Charlie Smith
THE Olive Press stands for strong, independent, investigative local journalism.
And you don’t have to take our word for it – just ask Google.
The internet giant has recognised us through its Google News Initiative and dipped into its coffers to give the Olive Press a substantial grant.
Its Journalism Emergency Relief Fund was set up to help small and medium sized news organisations weather the COVID-19 storm.
But applicants had to meet stringent conditions to qualify.
First and foremost they had to produce ‘original news for local communities’, with the emphasis on news, and have a digital presence, among other criteria.
Google set high standards for the awards and not many applicants achieved them.
The Olive Press was chosen as one of a handful in Spain – and just 1,550 newsrooms around the three continents of Europe, Africa and the Middle East to get the grant.
We have already invested some of the money in taking on new journalists, not buying Bentleys or i-Macs, and we continue to break dozens of big stories in Spain every month.
We pride ourselves on producing relevant investigative news that connects with the expat community – and we are glad to see Google agrees.
