Open, but not for free: perspectives for non-profit newsrooms

Notes from the Journalism Funders Forum’s Expert Circle in Düsseldorf

Eric Karstens
Sep 4, 2018 · 6 min read
Campfire Festival 2018. Photos: Adam Thomas, David Schraven, Eric Karstens.

“When I said that we were getting rid of the rules of the business, I didn’t mean that we were getting rid of the business.

This sentence summarises a key finding of the debate at the Journalism Funders Forum’s Expert Circle in Düsseldorf, Germany, on September 1st, 2018. The meeting took place as part of the Campfire Festival, a public journalism outreach event organised by non-profit investigative newsroom Correctiv.

Refusing the market logic

Perhaps most importantly, you are able to escape the market logic, which dictates that you focus on growing your audience, covering the most popular topics, producing contents non-stop, and cosying up to advertisers.

Finding the money

Assuming that, as one participant quipped, “at the end of the day, journalism is always losing money”, the key quandary, however, remains: Where to find the cash to run the non-profit newsroom?

The Matryoshka effect

Membership is one way to address this. The Düsseldorf group debated several examples where members contribute money and in exchange get some sort of stake in the news organisation.

Gaming the system?

The workshop concluded with a simulation game, which challenged participants to select a limited choice of staff and other resources they would prioritize as founders of a non-profit newsroom.


European Journalism Centre

Interviews, insights and opportunities from the European Journalism Centre.

Eric Karstens

Written by

Writer of technical prose. Interested in media, journalism, technology, and art. http://karstens.eu

European Journalism Centre

Interviews, insights and opportunities from the European Journalism Centre.

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