Independent Press Associaton

RSF strongly believes that a free and independent press is a vital element to creating a more just and sustainable democracy.

In recent years, RSF’s donors have supported the work of the Independent Press Association (IPA) to develop a business plan, to strengthen the capacity and infrastructure of the Independent Press Development Fund, and to expand its loan offering.

As a membership organization, IPA’s mission is to “amplify the power of independent publications so as to foster a more just, open, and democratic society.” Through its technical assistance,lending, education, and advocacy work, IPA helps make small magazones more visible to the larger American public.
A specific need for IPA’s loan fund emerged after the September 11 attacks focused world attention on the Middle East and U.S. policy there—a subject that had received little media coverage prior to the attacks.

In the months following the terrorist attacks, the Middle East Research and Information Project (MERIP), publisher of the 48-page quarterly, Middle East Report, fielded hundreds of calls from journalists all around the world. Visits to MERIP’s website quintupled. The subsequent invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq made clear that the need for a publication like the Middle East Report was more important than ever.

MERIP knew this was the time for an aggressive subscription acquisition campaign, but it had never done direct mail. Yet, the organization knew that expanding their base of readers would help shape the debate by expanding the number of informed citizens.

MERIP turned to the IPA’s loan fund in the fall of 2002. IPA provided MERIP with a loan for direct mail to increase its readership. After a few rounds of mailing and analysis, MERIP has seen success in its direct mail efforts, thereby increasing readership of a truly insightful periodical.

For more information about Independent Press Association, please visit their website at www.indypress.org.

Thursday, March 31st, 2005