Meeting six independent media leaders
From transitioning to print format to launching a publishing house, along with good management practices and effective marketing strategies, follow during the new season of the Chemins podcast six ways to develop a media outlet and diversify your business, through six founders and leaders of independent media organizations, interviewed by our journalist Marine Slavitch.
🎙️ Cécile Sourd (Mediapart), Jean-Christophe Boulanger (Contexte), Lauren Boudard (Climax), Frédéric Desiles (Alternatives Économiques), Emmanuelle Josse (La Déferlante) and Valentin Levetti (Stupid Economics) are the guests of season 2 of Chemins.
Chemins is a podcast produced by Médianes, a strategy, marketing and creative studio, and resource center that support media outlets at every stage of their development. Season 2 is hosted by Marine Slavitch and produced by Morgan Prudhomme. The sonic identity is created by Nicolas Peiron and the visual identity is designed by Christelle Perrin.
#1 – Cécile Sourd (Mediapart) – Managing Well to Move Forward
Cécile Sourd is the chief executive of independent online news outlet Mediapart, which specializes in investigations and exclusive revelations. Mediapart is celebrating its 15th anniversary this year and reaching a turning point with the departure of Edwy Plenel, a historic figure in the newsroom. How to manage this transition? How to seek the support of 200,000 subscribers? How to be as rigorous in management as in journalistic standards?
#2 – Valentin Levetti (Stupid Economics) – Preserving Your Independence
Valentin Levetti is co-founder of the YouTube science communication channel Stupid Economics, embodied by Arnaud Gantier. For 7 years, Stupid Economics has made economics accessible to over 273,000 subscribers on YouTube and 13,000 subscribers on Twitch. Against advertising and sponsorships, the media is now funded by the monthly support of its audience. How can you accelerate an independent media channel on YouTube? How can you turn transparency into an asset in your business model?
#3 – Emmanuelle Josse (La Déferlante) – Becoming a Publishing House
Emmanuelle Josse is co-founder of La Déferlante, an independent quarterly magazine and newsletter dedicated to feminisms and gender, launched in 2021. Two years and ten issues later, La Déferlante is developing its own publishing house to continue telling the story of feminist revolutions. What's on the agenda? Publishing 2 to 5 titles per year, including essays, narratives, and photobooks. How do you manage launching a publishing house alongside your magazine? What are the key steps?
#4 – Jean-Christophe Boulanger (Context) – Sustainable Development
Jean-Christophe Boulanger is the president and co-founder of Contexte, an independent online news outlet serving political professionals in France and Europe. For 10 years, Contexte has been developing an editorial and business model centered on subscriptions. How do you grow from 0 to 80 employees? From one to eight thematic editions? How do you expand in a healthy and sustainable way while becoming an expert in your field?
#5 – Lauren Boudard (Climax) – Daring the paper format
Lauren Boudard is co-founder of the spicy newsletter TechTrash and of Climax, a climate change news newsletter launched in May 2021. A year later, Climax moved from inboxes to mailboxes with a fanzine called "hotter than the climate". Is it really simpler to monetize a print product than a newsletter? How do you engage your community?
#6 – Frédéric Desiles (Alternatives Économiques) – Modernizing Your Offering
Frédéric Desiles is strategic and commercial director of Alternatives Économiques, a media outlet launched 40 years ago to make economic and social issues accessible. As a print magazine and website, Alter Eco has had to evolve to continue its growth. How do you account for the new ways audiences consume content? How do you acquire and retain a new audience? How do you launch on TikTok?
To go further
In June 2022, Médianes launched the first season of Chemins, a podcast featuring conversations with media founders and leaders to explore the media launch phase.
How do you actually get your project off the ground? Which business model should you choose? What strategy should you implement? How do you transition from journalist to project creator?
The podcast's first season highlights the diversity of paths for creating and developing your media through six founders, with journalist Margaux Vulliet at the microphone: Julie Hamaïde of Koï Magazine, Raphaël Bloch of The Big Whale, Benoît Baume of Fisheye, Hervé Kempf of Reporterre, Siham Jibril of Génération XX, and Manon Boquen of Pays.
About Chemins
With the podcast Chemins, Médianes offers free experience sharing to help you develop your media outlet effectively. It complements the articles in the resource center and the monitoring newsletter which aim to make methods and keys for starting a media venture freely accessible and to connect project creators who have already taken the leap.
Médianes already brings together over 2500 media founders, leaders, journalists, marketing managers and students every month. Médianes, the studio, has supported over 70 strategy, marketing, and design projects for media outlets and collaborates with emerging or established newsrooms (Arrêt sur images, Vert, StreetPress, RFI, POLITICO Europe, 60 Millions de Consommateurs, La Disparition, La Déferlante, Mediabask, Pays, Climax, etc.)
To learn more, consult the media kit: Paths, a podcast dedicated to founders and leaders of independent media outlets.
Editor's Note: the Médianes team, the studio, has supported the La Déferlante team in its strategic development since 2019, and the Climax team since 2022. The studio collaborated with Génération XX and Fisheye in 2020 and 2021. Médianes is a co-founder of the magazine Pays.
