The Information Economy Alliance is an independent network created to strengthen serious publications operating outside the largest mainstream media institutions.
Run by SCRIBE, the Social Centre for Research for Inclusive, Better and Equal Life, the Alliance supports independent news services by providing recognition, shared opportunities, access to relevant sources and a framework for cooperation.
Independent publications often produce valuable journalism, specialist reporting and public-interest analysis without the infrastructure available to major media organisations. They may have fewer institutional contacts, less access to press material and greater difficulty demonstrating their legitimacy to sources, readers and potential partners.
The Information Economy Alliance exists to reduce those disadvantages while preserving the editorial independence of its members.
Accreditation
Selected publications may be invited to become accredited members of the Alliance.
Information Economy Alliance accreditation recognises publications that demonstrate a serious editorial purpose, a meaningful publishing record and compatibility with the Alliance’s principles. Accreditation cannot simply be purchased and is not automatically available through application.
Accredited publications may display the official Alliance mark and appear in the Alliance’s public directory.
The accreditation is a private institutional recognition. It is not government approval, statutory press regulation, UKAS accreditation or a guarantee that every article published by a member is accurate. Member publications remain responsible for their own reporting, editorial decisions and legal obligations.
Membership and access
Accredited publications become members of the Information Economy Alliance.
Membership may provide access to:
- information and news sources that approach the Alliance or SCRIBE directly;
- material made available exclusively or initially to Alliance members;
- interview, briefing and collaboration opportunities;
- communication with other independent publications;
- relevant research, announcements and source requests;
- inclusion in Alliance projects and public directories.
Access may depend on relevance, confidentiality, embargo conditions and the instructions of the source. Membership does not guarantee access to every item received by the Alliance.
Honorary membership in SCRIBE
Accredited publications also receive honorary institutional membership in SCRIBE.
This connects participating publications with SCRIBE’s wider work concerning public knowledge, inclusion, privacy, dignity and better systems of everyday life.
Honorary membership may provide access to selected resources, consultations, events and collaborative opportunities. It does not automatically provide ownership, voting rights or governance authority within SCRIBE.
Independence
The Alliance does not control the editorial positions of its members.
Accredited publications remain independent and may hold different political, cultural and intellectual perspectives. Accreditation does not mean that SCRIBE or the Alliance endorses every article, opinion or activity associated with a member publication.
Members are nevertheless expected to represent their accreditation accurately, protect confidential information, distinguish editorial material from paid promotion and make reasonable efforts to correct significant factual errors.
Our purpose
The Information Economy Alliance is not founded on hostility toward mainstream media.
Its purpose is to ensure that public importance is not determined solely by institutional size, advertising power or access to established media networks.
A healthy information economy needs large publications, but it also needs specialist outlets, local journalism, independent analysis and publications willing to cover subjects that larger organisations overlook.
The Alliance exists to help serious independent publications become easier to identify, approach, support and trust.