Journalism in Exile, Democracy in Focus. Exiled journalists uncover injustices, strengthen democracy, and reveal threats to press freedom before they unfold at CORRECTIV.Exile, we support them in reclaiming their voices and connecting with new audiences – because an attack on journalism anywhere threatens democracy everywhere.
Our Vision: Exile Journalists as a pillar of democracyCORRECTIV.Exile supports journalists in exile, enabling them to continue their important work despite persecution and repression. We envision a future where exiled journalists and media professionals actively strengthen democratic values. Their knowledge, research, and perspectives enrich public discourse, uncover grievances, and foster press freedom – in their home country and current host society. They act as a telescope, foreseeing challenges to democracy and freedom of expression. Through the knowledge and initiatives of our exiled members, we bring critical insights to light and help societies prepare for the future.
Our Mission: Empowering Independent JournalismWe help exiled journalists to reclaim their voices, connect them with host societies, and amplify their voices in the service of democracy. Acting as a “telescope” for democracy’s future, we explore the experiences of those in exile, whose insights reveal the potential consequences for democratic societies. CORRECTIV.Exile will not only shed light on critical issues that resonate with both exiled communities and German society but also amplify the voices and knowledge of exiled individuals.
We aspire to create a world where exiled media professionals are recognized as vital contributors to democratic dialogue and societal resilience. Therefore, we are building a network of exile journalists. We work for and with exiled journalists – and your ideas and perspectives are key to our work.
Our network offers:
Are you a journalist in exile looking for a platform for your research? Do you develop digital tools to support exiled media professionals? Do you have an idea for a collaborative project?
We look forward to hearing from you! We welcome partnerships, collaborations, and support from individuals and organizations that share our vision of empowering exiled media professionals.
Our monthly Exile Talks bring together exiled media professionals and the German public. These discussions, presentations, and workshops address pressing issues – from press freedom and human rights to the role of exile journalism in democratic societies. It is also a platform to present your latest publications and projects as an exile journalist.
Stay informed and engaged with the Exile Talks series by subscribing to the CORRECTIV.Exile newsletter, where you’ll receive monthly updates on upcoming discussions and events that explore important topics and empower exiled voices – ensuring you never miss an opportunity to be part of the conversation.
Tailored workshops, seminars, and training programs equip exiled journalists and media professionals with skills – from investigative research to digital security strategies
Photo: Sergei Balai
A program designed to empower exiled Afghan journalists with skills to launch and sustain media projects, emphasizing community orientation, media pluralism, and sustainable business models.
The autocrats of the world are eagerly watching the election on Sunday. The balance of power in the country could shift in their favor. What could happen (in the worst case) with which party? CORRECTIV.Exile dares to engage in a thought experiment based on the election programs.
Click here to read more of CORRECTIV.Exile’s articles (in German).
How does independent journalism survive in authoritarian environments? (Exiled) journalists from Azerbaijan and Georgia discuss how their work was affected by war, censorship, and repressive laws. The conversation will explore how Azerbaijan’s media climate worsened after the Karabakh war, and how Georgia’s independent media scene is at risk due to recent legal and political developments. What can exile journalism do in the face of such challenges?
Across Central Europe, press freedom is under siege. In Hungary, political control strangles independent voices. Serbian journalists face systematic intimidation. Slovakia’s independent media and civil society face systematic attacks.
These aren’t isolated incidents—they’re coordinated campaigns by authoritarian leaders desperate to secure their grip on power, knowing that criminal trials and accountability await many of them once they lose control.
Three years after the killing of Jina Mahsa Amini and the “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests that followed, this event amplifies the voices of Iranian women who continue to fight for freedom. Artist Ghazal Abdollahi and journalist Maryam Mardani (Amal Berlin!) speak about women’s rights, journalism and artistic resistance within Iran and in exile, transnational repression and new forms of state propaganda by the Islamic Republic.
Moderated by Daniela Sepehri.
Exiled journalist Banu Güven and journalist Tuncay Özdamar discussed restrictions on media freedom in Turkey and Turkish-language reporting in Germany.
Moderated by Esra Lale.
Jean Peters (CORRECTIV), Maria Savushkina (Chin Chin Channel/exiled journalist from Belarus), and Ivan Kolpakov (co-founder and editor-in-chief of Meduza) discussed creative formats in journalism.
Moderated by Mina Jawad.
Rachel Tausendfreund (DGAP), Sergey Lukashevskiy (Radio Sakharov), and Can Dündar (Özgürüz) discussed authoritarian rule and its mechanisms in Russia, Turkey, and the United States, transnational trends, and the question of how resistance can be organized.
Moderated by Viera Zuborova (CORRECTIV).
Katerina Sergatskova and Roman Stepanovych co-founded Zaparona Media and the Ukrainian 2402 Foundation, which supports journalists during the war. Moderated by Emma Thomasson, the two discussed the challenges, methods, and goals of Ukrainian journalists in times of war and exile.
With OSINT-expert Qais Alamdar as a host and Marcus Frenzel (RTL) as a guest speaker, participants learned about best-practices for in-depth research, using OSINT and the challenges connected to it. With participants from different professional backgrounds, working both for exile and local German media, the workshop also offered the opportunity for networking and collaboration.
Moderated by Dr. Gesine Dornblüth, the event highlighted how the Kremlin has escalated its propaganda efforts since the onset of the war in Ukraine, targeting public opinion in Europe and the U.S. Renowned experts Marcus Bensmann from CORRECTIV and Julia Smirnova from CeMAS shared their investigative findings on Russia’s use of disinformation tactics, including social media campaigns and deepfake technology, to influence the upcoming Bundestag elections.
In December 2024, CORRECTIV.Exile organized the first pilot event under the new series Exile Talks. This one was dedicated to three Afghan media start-ups, and we hosted a live journalism event celebrating the successful launch of their media project. The event was also a closing event of the Media Incubator program, focusing on digital strategies, visual storytelling, and community engagement. In autumn, they launched their projects, reporting on Afghanistan from exile.
In December 2024, CORRECTIV.Exile organized the first pilot event under the new series Exile Talks. This one was dedicated to three Afghan media start-ups, and we hosted a live journalism event celebrating the successful launch of their media project. The event was also a closing event of the Media Incubator program, focusing on digital strategies, visual storytelling, and community engagement. In autumn, they launched their projects, reporting on Afghanistan from exile.
At the launch of the graphic novel about the iconic physicist and human rights defender Andrei Sakharov, Sergey Lukashevskiy (Radio Sakharov), Ute Kochlowski-Kadjaia (Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom), and David Schraven (CORRECTIV) discussed Sakharov’s legacy and the ongoing fight for democracy in Russia. The book was translated and published by CORRECTIV Verlag in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut e.V., the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom, and CORRECTIV.Exile.
We held a panel discussion on Russian aggression and civil society at the Volksbühne at Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz in Berlin, which attracted 139 participants. The discussion was organized jointly with the human rights organization Memorial and Radio Sakharov. The panel included Alexander Cherkasov (Memorial), Sergey Lukashevskiy (editor-in-chief, Radio Sakharov), Marieluise Beck (Zentrum Liberale Moderne), Prof. Anke Hilbrenner (University of Düsseldorf), Gesine Dornblüth (journalist and author), and Prof. Nikolai Plotnikov.
We are part of CORRECTIV, Germany’s first non-profit investigative newsroom.
We help exiled journalists develop sustainable media projects and income streams, ensuring long-term success and independence.
Projects like #ÖZGÜRÜZ and Radio Sakharov demonstrate how exile journalism can strengthen democratic structures.
We fight for press freedom, for democratic values and against censorship – together with our partners from various countries and backgrounds.
Together, we can amplify the voices of exile journalists.
For project inquiries, please contact us at exil@correctiv.org.
Director CORRECTIV.Exile
Since Jun 2024, Viera has been the Director of CORRECTIV.Exile. Viera is a political scientist by background, focusing her interests on populism, extremism, social movements, civil society, political communication, marketing, intolerance, and hate speech. She has worked for ten years on various levels in the academic sphere. Additionally, she served as a senior research fellow at the think tank Center for European and North Atlantic Affairs (CENAA).
In 2017, she was a scholar-in-residence at the ISGAP at Oxford University and, in 2010, a visiting Ph.D. scholar at the Université Libre de Bruxelles. Since 2015, Viera has been a regular columnist at the online newspaper Aktuality.SK and co-founded three non-profit organizations focusing on human rights, education, youth, and social issues. She previously worked at the IOTA Foundation, concentrating on the crypto industry and blockchain and its social impact. Additionally, she collaborated with ORAM, promoting and supporting LGBTIQ Ukrainians in Germany.
Project manager CORRECTIV.Exile
Since July 2024, Nora has been a project manager at CORRECTIV.Exile. She studied European Studies in Leipzig and Vienna, gaining extensive international experience in Georgia, Croatia, and Serbia. Her academic focus was on political culture and the impact of pro-democratic protest movements in authoritarian systems. With several years of experience managing projects for NGOs in Berlin and Eastern Europe, Nora brings valuable civil society and European collaboration expertise. Since 2023, she has led educational and networking programs for exiled media.
Working student CORRECTIV.Exile
Minou has been part of CORRECTIV.Exile as a working student since August 2024. She studied cultural, communication, and media studies and worked as a freelance journalist across various media outlets and theater productions. Minou deals with unheard voices in exile and social inequality in her work. Since October 2024, Minou has studied journalism, focusing on data journalism in Leipzig.
Unsere Reporterinnen und Reporter senden Ihnen Recherchen, die uns bewegen. Sie zeigen Ihnen, was Journalismus für unsere Gesellschaft leisten kann – regelmäßig oder immer dann, wenn es wichtig ist.
