This report was prepared for meeting at the Perugia International Journalism Festival in 2019, consider how to establish a Global Fund for Investigative Journalism, either as a free-standing trust fund or foundation or as a sub-fund attached to other international funding organizations.
The meeting was convened by the Organised Crime Corruption and Reporting Project (OCCRP) and Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD).
Because corruption is global, confounding national and regional responses, journalists often work in networks, and across borders, to challenge these abuses of power. The commercial marketplace for sustaining this kind of journalism is completely inadequate. However, existing national and regional funding mechanisms also fail to sustain the watchdogs who are our front line of defense against injustice and impunity.
Working together, rather than on parallel tracks to create multiple global funds that compete for the same money, is necessary. The timing, potential, and urgent need for a journalism fund are clear.
The report examines the practices used by media development implementers and donors, both governmental and private, to spur investigative reporting in emerging democracies.
This survey of key drivers and actors in global investigative journalism suggests ways to best support and professionalize investigative journalism in developing and transitioning countries.
