NEWS - JOURNALISM PARTNERSHIPS - PLURALISM

The grant opportunity known as Journalism Partnerships - Pluralism, officially identified as CREA-CROSS-2026-JOURPART-PLURALISM, is part of the European Commission's Creative Europe Programme. It aims to enhance media pluralism and support independent journalism within the EU by providing funding to news media entities facing challenges such as digital disruption and declining revenues.

The total budget allocated for this initiative is EUR 6,900,000, with grants potentially reaching up to EUR 2.5 million per project. At least 60% of the granted amount must be directed towards cascading grants to third-party news media entities. These projects will last between 12 to 24 months, focusing particularly on local and regional journalism, independent journalism, and public interest news.

Eligible applicants include a variety of organizations such as media associations, NGOs, non-profits, universities, research centers, and public authorities that can set up funding schemes for third parties. Individual applicants or consortiums can apply, but natural persons, unless self-employed with legal personalities, are not eligible.

The application process consists of a single-stage submission, with the call opening on October 23, 2025, and the deadline set for February 4, 2026. Proposals will be evaluated between February and May 2026, with results communicated in August 2026. The signing of grant agreements is expected in November 2026, marking the beginning of the funding period.

Key objectives include fostering transformative changes in media entities by developing innovative editorial processes, enhancing audience engagement, and establishing sustainable revenue models. The focus is also on strengthening media sectors that prioritize democracy over profit maximization, thereby addressing concerns related to media deserts and restricted pluralism.

Applications must clearly outline their plans to redistribute funds to support struggling media organizations and may incorporate non-monetary support activities like training, legal advice, and standards development. Successful applicants will not only receive funding but also be responsible for ensuring adherence to professional media standards and maintaining editorial independence.

This initiative reflects the EU's commitment to protecting and promoting media freedom and pluralism, recognizing the critical role of diverse media in democracy. It encourages the development of a resilient and independent media landscape across Europe, ensuring that communities have access to quality journalism and information.

The EU's Creative Europe Programme (CREA) is offering project grants under the call "JOURNALISM PARTNERSHIPS (CREA-CROSS-2026-JOURPART)," specifically targeting Topic 2: "Journalism Partnerships - Pluralism" (CREA-CROSS-2026-JOURPART-PLURALISM). This initiative aims to bolster media sectors crucial for democracy by providing financial support to news media entities and independent journalism, dedicating at least 60% of the grant to this purpose. The overall goal is to enhance media pluralism across the European Union, addressing challenges such as the digital shift, loss of advertising revenues, and the closure of local media outlets.

The scope of this call focuses on media sectors vital for democratic debate, which often lack the resources to adapt to the digital environment. This includes addressing shrinking newsrooms and media deserts to prevent the deterioration of pluralism. The funding seeks to improve the position of these media outlets, help them adapt their methods, and enable them to continue providing original reporting, holding decision-makers accountable, and fostering a more diverse and independent media sector.

Priorities include establishing funding schemes for news media entities and independent journalists, with applicant organizations expected to set up support mechanisms targeting local and regional media, community media, investigative journalism, and organizations delivering public interest news. Non-profit and civil society organizations are particularly encouraged to apply. The activities should focus on enhancing democracy, shaping public debate, and benefiting audiences and communities, rather than solely focusing on profit.

Eligible activities involve applicants presenting, developing, and implementing funding schemes for cascading grants to independent media and organizations active in the targeted sectors. These schemes should cover as many geographical areas and news media organizations as possible, focusing on activities that sustain, improve, or transform the work of the targeted parties. Examples of activities include innovations in editorial production, improved distribution and dissemination of news, audience and community engagement strategies, development of technical tools, and training.

A compulsory element is the establishment of a funding scheme, accompanied by active communication with potential stakeholders. Complementary activities may include developing deontological and governance standards, budgetary readiness, criteria and indicators for support, knowledge repositories, legal advice, and training. Proposals must explain how the activities address identified challenges, focusing on the European Union, particularly areas with low news provision or strained media markets, and addressing the needs of smaller newsrooms.

Projects must include concrete deliverables and quantifiable performance indicators. The estimated impact should be substantiated by a detailed outreach plan and proof of interest from target groups. All projects must adhere to professional media standards, confirmed by a signed Declaration on Standards & Independence. Editorial work must maintain full editorial independence. Projects should also consider their ecological footprint and strategies for environmentally-respectful media practices.

Key Dates and Information:

The call was published on 21 October 2025.

The deadline for submitting applications is 4 February 2026, 17:00 Brussels time.

The evaluation period is from February to May 2026.

Applicants will be informed in August 2026.

The grant agreement is expected to be signed in November 2026.

An online info session is scheduled for 6 November 2024, 11:00 CET, to explain the funding opportunity and application process.

Conditions for admissibility include adhering to proposal page limits and layout guidelines described in the call document and Part B of the Application Form. A mandatory annex is the Declaration on Standards and Independence. Eligible countries and other eligibility conditions, as well as financial and operational capacity requirements, are detailed in the call document. The evaluation and award processes, criteria, scoring, and indicative timeline are also described in the call document.

The total budget for both CREA-CROSS-2026-JOURPART-COLLABORATIONS and CREA-CROSS-2026-JOURPART-PLURALISM is EUR 6,900,000 each.

Applicants can search for partners to collaborate on this topic. The submission system is planned to open on the date stated in the topic header. For non-IT related questions, applicants can contact their local Creative Europe desk or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency. IT helpdesk support is available for technical issues.

Supporting Documents:

Call document

Standard application form (CREA MEDIA)

Declaration on standards and independence (CREA CROSS JOURPART)

CREA MGA (Model Grant Agreement)

CREA Annual Work Programmes

CREA Regulation 2021/818

EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509

Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment

EU Grants AGA Annotated Model Grant Agreement

Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual

Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions

Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement

In summary, this EU grant opportunity aims to strengthen journalism and media pluralism within the European Union by providing financial support and resources to independent media outlets, local news organizations, and investigative journalism initiatives. The program prioritizes projects that enhance democracy, civic participation, and community engagement, with a focus on innovation, sustainability, and adherence to professional standards. Applicants are required to establish funding schemes for third parties, ensuring that a significant portion of the grant is directly allocated to supporting media entities. The initiative seeks to address the challenges facing the news media sector, such as declining revenues and shrinking newsrooms, to foster a more diverse, independent, and resilient media landscape across Europe.

Eligible Applicant Types: The call encourages applications from non-profit and civil society organizations. However, the call specifies that applicant organizations should be in a position to set up funding schemes (support to third parties) targeting news media outlets, organizations, and, if needed, professionals, such as local and regional media, community media, investigative journalism and organizations delivering public interest news. This suggests that eligible applicants are organizations capable of managing and distributing funds to other entities.

Funding Type: The primary financial mechanism is a grant, specifically a CREA Project Grant (CREA-PJG) under the Creative Europe Programme. The grant is budget-based. Furthermore, the selected applicants will be expected to implement a funding scheme for cascading grants (regranting / support to third parties).

Consortium Requirement: The information does not explicitly state whether a single applicant or a consortium is required. However, the partner search announcements suggest that collaborations are possible and perhaps encouraged.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The proposals should focus on the European Union, specifically areas with low provision of specific news or in media markets where media pluralism is strained.

Target Sector: The program targets the news media sector, with a focus on sectors of special relevance to democracy and civic participation. This includes local and regional media, independent and investigative journalism, and organizations delivering public interest news/public service journalism (such as community, legal and civic journalism and media, news increasing transparency about the media).

Mentioned Countries: No specific countries are mentioned, but the focus is on the European Union.

Project Stage: The projects are expected to develop and implement funding schemes, which suggests they are beyond the initial idea stage and are ready for development and implementation. The activities should contribute to sustaining, improving, or transforming the work of the targeted parties.

Funding Amount: The budget for the topic CREA-CROSS-2026-JOURPART-PLURALISM is EUR 6,900,000. This amount is intended to be distributed through multiple grants.

Application Type: The application type is an open call, with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of grants. The primary recipients of the funding from this call will then provide funding to third parties (news media entities, independent journalists, etc.) through cascading grants. Accompanying non-monetary activities like training, legal advice, and development of standards are also possible.

Application Stages: The application process is a single-stage process.

Success Rates: The indicative number of grants is not specified in the provided text. Therefore, the success rate cannot be determined.

Co-funding Requirement: The information does not explicitly state whether co-funding is required.

Summary:

This funding opportunity, CREA-CROSS-2026-JOURPART-PLURALISM, is a call for proposals under the Creative Europe Programme aimed at enhancing media pluralism within the European Union. The European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) is organizing this call. The primary goal is to support news media entities and independent journalism, particularly in areas where news provision is low or media pluralism is strained. The call is specifically targeting local and regional media, independent and investigative journalism, and organizations delivering public interest news.

Eligible applicants should be organizations capable of establishing and managing funding schemes to distribute grants to third parties, such as news media outlets and journalists. Non-profit and civil society organizations are particularly encouraged to apply. The selected organizations will be responsible for developing and implementing a funding scheme for cascading grants, ensuring that at least 60% of the total grant amount is dedicated to this purpose. Accompanying activities, such as training, legal advice, and the development of deontological standards, can complement the funding scheme.

The projects should focus on activities that contribute to sustaining, improving, or transforming the work of the targeted media entities. This includes innovations in editorial production, improvement of news distribution, audience engagement, and the development of technical tools. All projects must respect professional media standards and operate with full editorial independence.

The total budget for this topic is EUR 6,900,000, and the application process involves a single stage. The call opened on 23 October 2025, and the deadline for submitting applications is 4 February 2026. The evaluation period is scheduled from February to May 2026, with information to applicants expected in August 2026 and the signature of grant agreements in November 2026.