Related videos:
The freezing of U.S. funds for international aid has significantly impacted many independent media outlets in Cuba, which have begun to seek alternative sources of funding.
It is the case of Diario de Cuba, based in Madrid and 15 years old, whose director, Pablo Díaz, has asked for the collaboration of its readers to cope with the suspension of the 'grants', thereby maintaining the commitment to "exercise and defend freedom of expression on the Island."
While the regime maintains its "repressive catalog," U.S. government support for independent journalism is suspended, and this, Díaz explains, makes the work of media outlets like Diario de Cuba (DDC) "even more arduous."
In that context, the director of DDC has sent a message to his readers "to request their support in continuing to do journalism with the highest possible standards within a closed society, such as the Cuban one," he added.
"Through our work, we not only inform Cubans or denounce the political, economic, and social crisis we are all experiencing, a crisis induced by the regime. We also train journalists; we seize every opportunity to bypass digital censorship and project a different Cuba. But our work comes at a cost: imprisonment, exile, interrogations, detentions, travel bans, harassment of relatives; cyberattacks," said Pablo Díaz in an editorial shared on February 7 on the DDC website.
In this regard, he also emphasized that journalism needs resources, "especially when it is produced in a decapitalized and seized country like ours," and this is the reason for his appeal to Cubans living outside of Cuba to make a voluntary contribution to DDC.
"There is no small amount. The price of a coffee where you live. That support is vital for us to continue bringing information to a Cuba that will undoubtedly soon be free," he concluded.
The crisis arising from the suspension of subsidies to independent media under the Cuban regime has been covered by the Reuters agency, which this Monday reported not only on the editorial from DDC but also on the reactions from other platforms such as Cubanet, which in 2024 received half a million dollars in aid from USAID and last week also requested support from its readers.
In a link attached to his Instagram profile, the dean of independent Cuban journalism, with 25 years of experience, is asking his readers for help to face "an unexpected challenge," referring to the suspension of U.S. funds that supported his team's work.
"Our journalists live and work within Cuba, facing daily repression from the regime and the misery that has engulfed the country. Our role over the years has been to support them and provide resources for their important work. If Cubanet stops reporting, those who seek to hide the reality will fill the void."
Although they suggest donating between 3 and 10 dollars, they also accept any other amount. "Every contribution, big or small, allows us to continue giving a voice to those who don’t have one," they note in their request for financial support.
In its report on the crisis of independent media, Reuters mentions CiberCuba, which is one of the few outlets that has not received, and has never received, support from any government or public or private institutions in its ten years of history. Therefore, it will continue to operate as it has so far, unaffected by the cuts in funding from USAID and NED.
"We are 100% funded by advertising," explained Luis Flores, the CEO of this platform.
Aside from exceptions like CiberCuba and Café Fuerte, among others, analysts have explained in statements to AP that the cut in foreign aid from the United States could benefit dictatorships and autocracies.
In fact, the Cuban activist Laritza Diversent from Cubalex has already stated to this portal that without the grants, she would not be able to maintain the team of legal advisors that has been monitoring human rights violations in Cuba for years. However, she assured that she will continue working, although she is aware that she will not achieve the same results or have the same impact.
Filed under:
