Deadline: 11-Sep-20
The European Commission is launching a Call for Proposals for a Pilot Project establishing an Exchange of media ‘rising stars’ to speed up innovation and increase cross-border coverage.
The main objective of the Pilot Project under this call is to facilitate the mobility of media professionals and cross-border cooperation between such professionals and media outlets as a means to promote innovation in the European media sector and foster an environment conducive to quality journalism and media pluralism.
The pilot project is not only geared at journalists but also at other media professionals, inter alia communications, marketing and IT professionals. The organisation(s) which will be awarded the grant will design the exchange programme, and, in full autonomy, select participants, provide all logistical and other support to participants and disburse funds to individual applicants under the project. The pilot project will be, in principle, structured around a series of ‘thematic waves’ classified by media sub-sector, innovation area or focal topic.
Core Actions
Core actions to be carried out by the beneficiary
- Design of the exchange programme: Designing a workable and efficient programme which will require oversight but also a large degree of flexibility, in the light of the specific challenges (budgetary, personnel, linguistic and other) inherent to the media sector. This will include identifying/prioritising the forms of mobility to be offered (both virtual and physical exchanges may be envisaged) as well as key parameters including selection criteria of media outlets and professionals, duration and nature of the visits, tasks to be accomplished and priority themes to be addressed.
- Information and communication: Designing the online interface and disseminating all information (possibly in the form of a handbook) about the programme to a wide audience of media outlets and media professionals prior, during and after the termination of the programme. Organisation of a conference to exchange and communicate experiences and best practices and lessons learnt. Organising communication activities through social media platforms in order to present the project in a personal, entertaining yet educational manner, focusing on the skills acquired, personal insights, future outlooks for the participants etc.
- Organisation of the exchange programme: This will include in particular, reviewing of applications, and the selection of the participants and host organisations and subsequent matching of professionals with host organisations based on the selection criteria established. The selection criteria used when identifying the host organisations shall ensure the selection of organisations having their headquarters in an EU Member State and complying with (i) international professional journalistic standards and codes of ethics and (ii) applicable national rules concerning, in particular, impartiality and accuracy.
- Logistical and other support: Regular and ad hoc support to professionals and to sending and hosting organisations which shall include providing all information prior to an exchange, answering queries as well as general logistical support, e.g. regarding travel arrangements and finding accommodation.
- Financing of the exchange programme: This will entail disbursement of financial resources to cover travel, accommodation and subsistence (and possibly related training) costs in the form of grants/other payment mechanisms to media professionals; monitoring of spending and auditing accounts.
- Total budget available: 2.100.000 EUR (two million one hundred thousand euros).
- Maximum co-financing rate: 90% of eligible costs
- Duration of the action: 18 months
Eligibility Criteria
- a single entity or a consortia made up by a grouping of entities;
- non-profit organisation (private or public);
- universities;
- educational institutions;
- research centres.
For more information, visit https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/news/call-proposals-pilot-project-establishing-exchange-media-rising-stars-speed-innovation-and