Media Development Investment Fund

Media Development Investment Fund is a not-for-profit venture capital firm based in New York City, established in 1995. The organization focuses on providing debt and equity financing to independent media businesses in regions with a history of media oppression. By offering affordable financing and technical assistance, it aims to help independent news outlets develop sustainable operations centered on quality news and information. Since its inception, the fund has disbursed over $325.5 million in financing, encompassing loans, equity investments, and technical assistance. It has supported 154 clients across 48 countries, and by the end of December 2024, it managed a portfolio valued at $118.4 million, allocated among 65 media enterprises in 36 countries.

Kevin Brockland

Principal Investment Officer

Harlan Mandel JD

CEO and Board Member

Marie Nemcova

COO

37 past transactions

Egab

Pre Seed Round in 2025
Egab is a digital media platform that specializes in solutions journalism, aimed at empowering local journalists. The company provides tools and resources that enable journalists to create profiles and publish news articles and stories in both regional and international media outlets. By facilitating the dissemination of inspiring stories, Egab helps local journalists gain visibility and reach global audiences, thereby enhancing the impact of their work in reputable media.

Hukumonline.com

Series B in 2024
PT Justika Siar Publika, known as Hukumonline.com, is a regulatory-tech company established by leading legal experts at the onset of Indonesia's reform era. Its primary mission is to educate and enlighten the public about legal matters in Indonesia. In response to the evolving digital landscape, Hukumonline.com has integrated technology into its offerings, providing a comprehensive range of legal products and services. The platform enables companies, law firms, and government agencies to access accurate and concise analyses of the latest regulations, available in both English and Indonesian. Hukumonline.com aims to ensure that users are well-informed about current laws, policies, and regulations issued by the government.

The Current

Venture Round in 2023
The Current is a Pakistani digital media company, established in 2016, specializing in delivering news and lifestyle content tailored to millennials. It offers a user-friendly platform that covers politics, entertainment, and lifestyle news, providing real-time updates and in-depth analysis to foster informed public discourse.

PumaPodcast

Venture Round in 2023
PumaPodcast, based in the Philippines, is a production company specializing in podcast creation. With over 40 shows, it caters to a wide range of interests in the Southeast Asian podcast industry, from informative news and in-depth documentaries to entertaining lifestyle topics, keeping listeners engaged and informed.

Hashtag Our Stories

Venture Round in 2023
Hashtag Our Stories is an international mobile journalism network based in Durban, South Africa, founded in 2017. The company specializes in creating and publishing vertical video stories on social media platforms, emphasizing diverse narratives that highlight local solutions to global challenges. It aims to address the perceived shortcomings of traditional news media, which often lacks diversity and focuses on negative themes, by promoting positive, impactful storytelling through mobile devices. By empowering individuals to share their stories in various languages, Hashtag Our Stories fosters a unique approach to news dissemination and engagement.

Dataphyte

Venture Round in 2021
Dataphyte is a media and data analytics company focused on leveraging data tools and technology for socio-economic purposes. It specializes in the collection, analysis, and visualization of development data, offering products and services that include data journalism and data-driven investigations. By providing insightful narratives, Dataphyte assists both public and private sectors in generating value from data and socio-economic insights. This enables clients, including policymakers and citizens, to make informed decisions and promote effective policy changes.

Zitamar News

Venture Round in 2021
Zitamar News is a Mozambican media company that operates an English-language investigative news website and newsletter. It provides multi-category news coverage, focusing on politics, economy, oil and gas, infrastructure, metals and minerals, electricity, and transport. Additionally, it produces audio news bulletins to reach underserved regions, ensuring daily access to breaking news and analysis for its readers.

Datasketch

Pre Seed Round in 2021
Datasketch is a data science platform that specializes in data analytics software, enabling users to upload, clean, and visualize their data. The platform offers a suite of tools for data collection, editing, and visualization, allowing clients to create custom data visualizations and export them in various formats for publication on social networks. Additionally, Datasketch provides access to an open data repository containing numerous datasets that can enhance users' own data. The company's mission is to democratize data science and promote transparency, aiming to reduce social inequality by empowering individuals and organizations with accessible data analysis capabilities.

Petit Press

Venture Round in 2021
Petit Press is a prominent publishing agency based in Bratislava, Slovakia, recognized for its extensive range of multimedia products and services. The company manages a diverse portfolio of over 30 printed periodicals, which includes both central and regional titles, achieving a weekly sales volume exceeding 545,000 copies. Additionally, Petit Press operates one of the most visited news portals in Slovakia, SME.sk, attracting nearly 2.3 million visitors per month. Through its publications and digital media presence, Petit Press delivers timely news and information to a broad audience, reinforcing its significance in the Slovak media landscape.

Insajder

Debt Financing in 2021
Insajder is a multimedia platform that operates a cable television channel dedicated to producing and broadcasting current information and documentary programs. As the company matures, it is embarking on an ambitious project to expand its offerings by developing various media platforms in addition to its cable channel. This strategic direction reflects Insajder's commitment to delivering comprehensive and engaging content to its audience.

Colab.re

Venture Round in 2020
Colab.re is a citizen-to-government engagement platform founded in 2012 and headquartered in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The company facilitates social interaction among citizens to report daily urban issues, suggest improvements, and evaluate public services. In addition, it provides governments with a freemium customer relationship management and workflow management tool. As of March 2016, Colab.re has over 150,000 users in Brazil and serves more than 100 clients, including municipalities, state governments, federal departments, and utility companies. The company's mission is to foster collaboration between citizens and government in order to create better urban environments.

Colab

Venture Round in 2020
Colab is a citizen-to-government engagement platform that offers a social network for citizens focused on public and governmnet services.

Josh Talks

Seed Round in 2020
Josh Talks Pvt. Ltd., established in 2015, operates a content platform that produces and distributes short talks and videos, focusing on sectors like entrepreneurship, sports, arts, and activism. Based in Gurugram, India, with an additional office in Dhaka, Bangladesh, the company targets 16-25 year-olds in Tier 2, 3, and 4 cities. Its content, available in regional languages, has amassed over 2.5 billion lifetime views, with an average of 180 million monthly views across platforms. Josh Talks also offers an English speaking app, with 5 million downloads and 300,000 paid users, promoting English language learning through peer-to-peer practice. The company collaborates with prominent partners like Amazon and Meta to scale its impact and contribute to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.

Hukumonline.com

Series A in 2020
PT Justika Siar Publika, known as Hukumonline.com, is a regulatory-tech company established by leading legal experts at the onset of Indonesia's reform era. Its primary mission is to educate and enlighten the public about legal matters in Indonesia. In response to the evolving digital landscape, Hukumonline.com has integrated technology into its offerings, providing a comprehensive range of legal products and services. The platform enables companies, law firms, and government agencies to access accurate and concise analyses of the latest regulations, available in both English and Indonesian. Hukumonline.com aims to ensure that users are well-informed about current laws, policies, and regulations issued by the government.

MyNews

Seed Round in 2020
MyNews is a journalism channel that brings information and a diversity of ideas to its audience. They create more programs and debates related to the economy, culture, and politics. They provide context and quality information for presenting and discussing ideas.

Food For Mzansi

Seed Round in 2020
Food For Mzansi's mission is to tell the untold stories of the people work hard every day to put food on everyone's plate.

Red Accion

Seed Round in 2019
Red Accion is a digital media outlet covering social issues, focuses on solutions journalism and gives importance to citizen participation.

Daily Maverick

Grant in 2018
The Daily Maverick is an online newspaper based in Johannesburg, South Africa, launched in 2009. It provides a comprehensive blend of news, analysis, and opinions across various sections, including Wired World, Africa, South Africa, business, life, and sports. The publication focuses on delivering information relevant to business, investing, technology, entrepreneurship, and leadership, while also catering to an affluent lifestyle. Through its offerings, which include newsletters and opinion pieces, the Daily Maverick aims to engage readers with insightful content and diverse perspectives.

Katadata

Venture Round in 2018
Katadata Indonesia, PT is an online media and research company based in Jakarta, Indonesia, dedicated to providing comprehensive economic and business news. Established in 2012, the platform serves as a valuable resource for business leaders and policymakers by delivering in-depth analyses and investigations. Katadata focuses on presenting information in a clear and engaging manner, utilizing various formats such as infographics and videos to enhance public understanding. The company's approach aims to simplify complex topics while maintaining their essential details, reflecting its commitment to clarity and accessibility. The team at Katadata consists of experienced journalists and researchers specializing in areas such as energy, finance, macroeconomics, commerce, and infrastructure. As internet and mobile usage in Indonesia continues to grow, Katadata positions itself as a key player in the dissemination of economic and financial information.

Mail & Guardian

Acquisition in 2017
Mail & Guardian is an online newspaper founded in 1994 and based in Johannesburg, South Africa. It offers a comprehensive platform for local and international news, covering various categories such as opinion, arts and culture, business, politics, special reports, science and technology, and education. The publication operates on a subscription basis, providing readers with insightful articles and updates on diverse topics, including sports and health. Under the editorial leadership of Chris Roper, Mail & Guardian is committed to delivering high-quality journalism that informs and engages its audience regarding current events and issues worldwide.

Suara

Seed Round in 2017
Suara is a news portal that delivers up-to-date information across various sectors including politics, business, law, football, entertainment, lifestyle, automotive, science, and technology. The platform is designed to engage citizen journalists and caters primarily to millennials, with a strong emphasis on political news and local issues. Suara provides daily updates to keep its audience informed about current events.

Katadata

Venture Round in 2017
Katadata Indonesia, PT is an online media and research company based in Jakarta, Indonesia, dedicated to providing comprehensive economic and business news. Established in 2012, the platform serves as a valuable resource for business leaders and policymakers by delivering in-depth analyses and investigations. Katadata focuses on presenting information in a clear and engaging manner, utilizing various formats such as infographics and videos to enhance public understanding. The company's approach aims to simplify complex topics while maintaining their essential details, reflecting its commitment to clarity and accessibility. The team at Katadata consists of experienced journalists and researchers specializing in areas such as energy, finance, macroeconomics, commerce, and infrastructure. As internet and mobile usage in Indonesia continues to grow, Katadata positions itself as a key player in the dissemination of economic and financial information.

Colab.re

Series A in 2017
Colab.re is a citizen-to-government engagement platform founded in 2012 and headquartered in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The company facilitates social interaction among citizens to report daily urban issues, suggest improvements, and evaluate public services. In addition, it provides governments with a freemium customer relationship management and workflow management tool. As of March 2016, Colab.re has over 150,000 users in Brazil and serves more than 100 clients, including municipalities, state governments, federal departments, and utility companies. The company's mission is to foster collaboration between citizens and government in order to create better urban environments.

Volume

Venture Round in 2017
Volume provides concept development, narration, scripting theme music, scoring, editing, and mastering services. They also offer multimedia packaging for social and web platforms, as well as podcast promotion through podcast players and apps.

Rappler

Venture Round in 2016
Rappler, Inc. is a social news network based in Pasig, the Philippines, founded in 2012. The platform is designed to inspire community engagement and facilitate actions for social change through its storytelling. By leveraging new technology and social media, Rappler aims to foster smart conversations and ignite a desire for change among its audience. The company publishes a variety of social news stories and utilizes a tool called the mood meter to analyze reader reactions, ensuring that users remain informed about current events and community issues. Rappler is committed to providing uncompromised journalism that resonates with its audience and encourages active participation in societal discussions.

Agora SA

Post in 2016
Agora is the publisher of "Gazeta Wyborcza" - the largest Polish opinion-forming newspapers and several glossy magazines. Their products complement media websites.

Colab.re

Convertible Note in 2015
Colab.re is a citizen-to-government engagement platform founded in 2012 and headquartered in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The company facilitates social interaction among citizens to report daily urban issues, suggest improvements, and evaluate public services. In addition, it provides governments with a freemium customer relationship management and workflow management tool. As of March 2016, Colab.re has over 150,000 users in Brazil and serves more than 100 clients, including municipalities, state governments, federal departments, and utility companies. The company's mission is to foster collaboration between citizens and government in order to create better urban environments.

Thabure Media Group

Seed Round in 2015
Thabure Media Group is a multifaceted media company that focuses on printing and publishing a variety of materials, including newspapers in both tabloid and broadsheet formats, retail promotional pamphlets, corporate newsletters, and specialized supplements covering topics such as property, travel, and the economy. In addition to its publishing services, Thabure also offers freight and delivery solutions, as well as advertising services. The company aims to serve as an advocate for an open society by providing information that keeps the public informed, educated, and entertained.

El Meme

Seed Round in 2014
El Meme is a news and entertainment outlet based in Argentina, established in 2014. The company specializes in identifying and monitoring trends to enhance understanding of global events and their relevance to audiences. It boasts a network of over 10,000 digital creative professionals, including writers, filmmakers, and communication experts. El Meme reaches an audience of more than 30 million young millennials across the United States, Mexico, Colombia, Chile, and Argentina each month. The company provides digital content production services, including content marketing and native advertising, while also focusing on targeted audience distribution through programmatic buying and social media platforms.

GkillCity

Seed Round in 2014
GKillCity is a digital, countercultural citizens’ communication project. It was founded in 2011, in Guayaquil, and 152 editions have been published since, with contributions of over 290 collaborators from all over the world. New media in Ecuador is almost unexplored, and Gkillcity.com wants become the iconic digital media of Ecuador. It aims to create more audio content and mobile applications, and also make use of digital TV channels.

Scroll

Seed Round in 2014
Scroll Media Inc. is a digital publishing company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that specializes in delivering news, information, and entertainment. Founded in 2009, Scroll provides a platform for journalists and readers, focusing on critical perspectives and rigorous reporting of significant political and cultural stories. The company offers a newsfeed that highlights essential events and issues, catering to a global audience through various digital formats, including mobile devices and tablets. By emphasizing objective analysis and comprehensive coverage, Scroll aims to keep its readers informed on daily developments and crises across multiple sectors.

Outernet

Seed Round in 2014
Outernet will utilize a constellation of low-cost, miniature satellites and existing satellite infrastructure in geostationary orbit. In both cases, satellites receive content from the web through a network of ground stations which uplink content that the community has collectively requested. The data packets are broadcast in loops so that poor signal quality does not prevent continuous updating of content. In order to serve the widest possible audience, Outernet utilizes globally-accepted, standards-based protocols, such as DVB-S, WiFi, and USSD. Citizens from all over the world, through SMS and feature-phone apps, will participate in building the information priority list. Users of Outernet's website also make suggestions for content to broadcast.

Everwrite

Venture Round in 2013
EverWrite is a company founded in 2011 by Diego Tulio Tomaz Gomes and Edmar Ferreira, based in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. It specializes in providing tools that enhance the findability of online content and improve return on investment for publishers. EverWrite employs a statistical approach to content production, analyzing millions of search terms daily to identify keyword opportunities that align with user search behavior. This workflow enables publishers to create content that ranks highly on search engines, particularly Google's first page, thereby attracting significant organic search traffic and maintaining an effective content strategy.

PT Digital Era Baru Nusantara [PortalKBR.com]

Venture Round in 2013
PT Digital Era Baru Nusantara provides news services. They provide services for media production, broadcast, and online journalism. An online inquiry form is available on the company's website.

Agrobook

Venture Round in 2012
Agrobook is a developer of an agribusiness platform that serves the agricultural industry in Russia. The company provides an online professional network that facilitates discussions on topics such as profitable selling and buying within the farming community. Agrobook offers valuable resources, including background information on agricultural companies and institutions, enabling farmers and entrepreneurs to stay informed about important industry events. Through its platform, Agrobook aims to enhance communication and knowledge sharing among its users, ultimately supporting the growth and development of the agricultural sector.

Everwrite

Seed Round in 2012
EverWrite is a company founded in 2011 by Diego Tulio Tomaz Gomes and Edmar Ferreira, based in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. It specializes in providing tools that enhance the findability of online content and improve return on investment for publishers. EverWrite employs a statistical approach to content production, analyzing millions of search terms daily to identify keyword opportunities that align with user search behavior. This workflow enables publishers to create content that ranks highly on search engines, particularly Google's first page, thereby attracting significant organic search traffic and maintaining an effective content strategy.

FeedGeorge

Venture Round in 2012
Feedgeorge is a location-based content aggregator based in Kuala Lumpur.
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