Voices Beyond Borders: Reimagining Local Media

"Voices Beyond Borders" reimagines local media through two innovative documentary series serving the Hungarian-speaking minority in Romania. The "Faith & Future" series (8 parts) investigates the relationship between religious institutions and youth through multimedia storytelling, while "Rural Realities" (6 parts) partners with local Hungarian and Romanian artists to document authentic rural life within 50km of Odorheiu Secuiesc.

Our approach transcends traditional boundaries through cross-platform content (articles, photography, TikTok/Instagram videos), bilingual elements, and a newsletter-first strategy that builds direct connections with our audience independent of social media algorithms. The project empowers underrepresented communities to tell their own stories while creating sustainable distribution channels for quality journalism. By addressing the generational divide and rural-urban information gaps, we're creating a replicable model for independent minority media that builds sustainable audience relationships beyond algorithm dependency.

Goals (expected) of the project

Our project addresses three key challenges in our region's media landscape: over-reliance on social media distribution, limited coverage of rural communities and youth perspectives, and the need for sustainable revenue streams for independent journalism. We aim to strengthen media pluralism by amplifying voices from marginalised communities including Hungarian-speaking youth, rural villages, and religious minorities.

Through our bilingual approach and cross-platform distribution strategy, we're creating dialogue between Romanian and Hungarian communities while ensuring quality information reaches underserved populations. By establishing direct relationships with our audience through newsletters and community engagement, we're reducing dependency on algorithm-driven distribution and building a sustainable model for independent minority media.

Our human rights-based approach emphasises participation, empowering communities to co-create content that authentically represents their experiences and concerns. Specific goals include building a newsletter subscriber base of 2,000+ engaged readers, producing 14 in-depth multimedia features, and expanding coverage to 10+ underserved rural communities while increasing membership conversion rates to ensure long-term sustainability.