Project Oasis

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#ProjectOasis #IndependentMedia #Newsletter

6- Know why you exist

A clear reason why your survival matters—to society, your audience, and partners—is essential for growth, investment, and internal alignment.

5- Balance revenue streams intentionally

Telegram aims for a 50/50 split between user revenue and advertising/B2B.
Sustainability comes from diversification—not dependency.

4- Design products for your most loyal users

They targeted committed readers and analyzed what subscribers actually read.

Subscription logic is different from traffic logic.

3- Don’t hurry to launch subscriptions

Telegram introduced subscriptions after building reach and a reader base. They prepared for a long time and studied models existing in similar countries in the region.

2- Focus on quality rather than quantity

They didn’t have resources to chase clicks—so they didn’t. Focusing on depth instead of volume protected them when the virality model started collapsing.

1- Compete by being meaningfully different

Telegram launched in a saturated market. Instead of copying what others were doing, they focused on longform and investigative journalism.

How do you grow revenue without compromising editorial independence?

📩 In our latest Sustainable Connections, #Telegram 🇭🇷 shares how they make it work.

6 key takeaways 👇

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...

💰Most non-profit media rely on grants as their main revenue source.
For-profit outlets? Advertising leads the way.

This is part of what Global Project Oasis reveals about media sustainability.
Explore the data 👉 globalprojectoasis.org

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This newsletter will give you monthly insights from digital native media around the world. We explore cutting-edge topics that shape the media landscape, from diversity and gender to innovative business models.

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6- Invest in journalism and people

Republik's 50-strong team is not only paid above the average for the Swiss media industry, but they pay an equal wage to all employees.

5- Find new ways to build trust

Republik offers cheaper subscriptions for people under 30. But from day one it has also had a pay-as-you-can model.

4- Keep the conversation going

In a media landscape flooded with AI-generated noise, email lets Republik do something simple and rare: answer. And they put real effort into making sure they reply to emails.

3- Turn email into innovation

The team has launched email ‘classes’—structured courses that use journalism as a learning tool. A recent class on reducing dependence on Big Tech drew 8,000 signups in one week.

2- Experiment without fear

Republik once leaned on constantly changing social platforms, but they decided to move to email, which has stayed solid, to share their newsletter.

1- Let your community in

Republik was launched with a record-breaking crowdfunding campaign and a built-in community from day one, sparking a mission-driven effort to create a different kind of media.

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Last month we took a deep look at @republik.ch, an independent, reader-owned, advertising-free digital outlet from Switzerland 🇨🇭 that proves a different world—and different journalism—is possible.

What can we learn from them? 👇

🌎✨ Happy holidays! In 2026, we look forward to continuing this work together to strengthen independent digital media around the world.

We are deeply thankful to the media leaders, researchers, and partners who shared their knowledge, time, and commitment to this collective effort. Your work is essential to ensuring independent journalism can thrive worldwide.

Throughout 2025, we continued mapping—and deepening our understanding of—the global landscape of independent digital media; highlighting diverse voices, strengthening connections across the world, and generating insights to support a more resilient digital media ecosystem.

As we wrap up the year, the Project Oasis team reflects with gratitude on a season of learning, collaboration, and growth 👇

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This month we delved into Gênero e Número 🇧🇷, a Rio de Janeiro-based media platform that connects data, gender, and social impact 👇

Thank you #GIJC25 for the space to bring our findings closer to the digital media ecosystem.

Explore more at: globalprojectoasis.org

“Or even an outlet like @disclose.ngo in our panel, who made an impact template, was willing to share that with others.” - @sannebreimer.bsky.social

When asked about what our community should know about this conversation, Sanne said: “There are a lot of similar challenges out there but the landscape of digital native media is very collaborative. People are eager to share what they learned.”

One of the central messages was that there isn’t just one way to build an audience willing to pay for journalism. The speakers also emphasized the importance of fostering real conversations with the audience and being transparent.

During the panel, which explored concrete strategies for turning readers into paying subscribers or members, Sanne presented findings and case studies from #GlobalProjectOasis, our research effort to map independent digital media organizations, news creators and publishers in-exile around the world.

🌎 #ProjectOasis at the Global Investigative Journalism Conference!

@sannebreimer.bsky.social, Regional Research Manager for Project Oasis, was a part of “Building an Audience that Values — and Pays For — Investigative Work” at the 14th Global Investigative Journalism Conference in Kuala Lumpur 👇