"Local Media for Democracy (LM4D) was a pilot 18-month programme co-funded by the European Union. The aim of LM4D was to address news deserts inside EU countries. While the barrier to launch news production is low, media around the globe are struggling to survive because of changing audience consumption patterns and structural changes to the business model of journalism. The programme had the overall objective of reviving the EU’s local media landscape through measures that would build resilience, independence, and sustainability by improving the capacity of local media in terms of innovation, business strategies and audience engagement. LM4D was implemented by a consortium that included the European Federation of Journalists, Centre of Media Pluralism and Media Freedom (CMPF), International Media Support (IMS) and Journalismfund Europe. Grants were managed and administered by Journalismfund Europe, with IMS contributing to pre-application and grant management processes, as well as running the capacity development support. The European Federation of Journalists – LM4D consortium lead –coordinated the programme’s implementation and supported it with public outreach and advocacy efforts. The programme ran from February 2023 to July 2024.
The LM4D programme included extensive research on news deserts in Europe, direct funding to local, regional and community media in the EU 27 member states, and capacity building to the selected grantees. The LM4D’s two calls generated 215 project applications from the 22 EU member states. The high interest in the programme signaled the strong need for funding by local media and the urgency of the news desert problem across Europe. LM4D awarded almost 1.2 million Euro and provided a capacity-building programme to 42 grantees from 17 countries, including 28 grantees in Central and Eastern Europe. Each grantee implemented a project over the period of six-seven months. The supported media and non-profit organisations were of varying sizes, forms, and experiences. They included traditional local newspapers, radio stations, cutting-edge digital outlets and startups, news websites, niche and investigative journalism media outlets, and professional newsrooms as well as less experienced teams of journalists and community media activists.
A key principle was localisation. Localisation refers to the set of reforms, actions, and behavioural changes that are undertaken to ensure efforts are lead by local actors, strengthen local systems, and respond to local communities. This report is primarily aimed at two target groups: those working in the media development sector and media practitioners. It includes a deep dive into what was done, how and why. It is, therefore, a useful resource to guide future programming, to showcase innovative possibilities based on experience, and to highlight services aimed at overcoming news deserts." (Introduction)