Solidarity with Lebanese media and journalists

In response to the tragedy that occurred in Beirut, Lebanon, on 4 August 2020, the Samir Kassir Foundation is proposing the establishment of a Media Recovery Fund that will contribute to the recovery and reconstruction of the media sector in Lebanon, responds to immediate and direct needs, and also lay the foundations for a stronger media sector tomorrow.

This fund would work on six pillars:

• Medical support – to wounded journalists;
• Equipment – in case of damaged laptops, cameras, transmitters, etc.;
• Work environment – in case of damaged offices, requiring changing windows, water pipes, furniture, etc;
• Trauma and psychosocial support – for journalists in the coming months;
• Investigative work support – for the outlets and journalists who will be working on essential investigations, especially around the August 4 blast; and
• Economic livelihood and resilience of journalists.

ICFJ and Facebook have already launched an effort to support the news industry in Lebanon, and this initiative will work with others to ensure complementarity. The Media Recovery Fund is aiming to achieve the highest level of transparency in identifying the needs, verifying the claims, and tracing each penny under this fund, and will operate under minimal overhead. For a detailed proposal, please get in touch with:

Ayman Mhanna
Executive Director
Samir Kassir Foundation
www.skeyesmedia.org
amhanna@skeyesmedia.org