ANEM invites citizens to donate to the Solidarity Fund for Independent Media.
The Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) invites on citizens to redirect a portion of the one-time aid of 6,000 dinars, for which applications are currently open, to independent media and to turn the attempt to purchase electoral votes into an investment in freedom. It is especially important to support local and independent newsrooms that, despite pressures and financial difficulties, continue to operate in the public interest, particularly in smaller communities across Serbia. Therefore, ANEM is launching a Solidarity Fund for Independent Media, aimed at supporting the newsrooms that need assistance the most.
Whenever something important happens – independent media is there. At protests. At blockades. At elections. In the mountains and in the burning sandpits, in flooded villages, in poisoned mines. They are there when citizens seek answers, when institutions remain silent and the majority turns a blind eye.
But the cost of professional journalism today is too high. Pressures, attacks, threats, and lawsuits. Many editorial offices barely manage to pay salaries, cover electricity bills, rent, and equipment costs. Under pressure and in danger while reporting, many media outlets are fighting for survival.
It is hardest for small editorial offices in the interior of Serbia. They are losing sources of funding, running out of advertisers, while state money is directed to compliant media. Professional and independent editorial offices are left to fend for themselves – and ultimately, they shut down.
And when a local media outlet goes silent, the only voice that asks where the money from the municipal budget has gone disappears. There is no one to report on the problems in your street, neighborhood, or local community. The guardian of truth vanishes when others choose to turn a blind eye. An informational desert remains, quickly filled with disinformation and propaganda.
Supporting local media is not just support for journalists. It is a fight for our right to the truth. So, when you receive 6,000 dinars from the budget these days, turn the attempt to buy your vote into an investment in freedom. Without independent media, there is no truth; without our support, there are no independent media.
Donate to the Solidarity Fund for Independent Media.
Please contribute what you can to:
- Account number: 265-1100310006448-08
- Bank: Raiffeisen Bank a.d.
- Purpose of the payment: Donation to local media
The collected funds will be directed where help is most needed – to independent media that require support to continue operating and informing their communities.
Because independent media have been there for us when it was the hardest.
Now it is our turn to be there for them.
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