How the Kyiv Independent reached 20,000 paying members — with no paywall | Nieman Journalism Lab
The Kyiv Independent reached a major membership milestone last month with a global campaign telling readers “journalism needs a community, not a paywall.”
After a month-long multi-country campaign, The Kyiv Independent has more than 20,000 paying members — up from 17,500 in May. Most members give $5 a month. About 70% of the outlet’s revenue is from readers.
The Kyiv Independent was co-founded in November 2021 by a group of journalists who’d been fired from the Kyiv Post — the biggest English-language newspaper in the country — as the owner attempted to interfere in the newsroom. (The staff has grown from 18 in 2021 to 70 today, including more than 40 in the newsroom.) The Kyiv Independent tells readers it was “born out of a fight for freedom of speech” and has not shied away from honestly appraising Ukraine’s leadership during war. Just last week, the site was targeted by a DDoS attack after publishing coverage and sharp criticism of the government’s anti-corruption rollback.
The digital news outlet also gets revenue from a thriving online store selling items like a print magazine and Borshch tote bag, content syndication, advertising, and one-time donations from individuals and organizations such as Microsoft and UNESCO.
