Opportunity Title: OPEN CALL FOR FUNDING PROPOSALS Audience First: Investing in Strategies to Better Serve the Public

Call for Grant Applications

Grants awarded through this call are intended to provide funding to enable plans for reaching and engaging new and existing audiences.

Grant Details

• Total Available Funding: At least $5 million globally.
• Individual Grant Size: Approximately $250,000 USD.
• Grant Duration: 24 months.

Purpose

The grants are designed to support media organizations in producing and disseminating public interest journalism, particularly those in financial difficulty due to local market conditions. The aim is to ensure geographic balance across focus countries.

Eligibility Criteria

To apply for and receive funding, media organizations must meet the following criteria:

1. Legal Status:

   • Must be an established legal entity.
   • Cannot be a publicly listed and/or traded company.
   • Cannot be a subsidiary of a larger organization or corporation with significant activities outside media.
   • Cannot be majority-owned by an active political actor.

2. Operational Focus:

   • Must meet the International Fund’s definition of public interest media.
   • Must focus on publishing original, public interest content.

3. Location:

   • Must operate in one or more of the 40 eligible countries (see FAQs for the full list).

4. Financials:

   • Must have total annual costs of at least $300,000 USD in the most recent fiscal year.
   • Must have existed and continuously published for more than three years.
   • Must not have distributed dividends to shareholders in the last three years.
   • Must have a net income below 5% of total income (average over three years) and a cash runway of less than 12 months.

These criteria apply only to this open call. The Fund aims to support a variety of organizations through future calls, proactive identification, and expressions of interest.

Audience Strategy

Eligible organizations must submit an audience strategy with their funding proposals. This strategy should include objectives and outcomes related to:

• Audience Discovery: Identifying and understanding new audience segments.
• Reach: Extending the organization's content to a broader audience.
• Engagement: Increasing the interaction and involvement of the audience with the content.

Organizations may aim to sustain their current reach and engagement or seek to expand and deepen them. Specific details on expectations and requirements for audience strategies are available in the FAQs and the application form.

Application Process

To apply, organizations should develop a detailed proposal taking into account the grant size and the criteria outlined. The proposal should highlight how the funding will help the organization reach and engage with new and existing audiences, with a clear and feasible audience strategy.

For more detailed information on the application process, eligibility, and expectations, refer to the FAQs and application form provided by the International Fund.