Thread by @risj_oxford

1. Today we are launching the Independent News Emergency Relief Coordination #INERC, an effort to help funders willing and able to provide financial support for independent news media better understand where need is greatest and coordinate their efforts reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/risj-review/in…

2. #Covid_19 means many independent news media face catastrophic declines in revenues and consequently significant cost-cutting or closing down. This is bad for accountability, and undermines news media's ability to keep public informed.

📱More here reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/infodemic-how-…

3. Here's what #INERC aspires to do:
-collect data to identify areas of greatest need
advise funders as to where they can make the greatest possible difference
-provide optional guidelines for those considering stepping up to provide funding help for independent news media

4. #INERC is a temporary initiative. It directly connects several major funders, networks organizing independent news media, media development orgs, and research capacity. It supplements important long-term work done by @MediaFunders #JournalismFundersForum @ICFJ @TRF and others

5. Founding members include @bbcmediaaction, @CIMA_Media, @Facebook @Google @macfound, @MediaGFMD, @NewspaperWorld, and @luminategroup, who initiated #INERC through #IFPIM conversations. We welcome other funders joining as new members on basis of support from existing members

6. In the coming weeks, we will work with #INERC members and others to collect data to better understand the crisis. Data will be confidential and anonymized, only available to @risj_oxford researchers. We will publish key findings, and use the research to help funders coordinate

7. #INERC’s ambition is to help guide tens/hundreds of millions of $ to those independent news media who need the help the most during the coronavirus crisis. If you are a funder who can step up, please join us

More on #INERC here
reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/independent-ne…