Flemish founder of indie news site seeks ‘answers for a better world’

“Each of these ‘niche’ sites has a loyal community base, and they are important for holding politicians accountable and in pushing the agenda,” says the media and journalism professor, who specialises in online and participatory journalism and new media. “Without them, our press system would be less pluralistic and less free, and our democracy worse off.”

One of these outlets is Pala, an independent media project founded some 18 years ago to “shine the light” on possible solutions to globalisation. Over the years, the Dutch-language website has attracted a dedicated following from the academic community and beyond.

Pala founder Dirk Barrez (pictured), a journalist with more than 20 years of experience, greets me in a library inside his house in the Sint-Joost municipality of Brussels. As he sits across the table, the conversation on achieving change and addressing the problems of globalisation quickly morphs into early conclusions.

“The main ambition for Pala is not only to look for problems, but also to find the answers to a better world,” he says.

What is Pala all about?

Dirk Barrez: We founded Pala in the late 1990s, when globalisation became a hot topic. You can of course be against globalisation, but you also have to find a way to a better future. This is Pala’s role in Flanders and the wider Dutch-speaking community.

Our main objective is to inform people about this increasingly globalised world. In our opinion, it should be more ecological, socially sustainable and based on democratic principles. Most people don’t think that’s possible. But just look at the solar industry. Over the last decade, production has increased 63 times globally; that’s a real change. It is our job to show that these ideas and principles are possible.

So… are you against globalisation?

No. From the beginning, we also set out to study anti-globalisation movements. Even if you are against globalisation, you should also remain critical of any alternatives. The problem with Marxist movements, for example, is that they tried to create an alternative system on more than one occasion, and each time it was a disaster – politically, democratically, socially and ecologically.

We also saw that neoliberalism – the other alternative – failed enormously in 2008, and again in 2011. We don’t seem to accept that neoliberalism, just like communism, should be relegated to the history books. We have to find solutions that don’t share the shortcomings of those two extremes.

What’s Pala’s process in delivering news?

We take a journalistic approach. You start with a general idea that you want to write about, and then look for sources to inform you. It’s completely different from “googling” and completely independent from mechanisms that show you information based on their own criteria and algorithms. You need to take control of your own search process.

Are you a truly independent outlet?

We are independent in the journalistic sense. We started as a one-man project, but we have always worked with other people, movements and organisations. Many of the books we have published, for example, were only possible thanks to other people. If you must join with other forces in society to find answers for the future, it’s a gain. But in every case, Pala is still autonomous. We also aren’t sponsored or subsidised. In that way, we’re an independent two-fold.

What tangible effect can outlets like Pala have?

Outlets like ours have shed light on many initiatives. Look at the co-operatives that are emerging in the energy sector in Germany, or at worker-collectives in Spain that bring together 80,000 people. Many people know nothing about them because they are not covered by mainstream media. But they exist, and if you know they exist, they can inspire you to take action.

But the question of tangible results – I’d really want to achieve them. Sometimes you can measure them, but it’s almost like asking about the theory of change. We are living in an era where communication possibilities are bigger than ever before, with easier access to more information. And still, what’s striking is that we are very slow in responding to it all in an adequate manner. If we look at history, society has been able to come up with alternative social systems in circumstances that were much more difficult – why can’t we do that today? It’s an open question.

In 2008, during the financial crisis, even politicians with a social agenda said to people: “I know these policies are not working, but this is the only way we can move forward.” If you’re looking for an explanation to rising populism, there it is.

Photo: Ben Gerdziunas