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Tag: Journalism funding

The Points Media Appeals for Support

Overseas Hong Kong media outlet The Points (稜角媒體) posted on social platforms earlier this month that it has 55 days (to the end of September) to achieve financial stability or it will otherwise be forced to cease publication. The outlet appealed to readers to become Patreon members and offer support.

According to a work report (工作報告) issued for the first half of this year, the outlet’s income comes chiefly from reader donations, with current accumulated losses of HK$140,000, or just under 18,000 dollars. The outlet has set a fundraising target of HK$250,000, and hopes to gain 650 paid Patreon members. Patreon membership options include monthly plans of HK$5, HK$20, and HK$50 (.6, 2.5 and 6 USD).

The Points was founded in January 2023 by a group of journalists, including Jane Poon (潘麗貞), who served as editor-in-chief until the following year, when the position was taken on by Carmen Wu (胡凱文), a former anchor and reporter for i-CABLE News and the Cantonese desk of Radio Free Asia (RFA).

“C” is for Closure

Hong Kong online media outlet Channel C, an independent site founded in July 2021 by former journalists from Apple Daily (蘋果日報), ceased online updates more than a week ago, on April 23, as its 29 editorial staff halted work over unpaid wages and benefits. Channel C’s troubles deepened in mid-April after owner Chen Zhixing (陳智行) was arrested for allegedly defrauding a government loan program of HK$12 million.

Reporting on the story, the news outlet HK01 included images of a takeover notice posted by a creditor, JL Investment Capital Limited, outside Channel C’s shuttered Kwai Hing office on April 25. According to HK01, the debt holder had offered HK$100,000 monthly, or just under 13,000 US dollars, to allow Channel C to maintain operations. But this fell far short of the estimated HK$470,000 required monthly to sustain full staffing, and the outlet’s staff reportedly rejected this proposal, which they said showed no sincere long-term commitment to quality journalism. Channel C’s parent company, Artview Production Limited, has had its accounts frozen since mid-April.

Takeover notices posted outside the offices of online media outlet Channel C last month.