This report explores how independent digital media practitioners are adopting artificial intelligence (AI) and confronting the growing challenges of media viability within an increasingly volatile funding landscape. Public interest journalism that informs, protects, and strengthens public debate, remains essential to democratic participation and information integrity. Yet media workers worldwide continue to face mounting pressures.
While existing research has proposed pathways forward, much of it has centred on Global North perspectives, overlooking the realities of non-WEIRD contexts. This study fills that gap by examining media viability as defined by RNW Media: the ability of public interest and independent media to sustain financial health, uphold editorial independence, and build partnerships and movements that promote pluralistic, democratic information ecosystems, particularly in fragile and under-resourced settings.
Drawing on a survey of 28 media professionals from RNW Media’s Vine network and eight in-depth interviews with organizations working across Burundi, Lebanon, Kenya, Mali, Cuba, India, Yemen, Iraq, Syria, Palestine, and Europe, the report maps how financial models, editorial integrity, structural barriers, and technological innovation intersect. It also builds on insights from RNW Media’s earlier study, AI Adoption among Changemakers, which surveyed 124 practitioners.
The findings reveal that media viability is not only a financial or technological issue; it is equally organizational and cultural. From language limitations and algorithmic bias to AI adoption challenges and funder restrictions, the report highlights the key factors shaping the future of independent media in restrictive environments