With knowledge of political processes and local elections participation dwindling, karla Magazin aims to reach the entire democratic spectrum by providing enough information for people to choose their form of political engagement.

Its mission is the promotion of arts, culture and the "formation of people and opinion". As such, karla wants to act as an example of how non-profit journalism can work locally, whilst still paying its staff fairly and fulfilling its role as the fourth estate.

To do so, it offers journalism and media literacy training for schools, universities, and other organisations. Furthermore, open debate formats and panel discussions bring people of varied political affiliations together to discuss and build their city's future. Ultimately, it aims to strengthen the urban social fabric and bring more transparency and legitimacy to local political processes.

The well-founded, constructive, and sometimes entertaining formats focus on topical debates rather than daily news. They maintain a solid editorial value set focused on humanity, justice, and non-discrimination. During the year, the audience can choose several topics, such as the energy crisis, to be discussed.

Besides that, karla has also begun experimenting with crowdsourcing.

Grants and paid subscriptions sustain karla's work. The decision to implement a subscription-based model - including a subsidised rate - to access the podcast, the website and the newsletter is part of its mission to emphasise the importance of valuing quality, well-researched journalism. Karla Magazin's initial crowdfunding raised over 100,000 euros, the highest sum for a German local journalism initiative.

It also offers a detailed event calendar to which the public can actively contribute.

In December 2023, karla Magazin released a statement about ceasing its operations, saying "Our financing model is not sustainable for 2024 and we see no chance of keeping karla alive".

Last updated: December 2023

Location:
Konstanz, Germany
Year the organisation started publishing:
2022
Languages:
German
Type of coverage:
Local
Area of coverage:
Konstanz

Content

Type of content produced by theme:
Science
Entertainment and culture
Education
Lifestyle
Environment
Politics
Society and human rights
Journalism genres:
Essays
Interviews and reporting
Information services
Opinion
Investigative journalism
Narrative journalism
Reviews
Journalism coverage types and techniques:
Crowdsourcing
Solutions or constructive journalism
Engaged, community-driven or participatory journalism
Explanatory journalism
Collaborative journalism
Curated/aggregated content
Data journalism
Tech platforms and other mediums used:
Website
Newsletter
Social media platforms
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
LinkedIn
Podcast
Primary tech platform or medium used to publish content:
Website

Audience and reach

Social media audience

Twitter number of followers:
846
Instagram number of followers:
808

Management and team

Founders

Female:
3
Male:
5
Founders:
Saskia Baumgartner, Thomas Buck, Anna Kulp, Michael Lünstroth, Peter Magulski, Birgit Niederhafner, Nik Volz, Moritz Schneider
Directors:
Nik Volz, Anna Kulp, Moritz Schneider

Team

Full-time employees:
5
Part-time employees:
1
Freelancers or consultants:
12
Volunteers:
None

Business structure and revenue sources

Organisation tax status:
Non-profit
All revenue sources reported by media leaders:
Grants
Grants from private donor organisations
Grants or investment from philanthropic organisations
Consultancy services
Training services for journalists
Training services for other clients
Audience support / reader revenue
Memberships
Crowdfunding campaigns
Event ticket sales
The primary source of revenue reported by media leaders:
Crowdfunding campaigns
The second most important revenue source reported:
Grants or investment from philanthropic organisations

Transparency

Publishes information about annual revenue
Publishes the names of donors
Has an ethics policy / manual
Publishes an ethics policy / manual
Has a data privacy policy
Publishes a data privacy policy
Has a whistleblower policy
Publishes a whistleblower policy
Doesn’t have a complaints policy
Doesn’t publish a complaints policy
Doesn’t have a sexual harassment or institutional violence policy
Is signed up to a press regulator, trust initiative, or part of a press association
Publishes up to date information about its team
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