Working in partnership with its media investment arm, GroupM, WPP has today (27 March) announced that it has joined the Media Freedom Cohort.

Established in 2021 during US President Joe Biden’s ‘Summit for Democracy’, the organisation has three key areas of focus, namely; protecting journalists’ safety and security; advancing freedom of expression; and bolstering independent and diverse media.

Led by the world’s largest media non-profit, Internews in collaboration with the Canadian and Dutch governments, the cohort already boasts an illustrious membership which includes the Associated Press, The New York Times, Microsoft, Google, BBC Media Action, and Free Press Unlimited. It is backed by over 100 governments worldwide.

“Independent journalism plays a vital role around the world and we are pleased to be able to support that through GroupM. We look forward to working with the Media Freedom Cohort to ensure a diversity of credible media outlets worldwide,” WPP CEO, Mark Read said.

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Upon joining the organisation, WPP has committed to: creating dedicated marketplaces exclusively with domains vetted by Internews’ Ads for News for responsible journalism across its top markets, driving awareness among its clients and the wider industry about the importance of investing in responsible journalism and by adding the domains for responsible journalism in the local media supply offered to clients.

GroupM CEO, Christian Juhl added: “A healthy media ecosystem depends on a thriving news business that supports journalists and incentivizes fact-based reporting.

“As the world’s leading media investment organization, we’re proud to support the work of the Media Freedom Cohort through our global partnership with Internews and commitment to investing in responsible journalism.”