Put security and viability first: Briefing UK co-chair of the Media Freedom Coalition

Funding journalism and making a clearer link between security and press freedom were our key messages delivered to the new UK co-chair of Media Freedom Coalition (MFC) Wednesday 4th March, 2026.

In a meeting with the British Under Secretary of State Chris Elmore, who is in charge of the media freedom portfolio of the Foreign Common and Development Office in Westminster, UK (FCDO), Dr Clare Cook – Head of Journalism and Media Viability at IMS – focused on journalism safety and media viability.

Along with other key experts from the press freedom sector, Dr Clare Cook called on the Minister to:

• Fill the political void with strategic leadership
• Make the link between security and press freedom clear
• Make the link between economic prosperity and press freedom clear
• To prioritise longer term holistic safety interventions not just individual case resolution.
• Focus on concrete deliverables already set out in the MFC work plan
• Maximise the opportunity as co-chair to use of the MFC consultative network and high-level panel leaning in on progress already made by Finland to nurture longer term strategic dialogue and discussion.
• To support and scale the Journalism Matters Campaign and activate advocacy in key promotional activities across the private sector, home office and Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
• To advocate for the value-add of journalism and increased funding to journalism within the EU Multiannual Financing Framework negotiations.

IMS called on the Minister to take a lead on supporting the Embassy Networks within given country contexts (about 13 at the moment) where they are important routes for connecting multistakeholder and multi level dialogue to push agenda change forward. Our work on National Safety Mechanism in the Philippines and Ethiopia are key blueprints.

The MFC can also lean into expertise from the media development sector to scale up work on blended finance, through business capacity development, new innovative financing, and new capital pathways.

Says Clare Cook: “As experts in the field, we welcome the opportunity to brief the Minister at a time of huge geopolitical and economic upheaval. Multiple, reinforcing crises are undermining information integrity globally and this is a critical opportunity for the UK to deliver strong leadership through the co-chair of the MFC, together with Finland.

“There is no single fix—the multitude of challenges to independent journalism and information integrity requires coordinated, long‑term, multi‑level action. But the message is clear: Journalism is not optional—it is core democratic infrastructure.

“We know journalism bears the cost of producing verified information, while value is extracted by dominant digital platforms. Without structural reform, journalism will not be financially viable. The economic foundations of journalism have collapsed. To have meaningful impact, journalism funding must increase substantially and sustainably.”

IMS is spearheading new modalities for working with blended capital to ensure more can be done while ODA levels fall globally. It is critical to crowd in non-ODA and commercial capital through innovative financing. We will continue to support the MFC working group with expert insights on new forms of funding and financing for journalism.”