Schlagwort: Independent Journalism

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16 Steps to Authoritarianism

OC Media is an independent media platform focused on news, issues, analysis and backgrounds from the Caucasus region. Based in Tbilisi, they obviously have a tireless watch on political shifts and protests in Georgia.

This week, they published an excellent write-up on the legislative changes introduced and passed by Georgia’s ruling party since 2023, which have pushed the country further down an authoritarian path.

Here’s where you can find the article and if you like what you read, consider supporting their effort to become the first member-funded media platform in the Caucasus.

People gathered outside the Georgian Parliament for an overnight sit-in on the eve of the third reading of the so-called ‚Russian Law‘, May 2024.
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4000 Members Needed to Stay Afloat

In 2023, I had the opportunity to meet Mariam Nikuradze, an award-winning journalist and co-founder of the Georgian independent media platform OC Media, at their office in Tbilisi. She shared the history of OC Media, their focus on reporting issues concerning the Caucasus region, the political situation in Georgia, and the challenges they were already facing due to increasing pressure on independent journalism in the country.

Fast forward to early 2025, erratic developments in U.S. politics led to a standstill in major funding sources for this independent journalism outlet, threatening its very existence. In response, they launched a campaign to gain new subscribers, aiming to sustain their work independently—free from external financial influence and accountable only to their readers and supporters.

According to co-founder Dominik K. Cagara, they need 4,000 members out of approximately 450,000 active users of the platform. I’m one of them … will you join too?

Mariam Nikuradze, co-founder of OC Media, Tbilisi, May 2023