General Information About the Government Grant for Communication and News Media

The application period for the grant was from August 29th to October 12th 2023. The grant decisions have been made and given out as of January 2024.

Why is the grant given out?

According the the constitution, everyone has a freedom of expression. It includes the rights to express, publish and receive information and opinions without anyone preventing it in advance. The citizens have a need for trustworthy, right and timely about both national and local issues. Public discourse is essential for democratic decision-making and citizen-powered monitoring of the use of power.

For the entirety of the 2000´s has the media field face radical changes with the advancement of digitalisation. Multinational technology companies challenge traditional actors in terms of competition for ad revenue and audience interest. The transfer to online spaces has proved itself more challenging for small local newspapers than well-recognised nationally operating actors. Especially local and regional publications have a vital role in securing a functioning democracy.

Who is eligible?

The grant can be admitted for example to national, regional or local news-producing papers, online publications, radio and telvision channels. The news media has to cover a wide array of different topics and serve a wider public. Publications targeted to specific professions, hobbies or political parties are exluded.