London – The war between Ukraine and Russia has motivated Reporters Without Borders (RSF), together with the Rudolf Augstein Foundation and the Schöpflin Foundation, to launch an unprecedented support fund for journalists and media organizations in exile.
Among the first projects supported by the FX Fund is Novaya Gazeta Europe, the new version of Nobel Peace Prize-winning journalist Dmitry Muratov’s news portal opened in Europe. original website suspended operations in Russia because of the pressure.
The initiative welcomes the Perugia Declaration’s call to Ukraine for assistance to journalists covering the conflict in Eastern Europe by members and partners of the Global Forum for Media Development at the International Journalism Festival in Perugia, Italy, on 9 April.
Support for journalists exiled from Russia after the invasion of Ukraine
Since the start of the war in Ukraine in February, More than 150 journalists left Russia To escape the censorship and oppression of Vladimir Putin’s government.
Therefore, the first phase of the JX Fund is aimed at Russian and Belarusian media and media professionals.
Rather than supporting individual journalists, the mechanism aims to ensure the functioning of all newsrooms, as with the newspaper founded and managed by Muratov.
In early April, Novaya Gazeta Europe announced that it went live a few days after the Moscow-based original newspaper closed after receiving the second notice in a month from Russian telecom regulator Roskomnadzor.
Two Roskomnadzor notifications per year can lead to suspension of the media license. But the editor isn’t just on the new project, led by ex-journalists who were part of the team and left the country.
Journalist Kirill Martynov, editor-in-chief of Novaya Gazeta Europe, said the newspaper is “both legally and practically independent” from Russia’s Novaya Gazeta.
The newspaper’s Twitter account highlights the stars of the European flag. A pinned tweet highlights that the newspaper in Russia is “cancelled” when Russians and citizens of the world need it most.
❗️Russia essentially banned professional journalism. The Russian government “canceled” us when the Russian citizens and the entire world needed us most. https://t.co/8rWbwKc0JP
— Novaya Newspaper. Europe (@novayagazeta_en) 20 April 2022
But keeping up with the news will not be easy for Russian citizens unless they use tools to circumvent local censorship, such as social networks, for those who can access it.
On April 28, the newspaper reported on Twitter that the site was blocked on Russian soil for providing “unreliable information” about the war in Ukraine.
Russia’s censorship agency Roskomnadzor stated that our website was blocked due to ‘unreliable information’ about the Ukraine War.https://t.co/C7ggIhMZxO
— Novaya Newspaper. Europe (@novayagazeta_en) 29 April 2022
Enter the game. On the day the Novaya Gazetta closed in Russia, the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize winner and well-known critic of Putin, Muratov, said: attacked with a mixture of red paint and acetone during a train ride in the country.
The attack was attributed by US intelligence to agents of the Putin government.
(Photo: Playback/Twitter/novayagazeta_eu)
The FX Fund is designed to support media outlets and professionals quickly and flexibly, allowing journalists in exile to resume their work immediately after fleeing war or crisis zones.
In addition to Novaya Gazeta Europe, two independent Russian organizations will be supported by donations. Their names have not been given for security reasons.
RSF explains that while initially focusing on the situation of the Russian press, the JX Fund wants to create structures that will respond quickly to similar situations in other parts of the world.
More than €1.5 million (R$7.5 million) has already been raised, exceeding the global target of €3 million (R$7 million), according to the organisation.
“Securing the future of journalism is very important in the countries concerned. [envolvidos em conflitos]also abroad and even on other continents”, says RSF general secretary Christophe Deloire.
“If Russian journalism died, it would be a disaster for the people in Russia, whether they realize it or not, but also for European countries, their democratic institutions and societies.
The future of peace and democracy requires investigations and reports on the Russian regime and society, including exile if there is no other possibility. That is why we created this European fund.”
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Clearinghouse for sources that support journalism
In a statement, RSF says the JX Fund plans to act as a clearinghouse, meaning mediating relief offers and directing resources where they are most needed.
“This is to avoid wasting support, having only short-term effects, or accidentally duplicating efforts by different initiatives,” the French organization explains.
It has received contributions from various media and non-governmental organisations, including European funding, Correctiv research centre, PUBLIX House for Journalism and Democracy, media and science platform decoder, European Center for Press and Media Freedom (ECMPF). NGO Media Cooperation and Transition (MiCT), among others.
The JX Fund is working on the first three Russian projects it supports – all with journalists exiled because of the conflict in Ukraine.
The editorial teams of these tools, already spread across seven countries, have already planned ways to carry out their work in exile, and their concrete implementation and further development will now be subsidized by the fund.
Professionals will receive support from exile to creating sustainable media accessible from their home country.
“The RSF and its partners will commit to prioritizing a list of the most urgent relocations of journalists and family members seeking to transition to the EU in the coming weeks.”
The NGO said, “Applications will be made to the centers in order to identify the structures that can host the media-in-exile in the EU and to initiate the integration processes and services provided to these media”.
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Perugia Declaration for Ukraine
The Perugia Declaration for Ukraine, focusing on the need to support independent journalism in Ukraine, “condemns in the strongest possible terms Russia’s attacks on press freedom and freedom of expression in Ukraine”.
“The persecution, torture and killing of journalists is disgusting and needs to be stopped. Those responsible must be held accountable and brought to justice in accordance with national and international law.”
The declaration signed by more than 160 organizations and 130 people to date can be accessed at the following address: EnglishBelarusian, French, Ukrainian, Russian and Italian.
It calls for the following measures:
- Journalists and international media should provide Ukraine with additional protective equipment, especially for producers and translators working in the field with the international media.
“Open your doors to displaced journalists and newsrooms. Give them a place to work. Hire them if you can.”
- Public and private donors and funders of professional journalism should “increase and provide flexible financial support to media producing ethical and independent journalism” about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
- The European Union, its member states and all countries that care about freedom of expression and the right to access information should use it “to defend the rights of journalists and to ensure their civilian protection under international humanitarian law”.
- Technology, telecommunications and internet intermediaries and advertisers must “work with the media and journalism to identify, protect and promote independent and ethical journalism, fact-checking and media literacy efforts”.
They also work to prevent “automatic removal of journalistic content documenting evidence of international crimes of aggression, war crimes, crimes against humanity and other serious human rights violations.”
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source: Noticias
