400 Yoyos Or The '404' of Death? Indymedia Ireland Fundraising Appeal

national | indymedia ireland | feature Monday October 17, 2005 06:49 by Indymedia Ireland Editorial Group - Indymedia Ireland

'A proud boast' sez Wag. '4 years, not a cent on consultants and the thing actually works'

Indymedia Ireland recently completed it's fourth year of uninterrupted service. Over those years 373 features, 16,503 stories, 13,893 images and 115,139 comments have been published on the site. Our traffic has continued to increase and the quality and range of stories published continues to improve.

We have done all this on a tiny budget, with no advertising, no employees and complete autonomy from all political organisations. We use an open and transparent method to organise our work. Our editorial collective is made up entirely of volunteers, organised as equals. This has allowed us to remain truly independent and to provide space for all those voices marginalised by the mainstream. From Dublin to Rossport, Clonakilty to Donegal, we give people a voice and a way to be heard.

However, the cupboard is now bare. Our bank account is empty and we need to pay a 400 euro hosting bill by the end of the month. We are appealing to our users to put their hand in their pockets and ensure the survival and future viability of open publishing news in Ireland. That means YOU!

Thusfar most of the costs associated with the site have been funded by volunteers putting their hands in their pockets. However, as our traffic grows, so do our hosting costs. Every time a page is downloaded from the site, it costs us money. We would like to expand the services offered and allow bigger pictures, more multimedia and so on. However, in order to provide these things freely to the public, we need help with raising money.

Our bank account is empty and we are facing a bill of approximately 400 euro at the end of the month. Therefore we are launching a fundraising appeal to raise this money. We appeal to all users of the site to put their hands in their pockets and help us out. If we can raise sufficent money through donations, we can keep the site open, democratic and independent - and free of advertising.

So, if you are a regular user of the site and want it to keep going and keep getting better, please give generously to support the project. Even a small donation will be a great help in paying the bills.

If you are a member of an organisation which uses the site to distribute information, advertise events, or comment on current affairs, consider asking your organisation to make a donation.

You could even organise a fundraiser in your area for Indymedia. We can help out by providing films, tutorials and materials. Holding an indymedia night is also a good way of putting yourself in touch with others in your area who are supporters of the site and trying to build a local indymedia collective in your area.

We are also always looking for more volunteers to help with the running of the site. If you have a reasonable amount of online access and want to get involved, just sign up to the editorial list and join in the discussion.

From November onwards we will also be holding regular monthly indymedia meetings in Dublin, on the first Wednesday of every month at 8pm in the EENGO office on Camden street (above the Bounty store and across the road from the Ulster Bank). A Belfast collective is also in the process of formation and will start holding meetings in the near future - watch this space.

Unfortunately we have been forced to postpone the Videoactive festival which we were planning for early November. In place of this event, we will hold a film showing and a music evening in Dublin. If you are interested in helping to organise this, please come to our fundraising meeting next Wednesday evening in the EENGO office.

Notes

• This fundraising appeal has been facilitated by the Independent Media Support Group
• Any donations of 20 euro or more (or 10 euro for the unwaged) entitles the donor to membership of the Independent Media Support Group
• Every penny raised will be spent entirely on Indymedia projects. We pay no wages, dividends, profits, etc