This is the first story in our series of impact stories from the Transition Accelerator 2024 cohort.
Today, we spotlight Investigace.cz, a Czechia-based investigative media outlet dedicated to uncovering cross-border organized crime and its impacts on the Czech and Slovak Republics. Founded in 2013 by a group of journalists, Investigace.cz is a non-profit, non-governmental organization committed to exposing corruption, economic crime, and disinformation networks.
IPI Media Innovation team spoke with Veronika Divišová, Fundraising Manager, and Adéla Károlyová, Marketing Manager, about why trust is the cornerstone of investigative journalism and how they’ve built deep, loyal relationships with their audience while diversifying their revenue streams.
Here is what Investigace.cz team shared with us about their journey so far:
Why Investigace.cz matters
People often assume that small, stable democracies like the Czech Republic are immune to corruption and organized crime. But in reality, these countries often serve as quiet hubs for criminal operations and are used by corrupt politicians to hide illicit profits. We’ve published stories tracing stolen Russian funds as they move through multiple European countries, including the Czech Republic, via the banking system. Seemingly peaceful, well-functioning states can easily become involved in international crime. Without investigative journalists’ work bringing it to the public awareness, these hidden systems go unchecked.
Struggles with platform dependence, audience engagement and compensation
Producing quality journalism isn’t enough. Reaching our audience, helping them understand why these stories matter, and showing how we conduct our investigations is as critical.
For a long time, we relied on social media for reach. But recently, visibility and engagement have plummeted. New regulations (GDPR, cookie banners) and the decline of analytics tools left us unsure: who’s reading our work, and how are they responding?
We wanted to get a better handle on how we communicate, how to grow, engage, and convert audiences into supporters. We also realized that relying solely on grant funding was risky. We needed to diversify our income, and that meant strengthening our relationship with our readers.
Joining IPI’s Transition Accelerator program
These challenges led us to join the 8-month Transition Accelerator program run by IPI’s Media Innovation team. It gave us space to reflect and reimagine how we approach our audience. We explored how to take ownership of our communication channels, especially through personalized newsletters, engaging campaigns and podcasts.
Mainly, we came to see newsletters and podcasts not just as alerts, but as standalone products.
Personalized newsletter by a well-known journalist
We launched a new newsletter called “Signals”, written by our Chief Editor and respected journalist Pavla Holcová. Pavla gives readers insider context and the “why” behind investigations. Her voice is familiar, trustworthy, and personal. The feedback has been incredible: many readers responded by emails to her as if it was friendly correspondence between two people.
Investigace’s newsletter “Signals”, written by Chief Editor Pavla Holcová.
The product-thinking approach we gained at the Transition Accelerator made us treat the launch of the newsletter as a standalone product. We carefully considered its structure, tone, and design to make it feel fresh, relatable and easy to engage. We also created a completely new visual identity for “Signals”, but one that ties with our overall brand.
Taking audience “Behind the scenes” with a podcast
In our podcasts, we feature investigative journalists who share behind-the-scenes insights into their work: how investigations come together and why they matter.
Interestingly, many stories reach a broader audience through podcasts than through written articles. These audiences tend not to overlap much, which highlights the value of offering both audio and text formats.
That said, engaging our podcast audience remains a challenge. While people do listen to the episodes, they rarely offer feedback or take further actions to connect with us.
Humanizing the team and building trust
We asked our colleagues why they chose to become investigative journalists. One story that deeply resonated with our audience was that of our colleague Kristina Vejnbender.
“I came from Kazakhstan, then fully under the control of Nursultan Nazarbayev. There was no political opposition or civil society, and journalists were silenced. While ordinary people were starving, the presidential family lived in magnificent palaces.
When I arrived in the Czech Republic, I discovered a new world. Ministers rode the metro alongside ordinary citizens, the media could openly criticize the government, and people weren’t afraid to protest. I became an investigative journalist to expose corruption, money laundering, and disinformation, so that I never have to relive the state of society I once grew up in.”
Not every journalist wants to be in the spotlight. But we’ve found creative ways to include their voices: banners, short videos, audio clips, even a game.
An interactive game that lets you become an investigative journalist
Earning trust through human connection is something we want to keep exploring. It’s essential in investigative journalism.
When Adéla, our Marketing Manager, brought up an idea of a game that would walk readers through the process of being an investigative journalist we dismissed it – it sounded expensive and time-consuming.
Adéla developed a prototype on the weekend in secret using an open-source story builder. It turned out to be a clever, text-based, decision-making game where players could step into the shoes of Pavla, Josef, and other journalists on real investigations like the Pandora Papers.
Game task: Can you place the villa of former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš in the correct location on Google Maps using photos from Babiš’s Instagram profile?
Players had to dig up documents, collaborate with international partners, and navigate tricky ethical decisions. Adéla even created memes and team video reactions to correct or incorrect choices. It was fun, informative, and made players feel part of our mission.
Exploring Monetization
Our goal is to grow a much broader base of subscribers over the coming year. This isn’t just about email numbers, it’s about building a community that believes in our work and is willing to support it financially. When the time comes for our next donation campaign, we hope that this larger, more engaged audience will help us raise the funds we need to stay independent and impactful.
We’re experimenting with premium content monetization through a Czech platform called Forendors, but this is still in the early development stages. We’re learning, adapting, and looking for new ways to engage these listeners more directly. The good news is that the Czech audience is getting pretty conscious of their content consumption and willing to pay for good quality content.
The Transition Accelerator is part of the Media Innovation Europe programme (MIE), made possible with the support of the European Union.
