Media subsidies

Media subsidies are state subsidies for general news media whose primary task is to provide news coverage, regardless of content and form of distribution. Media subsidies consist of two different forms of support: innovation and development support, and subsidies for local journalism. The purpose of the support is to promote public access to independent news media throughout Sweden. The new support focuses on providing local news journalism with targeted support in areas with lower media coverage.
General news media can apply for media subsidies. The media should have editorial content consisting of a regular and comprehensive news service that gives expression to a wide range of topics and perspectives, as well as examination of the fundamentals of democracy. Subsidies can be provided regardless of the content and form of distribution. This means that the content may consist of, for example, text, images, sound or moving images, and funding can be provided to newspapers, web-based media, radio or television, among other things. Media subsidies can be provided to both subscription media and media that is free of charge. A condition for granting support is that the media actively works to improve access to editorial content for people with disabilities. This work shall be based on current standards for accessibility in digital publishing.