Media Viability
Trusted news sources saw a surge in demand during the COVID-19 crisis, but independent journalism continues to face significant challenges, especially to its financial independence and sustainability. Indeed, even as it spurred larger audiences for some outlets, the pandemic delivered a massive blow to news media’s already shaky economic foundations, amplifying advertising revenue drops, job losses, and newsroom closures.
Pluralistic, independent journalism—the kind that favours public interest over political, commercial, or factional agendas—is in danger and can no longer be taken for granted. New policies and measures are urgently needed to safeguard it.
Media viability requires that the “overall economic and business environment provide conditions conducive for independent media,” together with a political and social environment that enables journalism to perform its role as a public good.
Information as a public good
The Windhoek+30 Declaration commemorates the continued relevance of the 1991 Windhoek Declaration as a catalyst for action to promote free, independent, and pluralistic media. Adopted during World Press Freedom Day 2021 and approved by UNESCO’s General Conference on 18 November 2021, the Windhoek+30 Declaration calls attention to three new challenges in the effort to guarantee information as a public good:
- the economic viability of journalism;
- transparency of digital platforms;
- and the need to improve media and information literacy among citizens.
World Trends Report 2020/2021 - Journalism as a public good
"We all benefit from having accurate truthful reporting"
The 2021/2022 global report of the flagship UNESCO series World Trends in Freedom of Expression and Media Development highlights trends in media viability within the wider framework of “journalism as public good”. The findings are grounded in data-driven analysis, conducted by UNESCO in partnership with Data-Pop Alliance, of trends in media freedom, pluralism, independence, and the safety of journalists, and supplemented by original research by Economist Impact.
Media viability on the ground
To better understand the challenges facing media viability at every level and begin to implement proposed solutions, UNESCO and its partners selected ten countries for in-depth research and consultations.
These countries—Brazil, El Salvador, Indonesia, Jamaica, Lebanon, Namibia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Senegal, and Tunisia—represent a wide variety in size, population, language, market structure, and legal environments around freedom of expression and access to information. For each, UNESCO and its partners have collected detailed data, examined the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on news media, and consulted with local stakeholders about possible solutions at national and outlet levels.
