Impact Investment for journalism: How News Organizations and Impact Financing Need to Come Together
Déjà passéJournalism is at a crossroads, facing collapsing business models and growing threats to democracy. Instead of trying to “save journalism” in the traditional sense, we must support resilient media organizations that fill critical information gaps. As advertising declines and philanthropic support reaches its limits, impact investing emerges as a powerful solution, aligning private capital with media innovation to foster democracy, social cohesion, and progress.
Journalism is a viable impact investment case—not by clinging to the mission of “saving journalism,” but by focusing on solving specific information gaps in communities.
Legacy media struggles with unprecedented challenges—disappearing business models, layoffs, and newsroom closures—our liberal democracy is simultaneously under attack: by fake news, hostile propaganda, right-wing populism, and the unknown implications of artificial intelligence.
There is no silver-bullet revenue model for journalism. Advertising is insufficient and often unhealthy. Membership models require scale and operational capacity. And while philanthropic funding has played a vital role, it is reaching its limits. If journalism is to thrive, not merely survive, we need new business models—and we need to finance their scale and resilience.
This panel discussion, part of Impact Days 2025 in Vienna, explores how we can empower a new generation of journalism startups with private capital—and why impact investing and media innovation are key to advancing social innovation and democracy.
The speakers for the panel include:
- Lot Carlier, Executive Director, Veronica / V-Ventures
- Peter Erdelyi, Founding Director, Center for Sustainable Media
- Martin Kotynek, Founding Director, Media Forward Fund
- Milo Tesselaar, Transformation Strategist and Founder, new – Strategy & Concepts
As John Palfrey, President of the MacArthur Foundation, put it:
“Whatever your first funding topic is: Journalism should be your second.”
For more information about the Impact Days in the Vienna City Hall, click here