As governments increasingly close the space for civil society's work, expand surveillance and use algorithms that reinforce discrimination, the need for investigative journalism has never been greater. Journalists committed to exposing human rights violations tied to AI, spyware and state surveillance are often at great personal risk, facing harassment or even legal threats for their watchdog efforts. Similarly, civil society organisations (CSOs) also play a vital role in resisting democratic backsliding: they provide legal expertise, shape policy discussions, and build advocacy networks. They amplify investigative findings and push for meaningful systemic change.
However, despite their shared goals, the collaborations between CSOs and journalists are often cut short or limited due to short-term funding. This leads to missed opportunities for long-term investigations, coordinated advocacy and strategic litigation, all of which could be crucial to achieving change. To address this challenge, and thanks to funding from Allianz Foundation’s Fixing what’s broken call, ECNL, European Digital Rights (EDRi) and Lighthouse Reports have established the Civic Journalism Coalition.
This coalition aims to create a structured, long-term space where journalists and digital rights defenders can share knowledge, coordinate efforts, and strengthen each other’s work.
The coalition kicked off in Berlin in February 2025 with a group of investigative journalists and civil society experts from different regions. Participants included investigative outlets, such as Lighthouse Reports, IRPi Media, BIRN, and Re:Baltica, alongside CSOs like Statewatch, AlgorithmWatch, Amnesty International, Corporate Europe Observatory, European Partnership for Democracy, and the European Center for Press and Media Freedom. Discussions focused on accessing EU documents, navigating new policy shifts on digital surveillance and fostering cross-border investigative collaborations.
Three pillars of the coalition:
- Learning: Hosting workshops and training sessions to exchange knowledge, tools, and strategies between journalists and CSOs. Topics include investigative techniques, access to information laws and strategies to counter surveillance.
- Investigations: Providing seed funding for cross-sector collaborations that focus on digital rights violations, state and corporate surveillance, and threats to media freedom.
- Advocacy: Coordinating efforts to ensure investigative findings have a lasting impact by influencing EU policies and public debates.
Upcoming events and opportunities for engagement:
The coalition is open for any interested CSO or journalistic outlet to join. We will continue our work with a series of events and funding opportunities:
- International Journalism Festival (Perugia, 9–13 April) – The coalition members will be there. In a side event co-organised by Amnesty Tech, ECNL and EDRi we will explore how investigative journalism can support digital rights advocacy without compromising journalistic independence.
- Data Harvest (Mechelen, 22–25 May) – Coordination among coalition members attending the event to highlight key investigations.
- Next Workshop (April–May 2024) – An online session co-created with coalition members, will be focused on a particular issue – the use of spyware and surveillance tools against journalists in Europe.
If you or your organisation are interested in joining future workshops or applying for investigative funding, please reach out to EDRi ([email protected]) or follow our updates.