openDemocracy aims to challenge power, educate citizens, and encourage a democratic debate around social and political issues. Its multimedia content exposes abuses and misinformation and tackles the global backlash against democracy and human rights through investigative journalism, analysis, and comments.

The coverage is international and available in four languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Russian.

As a well-established international independent media organisation that has been operating since 2001, the newsroom encompasses various reporting projects, publishing critical and in-depth coverage of diverse issues.

The 50.50 project reports on gender, sexuality, and social justice worldwide. It tracks the international backlash against women and LGBTIQ+ rights and spotlights stories of feminist resistance.

The Beyond Trafficking and Slavery project helps to understand forced labour, trafficking, and slavery by combining the rigour of academic scholarship with the clarity of journalism.

The openDemocracy Latin America project, democraciaAbierta, published the series Rainforest Defenders. This project combines video and photography with reportage to centre the voices and perspectives of communities in the Amazon battling to defend their way of life.

openDemocracy fosters pluralism and stimulates the growth of a more inclusive international media ecosystem, building skills and capacity among groups underrepresented in journalism, such as women, LGBTIQ+ people, and people of colour. The organisation also runs the fellowship Tracking the Backlash, a six-month professional experience for young women and LGBTIQ+ journalists.

openDemocracy maintains its work with the support of individual donations, grants, and funds from organisations.

Last updated: February 2023

Last updated date: March 2024

Location:
London, United Kingdom
Year the organisation started publishing:
2001
Languages:
English
Type of coverage:
International
Countries of coverage:
Other
Other countries of coverage:
Global

Content

Type of content produced by theme:
Economy and business
Journalism industry
Law and crime
Environment
Politics
Health and well-being
Society and human rights
Gender
Feminism
LGBTIQ+
Ethnic minorities
Religious minorities
DEIA: Diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility
Refugees
Migration
War crimes and transitional justice
Journalism genres:
Essays
Interviews and reporting
Opinion
Investigative journalism
Narrative journalism
Journalism coverage types and techniques:
Explanatory journalism
Cross-border journalism
Collaborative journalism
Breaking news
Data journalism
Tech platforms and other mediums used:
Website
Newsletter
Social media platforms
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Tiktok
LinkedIn
Podcast
YouTube
Primary tech platform or medium used to publish content:
Website

Audience and reach

Social media audience

Facebook number of followers:
111075
Twitter number of followers:
139674
Instagram number of followers:
9195
YouTube number of followers:
8380
Tiktok number of followers:
7503

Management and team

Founders

Female:
1
Male:
3
Founders:
Anthony Barnett, David Hayes, Susan Richards, Paul Hilder
Directors:
Suzanna Taverne, Anthony Barnett, Alison Goldsworthy, Michael Mitchell, Magnus Nome, Nitil Patel, George Peretz, Inga ‘Inky’ Thordar, Kitty von Bertele, Peter Geoghegan

Team

Full-time employees:
29

Business structure and revenue sources

Organisation tax status:
Hybrid model
All revenue sources reported by media leaders:
YouTube channel income
Crowdfunding campaigns for fundraising
Grants
Grants from private donor organisations
Grants or investment from philanthropic organisations
Advertising
Audience support / reader revenue
Individual donations
The primary source of revenue reported by media leaders:
Grants
The second most important revenue source reported:
Individual donations

Transparency

Publishes information about annual revenue
Publishes the names of donors
Doesn’t have an ethics policy / manual
Has a data privacy policy
Publishes a data privacy policy
Doesn’t have a whistleblower policy
Has a complaints policy
Publishes a complaints policy
Doesn’t have a sexual harassment or institutional violence policy
Is not 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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