Azorean Government promotes joint journalism projects with the diaspora
Ponta Delgada
Secretaria Regional dos Assuntos Parlamentares e Comunidades
The Government of the Azores will support joint journalistic projects between media professionals from the Region and the diaspora, strengthening cooperation, the sharing of content and the portrayal of life in the Azores to Azorean communities abroad.
“This can only work if it has the support of those who report the news, those who carry out these projects and those who can make this a reality. And those people are the journalists,” stated the Regional Secretary for Parliamentary Affairs and Communities, Paulo Estêvão, at the public launch of the new digital platform of the Azores-Diaspora Media Association (ADMA).
The new funding scheme will have an initial budget allocation of €50,000 in 2027. It is intended to fund collaborative projects carried out by journalists from the Region and the diaspora, including freelance professionals associated with leading media organisations. Funding applications will be assessed by an independent committee.
The presentation of the ADMA platform took place on Monday and featured speeches by the Regional Director for the Communities, José Andrade, and the association’s Coordinator, Diniz Borges. The initiative is supported by the Government of the Azores in partnership with the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) at California State University, Fresno.
ADMA aims to create the conditions for more regular collaboration between professionals and media organisations in the Azores and within Azorean communities abroad, countering information isolation and promoting the flow of news and reports between the Region and countries with a strong diaspora presence, namely the United States, Canada and Brazil.
Paulo Estêvão emphasised that this network brings together media organisations serving geographically dispersed audiences. It also broadens the reach of content produced in the Azores and within these communities, creating a critical mass that goes beyond the archipelago’s population size and further enhances its appeal to advertisers.
The digital platform will operate on two complementary levels. A restricted area will facilitate the technical exchange of content between professionals and media organisations, whilst a publicly accessible area will provide news and reports. The publication of content in the latter will always be subject to prior authorisation of the media organisation and the journalist who produced the piece.
The launch of ADMA is in line with the approach set out in the Programme of the XIV Regional Government of the Azores to strengthen ties between the islands and Azorean communities through the media, fostering closer relations and interaction with the diaspora.
Following the launch of the platform, a technical training session will be held this Tuesday for media organisations and journalists who are members of ADMA, focusing on the registration process and the use of the tools provided. The training will take place in person at the premises of the Regional Secretariat for Parliamentary Affairs and Communities in Ponta Delgada. Professionals from other islands and the diaspora may participate remotely via the following link: https://meet.google.com/yur-uucn-uca.
