FAQ: General Funding Line

We fund media organizations that are focused on the common good and are seeking to expand their financial sustainability with a specific project.

In doing so, they are closing a gap in reporting and are ideally relying on approaches that differ from existing practices in the DACH region (Germany, Austria and Switzerland) and/or in their own market.

We have a particular focus on media organizations reporting for target audiences that have thus far been underserved by the news media.

As part of a long-term strategy, the project as a whole should contribute to the further development of the organization receiving the funding, of its journalistic work and, in particular, of its business model focused on the common good.

The type of funding to which you are assigned based on the information you provide in the brief introduction depends on your organization’s legal form and size.

Only small non-profit media organizations with up to 30 full-time equivalent employees (FTEs) in the overall organization can apply for organizational funding.

Project financing, by contrast, is open to both small, for-profit media organizations focused on the common good and large non-profit media organizations in addition to large, for-profit media organizations that are focused on the common good.

For small, non-profit media organizations and small, for-profit media organizations focused on the common good,* the Fund generally provides up to €400,000 for a total duration of up to two years.

For large, non-profit media organizations and large, for-profit media organizations focused on the common good,* the Fund co-finances projects generally up to €200,000 across a total duration of up to two years. For example, if your project, as a large media organization, costs a total of €400,000, the Media Forward Fund will finance €200,000 of it and you will provide the other half.

* In the case of for-profit media organizations, gross figures are considered.

In the case of cooperation with a for-profit media organization, the financial contribution made by the Fund to the cooperation partner is subject to VAT. Since, as a German non-profit organization, the Media Forward Fund is unable to deduct the VAT incurred, the VAT has the effect of increasing costs.

If the for-profit media organization is based in Austria or Switzerland, the “reverse charge” rule is in effect, whereby only the net amount can be paid out to the for-profit media organization.

The maximum funding period in the General Funding Line is two years (24 months).

The classification as to whether you are a small or large media organization is based on the information you provide in the brief introduction. The determining criterion is the number of full-time employee equivalents (FTEs) in your organization at the time of application. Organizations with 30 or fewer FTEs are considered small.

We want to get to know your media organization. That also includes an understanding of the (legal) structure you are part of.

The question also helps us assess whether your project qualifies for organizational funding or project funding, and whether 100 percent funding is possible or whether you have to co-finance on a 50:50 basis. If your organization is part of a larger overall organization, the size determination is not based on the applicant organization, but on the entire overall organization. If the overall organization has more than 30 FTEs, only co-financing is possible.

It could also be the case that your organization works closely together with other organizations or a company. You could, for example, be applying together with a GmbH and there is also a non-profit association involved. Understanding such structures is also helpful for us.

Sub-units are not corporate bodies in the legal sense. By sub-unit, we mean subordinate organizational units of an organization, such as a specific editorial team (e.g. a section) or an independent offering (such as a magazine for students).

This differentiation will mostly apply to large media organizations that have a wide range of journalistic products and formats. Small media organizations, by contrast, will not generally have established sub-units yet.

With our funding, we support the growth of media organizations that are seeking to implement a concrete project as a next step toward increased financial stability.

With project financing, we finance a single, clearly delineated project. Only those costs can be covered that are directly related to the project for which the application was submitted and primarily serve the implementation of the project.

Organizational funding, which is exclusively available to small, non-profit media organizations, can also be used for costs that are not directly linked to a specific project.

Good to know: We cannot supply non-profit media organizations with funds to boost their commercial business operations (e.g. an online store or merchandise items).

In cooperations with for-profit media organizations, we are unable to provide support for activities that boost the commercial sales activities of that for-profit company (such as published material that is behind a paywall). In addition, no assets can be financed by the Media Forward Fund that become the property of the for-profit organization free of charge (e.g. the programming of an app that boosts the sales value of the app and thus of the company, or the development of an online platform).

You can find an overview of the eligible costs for organizational funding in the PDF "Application guidelines" under the Apply tab.

You can find an overview of the eligible costs for project financing in the PDF "Application guidelines" under the Apply tab.

Costs for online marketing (e.g. paid advertising on platforms such as Google, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok) can be covered under MFF funding / -financing up to 5% of the total project budget - with a maximum of €10,000 per year. This limitation applies exclusively to online marketing activities. For offline marketing activities (e.g. events, poster campaigns, or pop-up stands), there is no predefined funding limit.

In the case of large media organizations, the Media Forward Fund co-finances projects on a 50:50 basis, which means that proprietary resources are required.

Beyond our financial contribution, we also offer capacity building, coaching, access to training courses and community events as part of our “Upskilling” program. Should you find it beneficial, we can also arrange external consultants to provide you with individual support in implementing your project. These services are free of charge for our funding partners and are provided in addition to our financial contribution.

The Media Forward Fund runs at least three calls for application per year, including at least two in the General Funding Line.

No. Each organization may only apply for one funding line per call for applications. If you are uncertain as to which funding line is best for you, please contact us at funding@mediaforwardfund.org

Yes. An application for the Science and Data Journalism Growth Funding is possible next year, regardless of whether you have previously received a Launch Grant.

No. It is only possible to apply one time and for one funding line per call for applications.

Yes, you can reapply during a subsequent call for applications.

In parallel with the General Funding Line, the current call for applications includes our first thematic funding line for science and data journalism.

We recommend not waiting long for all other potential thematic line. We have only just begun raising funds for our thematic funding lines and are unable to foresee when we will have sufficient funds to launch additional thematic funding lines and what those themes might be.

There are no thematic limits in the General Funding Line. Should you be eligible for funding, you should take advantage of the opportunity and apply.

• The registered headquarters of your overall organization must be in Germany, Austria or Switzerland.

• Your organization must serve the common good. That means that the revenues produced by your work are predominantly generated with the intention of strengthening journalism in its social mission of promoting public education and strengthening democracy.

• Your work is based on recognized journalistic/editorial standards, which you document publicly (or plan to do so). You are committed to the principles of the press code in your country.

• You have a distinct structural and personnel separation between editorial and business management. If your company is younger than five years old and has fewer than 10 full-time equivalent employees (FTEs), there must be a demonstrable intention to implement this separation in the future.

• You already have a working business model aimed at serving the common good. Consequently, you can demonstrate a proof-of-concept for your journalistic offering in addition to a product/market fit, confirmed by initial revenues generated from several sources primarily from the DACH region.

• With your project, you are aiming to grow your revenue streams focused on the common good rather than merely striving to continue business-as-usual.

The eligibility of media organizations with more than 30 full-time employees (FTEs) in the overall organization is also subject to the following additional criterion:

The share of total digital revenue of the overall organization made up by regularly recurring payments from users (excluding e-paper in case of print publishers) must be over 30 percent.

With our funding, we support the growth of media organizations that are seeking to implement a concrete project as a next step toward increased financial stability and are relying on approaches that are distinct from existing offerings, formats, distribution channels or revenue models in the DACH region and/or in their own market. As such, we do not fund the simple ongoing existence of your organization or business-as-usual.

The following organizations are ineligible for funding:

• Schools, universities or public research institutes
• Publicly funded media outlets
• Interest groups
• Sole proprietorship or Individuals who are not part of an organization
• Service and technology providers
• Platforms that primarily curate third-party journalistic content
• PR or news agencies
• Production companies
• Organizations or projects that are still in the concept or startup phase

The following purposes are ineligible for funding:

• Conferences and networking events
• Studies, accompanying research or individual research projects
• Scholarships
• (Piloting) of technical solutions or services for media professionals or media companies (infrastructure)
• Supplementary funding for an ongoing project

Yes, you may apply with an existing project that your organization has thus far been financing itself.

What we cannot do is provide additional funding to projects that have already been launched using funds from a different funding source and which have proven to require additional funding as they have developed.

We are unfortunately unable to provide additional financing for projects that have already been launched using funds from a different funding source and which have proven to require additional funding as they have developed.

Projects which have been completed but are to be continued because of their success can, however, apply for funding.

No. The Media Forward Fund only awards grants for organizations or projects with registered headquarters in Germany, Austria or Switzerland (DACH region) that have a proof of concept in one of the three DACH countries and that earn most of their revenues from the DACH region. This is to ensure that there are target audiences and markets for the media offer not only in the country of origin, but also in Germany, Austria or Switzerland. With this restriction, we aim to promote equal opportunities between local media outlets and media organizations that intend to expand from international markets into the DACH region.

As a for-profit media organization, you may apply for project financing. It is, however, essential that both your organization and the project are focused on serving the common good. This means that the revenues produced by its work are predominantly generated with the intention of strengthening journalism in its social mission of promoting public education and strengthening democracy. Furthermore, all publications produced as part of the project must be publicly available free of charge.

No. We can only fund corporate entities with legal personality. This means we cannot provide funding for individuals who are not part of an organization, nor to sole proprietorships (e.g., e.U.) or partnerships under civil law (e.g., GbR).

Although research alliances are not independently operating media organizations, an application is possible. A research alliance is eligible for funding if it includes a legal entity that meets our funding criteria, consists of partners based in the DACH region, and publishes through third parties within the DACH region.

No. To be eligible for funding from our General Funding Line, you must be a registered corporate body / organization at the time of application and already have a working business model aimed at serving the common good. Consequently, you must be able to demonstrate proof-of-concept for your journalistic offering in addition to a product/market fit at the time of application, confirmed by initial revenue generated from several sources in the DACH region that are oriented towards the common good.

We only provide funding to individual media organizations and not consortiums. There is, however, nothing to stop funding recipients from deciding to implement the project in collaboration with other organizations.

At the time of application, you should be able to demonstrate that you have established other revenue sources – beyond grant funding – that are oriented towards the common good (e.g. crowdfunding, members, events, donations).

The majority of revenues from sources oriented towards the common good must come from the DACH region. That means the share must be at least 51 percent.

No. We are currently only able to fund media organizations that produce and publish journalistic content themselves. Funding for technical solutions or services for media organizations or publishing companies – such as tools, journalist networks or training courses – is unfortunately not possible.

For large media organizations with more than 30 FTEs in the organization, the share of total digital revenue of the overall organization made up by regularly recurring payments from users (excluding e-paper in case of print publishers) must be over 30 percent. Whether revenues are also generated by print products is irrelevant. Media outlets in the digital sector that are predominantly funded by advertising would therefore not be eligible for funding.

The share of articles published each day that are mainly generated by AI or are news agency copy must not exceed 30 percent.

We promote the further development of business models oriented towards the common good that are sustainable. We are therefore interested in the sustainability of media outlets and thus ideally in projects that can strengthen your organization in the long term and ensure your growth.

We accept applications in German, English or French. However, the language in which you publish your journalistic work does not play a role in the application process.

Information can be provided in both euros and Swiss francs. Only the total amount of funding requested along with certain entries in the financing overview and planning should be provided in euros, where indicated.

Please observe the additional instructions in the sample template for financing overview and planning, as there are differences in tax law between for-profit media organizations and non-profit media organizations. Please also refer to the question: “Why are gross figures considered for funding amounts when it comes to for-profit media organizations?”

The selection process is divided into five steps: 1) Brief introduction 2) Initial interview 3) Application drafting (preceded by voluntary consultation on application design) 4) Due diligence & pitch deck design 5) Pitch to the jury.

The selection process focuses on three areas: the assessment of your journalistic work, your organization and your idea for using the grant. The assessment is based on our five overarching criteria.

The brief introduction can be submitted any time before March 23, 2025. The earlier you submit the brief introduction form, the sooner we can conduct an initial interview and determine whether you are eligible to submit a full application.

Please note that, for technical reasons, the link to the brief introduction can only be used once. As such, changes can unfortunately not be made. You can, however, email us your correction at funding@mediaforwardfund.org.

To prepare your answers, you can take a look at the brief introduction preview.

Brief introduction preview

The initial interview of approx. 30 minutes is intended to provide us an initial personal impression of you and a more detailed idea of your work and your idea for using the grant. No additional preparation is required for the interview. You are welcome, however, to take a look at the preview for the initial interview

Initial interview preview

Once your eligibility for funding has been established by the information provided in the brief introduction and during the initial interview, you are permitted to submit your funding application via a form in our funding portal within a maximum of three weeks. You will receive the registration link from us by e-mail, which you can then use to register and access the relevant application form. The upload function for the required attachments can also be found at the end of the form.

The maximum time for drafting the funding application is limited to three weeks.

For some of the questions, your answers are automatically taken from the brief introduction and can be revised or expanded if necessary. We have set guidelines for the number of characters per response. However, there is no default character limit so that you do not need to shorten sentences. Nevertheless, we recommend sticking to the suggested character maximum as orientation. Designated questions can also be answered in bullet points.

Application form preview

As soon as you have received the registration link to our funding portal by email, you can start drafting your funding application using the form. We will accept funding applications via the funding portal until your three-week time limit has expired, at the latest by May 11, 2025.

You will hear from us at the latest by the week of June 2, 2025.

Yes, in this case please attach your preliminary annual financial records or other meaningful financial data (e.g. internal financial report).

Please use the link we sent you at the beginning to access the funding portal and update the information accordingly. If you would like to update the information after submission, please contact us at: funding@mediaforwardfund.org.

The assessment is based on the information you have provided, desk research, internal documents you have submitted (attachments to the funding application) and one or two reference interviews, which we will conduct following the review of your application. In your funding application, you are asked to provide two references who will be willing to provide detailed and candid feedback on your work and your organization.

Should we determine that the internal documents submitted with your funding application are insufficient, we will request additional information in a timely manner.

The pitch deck, completed in PowerPoint format with approx. 10 – 15 slides, should reflect the most important information from your funding application. We suggest an overarching structure with three parts:1) About us, 2) Our work and where we currently stand, and 3) Where we want to go with our project. Further details and recommendations regarding the structure and formalities will be sent to organizations admitted to the pitch by e-mail.

It is important to note here that it is the information on the slides that counts first and foremost, and not the appearance of the presentation. We are aware that many organizations do not employ their own graphic designers.

Yes. On the basis of the first draft of your pitch deck, we conduct a feedback meeting that lasts approximately one hour. Afterwards, you will have sufficient time to revise your pitch deck so that it is finished in time for pitch day.

The jury pitch will take place in person in Berlin. Travel expenses will be covered for up to two people from each organization. Each organization is given 55 minutes, which are allocated as follows:

• approx. 25 minutes pitch presentation
• approx. 15 minutes Q&A
• approx. 15 minutes jury deliberation

As part of our feedback meeting for your pitch deck, we are happy to provide tips to prepare for your jury pitch and to answer any questions you may have.

The jury consists of five experts. Information on the composition of the jury can be found in our entry from October 8, 2024: “Media Forward Fund introduces its jury”

We will try to inform you about the jury's decision as soon as possible during the week beginning July 14, 2025.

Yes, we generally offer feedback to rejected organizations. You should have received further information in the rejection e-mail.

Shortly after you have been approved, we will prepare the funding / cooperation contract and send you a draft. Because this phase necessitates several feedback loops and/or adjustments, you should allow plenty of time.

Once the funding agreement / cooperation agreement has been agreed and signed, the first funding tranche of 60 percent of the total funding amount will be transferred.

During the ensuing kick-off call, we will discuss your milestones and adopt them for the first six months of funding. We will also develop a shared vision for cooperation, discuss challenges and needs and agree on deadlines.

Once all funding partners are on board following the individual kick-off, a joint digital kick-off workshop as a group will follow. This provides an opportunity not only for grantee partners to get to know each other better, but also provides a framework for them to introduce their projects to each other, collect feedback and exchange ideas in addition to expressing their wishes and enumerating the resources they can contribute to the community of grantees.

We expect a short written interim report once half of the funding period has elapsed and a written final report after the funding period has come to an end. Interim and final reporting on the use of the funding must also be submitted together with the narrative reports.

The questions for your reports are included with your funding / cooperation agreement.

At least five check-in meetings are planned for the entire funding period:

• Kick-off call
• Check-in no. 1 after approx. 6 months
• Half-time meeting & interim report (check-in no. 2) after approx. 12 months
• Check-in no. 3 after approx. 18 months
• Final meeting & report (check-in no. 4) after approx. 24 months

The main purpose of the check-in meetings is to discuss the implementation and status of the agreed milestones, the lessons thus far learned, and the definition and adjustment of the milestones for the ensuing six months – and also the financial reporting based on the original planning.

The funding phase of a group ends with a joint final workshop at which the organizations involved share their most important findings from the implementation of their project with regard to the further development of business models focused on the common