iMEdD, a non-profit journalism organization founded in 2018 thanks to a donation by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF), starts its launch preparations. An idea that grew in the minds of Anna-Kynthia Bousdoukou & Stratis Trilikis is beginning to take shape. The trigger? The worldwide crisis in journalism manifested in a lack of trust in traditional media and the latter’s subsequent “replacement” by social media. The vision? To build the hub of new-age journalism and a strong community of independent media professionals within a welcoming space that embraces synergies and the development of ideas and new endeavors leveraging the most up-to-date technology.

We officially launched operations in February with a 24hour event, where we had the chance to introduce ourselves, our vision, and our plan. The incubator with its 7 completed projects, along with the ideas Zone that offered 2 series of workshops – including Columbia Journalism School’s Newsroom Essentials program – and 2 stand-alone ones, and the Bridge collaborations with the Global Girl Media and the Migratory Birds newspaper set the pace for the first year.

Our second year saw two more pillars being added, Inside the Box and Out of the Box. The team adapted our plan to an online setting right after having hosted our 2nd annual Journalism Forum in our facilities. 10 projects were completed for the incubator, 20 workshops were organized by the ideas Zone, whereas the Lab created a pandemic tracking application before launching a website featuring interactive journalistic investigation, data analysis, and original content. This was the same year the project “Parontes” (Being Present) was created, which documents the pandemic through different formats and features various creators and projects, including our inaugural documentary production.

In 2021 the iMEdD’s annual Journalism Forum was held entirely online over the course of 3 days. 7 more projects were added to the incubator’s completed list and 3 series of workshops -all delivered by world-class organizations, took place through the ideas zone. Our new website was launched, along with a fresh section, that of iMEdD’s podcasts. The Lab continued to offer own content and presented a new web application about auctions in Greece. We also supported Shedia magazine to launch its first English edition, as part of the Bridge pillar and took over two significant archives to allow them to live again through a digital environment at the Out of the Box. Through the Inside the Box pillar, we also supported the SNF to realize 12 more SNF Dialogues discussions, develop a web application and moderate sessions during the SNF Nostos conference. This was also the year, that iMEdD became funding member of the European Press Prize.

2022 was a productive year. Α few weeks after the Russian invasion, we created the Ukraine Observatory. The updated incubator cycle was also launched, under the theme of Climate Inequity. The iMEdD Lab presented investigations such as the price of gasoline in Greece. Furthermore, it undertook the creation of the Greek edition of the book “The Data Journalism Handbook: Towards a Critical Data Practice“. The publication was followed by two events in Athens and Thessaloniki. We announced the Local News initiative, designed to enhance the visibility of local media. The launch of the new website was followed by a meeting in Thessaloniki. Also, iMEdD supported the SNF Nostos team with the creation, editing and supervision of content for the SNF Nostos Conference. We held a series of podcasts with prominent personalities such as Valerie Biden Owens and Christiane Amanpour, and invited podcast creators to submit ideas, as part of our ongoing collaboration with the Thessaloniki Film Festival. In the context of supporting the journalism community of the future, we signed a memorandum of understanding with Panteion University. iMEdD’s International Journalism Week was also held. For 5 days, media professionals and the public had the opportunity to attend workshops, talks, discussions, case studies, special screenings and other dynamic activities. As part of the event, we conducted two nationwide surveys on the public and journalists‘ trust in journalism.

In 2023, iMEdD focused on (collaborative) investigations, and hosted workshops and events to foster an educated and empowered journalism community. The International Journalism Forum took place in Athens, featuring over 140 speakers from 35 countries discussing -among other- topics like climate crisis, migration, corruption, and war. We supported journalists from 19 countries to attend the Global Investigative Journalism Conference in Sweden. We created the Crisis Reporting Resource, a space that hosts tools and analysis on global crises. The iMEdD incubator focused on Climate Inequity, resulting in three journalistic investigations. Workshops on digital security, data journalism, and podcast production were conducted in collaboration with experts from international organizations and universities. In an innovative and experimental initiative, iMEdD used human knowledge and artificial intelligence to analyze politicians’ pre-election speeches. iMEdD’s audio documentary, TRAUMA, interviewed survivors and relatives of victims of seven major disasters and accidents that occurred in Greece in the last 24 years.

iMEdD also participated in the SNF Nostos Conference, addressed mental health, and the Thessaloniki International Film Festival. We provided journalistic support to the first inter-island school newspaper “Desks in the Aegean”, enhancing the creativity and journalistic skills of young students. Among other things, iMEdD investigated the profiles of organized fans on social media, the course of the conversation of wiretapping on Twitter (X), and the state of open data in Greece. We participated in cross-border investigations concerning femicides, and street names across Europe, and conducted investigations into drought and floods in Greece. We also covered various topics through interviews, discussions and podcasts co-produced with renowned journalists, including: “Chasing Indiana Jones in Manhattan” by Aris Chatzistefanou, and “Born Greek – Made American” by Katerina Bakogiannis.