔴 Want to learn more about Geneva Health Files?

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Priti founded the newsletter during the pandemic and was hoping to take things slower in 2025, but with the seismic changes in international health and development funding, the media outlet’s reporting has become a key source of insight for stakeholders navigating the global health ecosystem.

📩 In the last edition of Sustainable Connections we learn about @genevahealthfiles.bsky.social, a newsletter focused on global health, from its founder, @pritipatnaik.bsky.social 👇

YouTube video by SembraMedia Let’s Talk About Radical Transparency! And how it helps build trust in media

🤝 Trust is directly linked to financial sustainability—but how can the media build more trust?

Don’t miss this webinar to learn actionable insights from experts who shared their experiences on being transparent 👇

youtu.be/_hW2ICVtRZE?...

YouTube video by SembraMedia Rethinking journalism mental wellbeing

🧠🔍 Rewatch our conversation on mental wellbeing in journalism!

You’ll learn about the main challenges journalists face, what is being done to solve them, and what is possible beyond existing solutions 👇

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📩 Sustainable Connections is a newsletter about the world of independent digital native media.

Whether you’re an industry leader, contemplating the launch of a new media organization, looking for opportunities, or keen on investing in quality journalism, this newsletter is for you! 👉 bit.ly/48knuXc

YouTube video by SembraMedia Let’s talk about newsletters!

📩 Did you miss our conversation about newsletters? Watch it on YouTube!

You’ll learn about the strategies that have worked for this popular publication format and about the digital media business landscape 👇

youtu.be/5q5fTgk0nlY?...

🙏 Thanks for reading this far! If you want to dive deeper into the insights from Project Oasis:

📺 Watch the full panel on YouTube 👉 youtu.be/2Zz8lJ9Z0go

✨ We’re still in Perugia for the #IJF25 — stay tuned for more!

“There are also different correlations, for example, team structure and roles. The most substantial difference is that those with people in sales, technology, and business roles earn six times more than those who don’t have these roles.”

“Also, those who rely primarily on advertising for for-profits, or grants for nonprofits, tend to have a higher average revenue, though they employ other revenue streams like book publishing, individual donations, consultancies, and more.”

“Some insights related to revenue: most of the organizations in our directory are non-profit, around 50% of them, though for-profit organizations tend to earn more on average.”

MUTANTE - Home

“Two great examples from Latin America: Mutante (Colombia) engages audiences and builds online communities, while El Surti (Paraguay) goes beyond the screens. Both were mapped by SembraMedia alongside European outlets.”
🌐 mutante.org
🌐 elsurti.com

“Similar to Mašina, many media in our directory focus on human rights, society, migration, gender, and feminism. They engage audiences in online discussions and, as digital natives, many choose to go beyond the screens.”

“Mašina covers the Serbian student protests from within, engaging directly with students and protesters. By organizing public panels and discussions, they redefine public-interest media by being part of the movements they cover.”
www.masina.rs/eng/home/

Question: What are the struggles of independent media?

Lela shared an example of Mašina, a media outlet from Serbia covering the largest student protests in the country’s history, with universities and high schools blocked nationwide.

“The digital media sector in Europe is dynamic and vibrant, ranging from small startups run by volunteers to successful operations earning millions. Many were started by ‘reluctant entrepreneurs’ — journalists who created media to escape media capture and serve underserved communities.”

Global Project Oasis Explore the world of independent digital media with Project Oasis 🌎. Search more than 3,000 media profiles across 68 countries to discover global trends, opportunities, and challenges. Check out the r...

For the latest findings and global data, check out the directory and report of Global Project Oasis — our research project that includes over 65 countries worldwide.

👉 bit.ly/3XY6iUK

Executive Summary Against the backdrop of what many have called a “media extinction event”, caused by the pandemic, economic instability, disinformation and war, a growing number of new kinds of independent news media ...

Check out the insights based on our analysis of the media outlets included in the directory from Europe, and the information media leaders provided during interviews with our research team.

👉 bit.ly/49wlHQa

“Based on their answers, we extracted the data, analyzed it, and produced insights about correlations between revenue and team structure, among other findings that I’ll share more about later.”

“Our main product is based on in depth interviews with media leaders. We asked them many questions basically everything: about their mission, editorial strategy, content production, journalism techniques, audiences, and revenue models. We listed 30 different revenue streams for them to choose from.”

"We interpreted this independence primarily as financial independence, meaning no affiliation with the state, political parties, religious groups, or corporate ownership."

What criteria did the selected media organizations have to meet?

"When I say 'selected media organizations', I mean that these media had to meet certain criteria: primarily, they needed to produce original public-interest content and be independent."

How was this research done?

"I really have to give credit to our researchers. We had a stellar team of national researchers for each of these 44 countries, who conducted in-depth interviews with the media founders of the selected media organizations."