We face pressures on every front. Over time, we developed a hybrid model to sustain our work where we combine grant funding, equity, debt and support from our readers through voluntary memberships, but the economic landscape – particularly in the global south – is extremely difficult. The South African market is small and sustaining our vision that journalism should be free to everyone is a constant struggle.

Disinformation campaigns and ongoing online and offline threats pose another big challenge. This is particularly dangerous for women, who are often targeted with harassment and threats of sexual and physical violence.

As a result, there’s now a serious shortage of skilled staff, both journalists and business professionals. Since 2009, we estimate around 70 per cent of the media workforce has left the industry. We’ve lost an entire generation of journalists who opted for safer, better-paid corporate jobs. And those who stayed haven’t always had the training needed to meet the demands of modern media.

We also face political pressure. There have been moments of tension with the government, especially when we’ve exposed high-level corruption scandals. Our reporting on the influential Gupta family and state capture helped build public pressure that led to President Jacob Zuma’s resignation. During that time, we prepared for possible office raids and knew we were under surveillance. Some of our journalists’ homes were broken into by state security, although we fortunately didn’t experience any direct physical attacks.

The government can exert influence indirectly, through advertising, controlling access to public institutions and creating rival media outlets. For example, the Guptas set up the New Age newspaper to push their agenda. All these challenges combine to make it incredibly difficult to keep independent media alive.

The challenge goes far beyond South Africa: it’s structural and global. Journalism is a public good, but the market can’t sustain it on its own. This is a market failure that only public policy can fix. Governments need to step in with subsidies, incentives and fair regulations that allow independent media to survive without compromising their integrity.

Working with the South African Government Communications Department, we’ve drafted 19 recommendations to help revitalise the sector, including support for investigative journalism, tax incentives for investors and a framework to make media financially sustainable. But while planning is easy, implementation is hard. If South Africa manages to put these ideas into practice, it could become a model for other countries on how to secure the future of independent journalism.

Independent media informs people, protects public institutions and holds those in power accountable. Public interest journalism helps citizens make better decisions, have informed debates and participate meaningfully in democracy. It acts as both a watchdog and a guide dog for society. It also plans an important role of helping people connect in their communities.

Healthy democracies rely on a free press. Where press freedom is respected, civil society is stronger, institutions function better and people have access to accurate information. Without independent media, freedoms, human rights and justice are harder to defend. That’s why sustaining autonomous, well-funded and professional journalism matters—not just for journalists, but for society as a whole.