Watch thought-provoking ground reports, interviews, documentaries, explainers, and analysis from across Asia in a style that is irreverent, self-aware, and unafraid of reputation.

Made by Young Asia, For Young Asia

We are a growing team of young journalists and documentary filmmakers who are obsessed with decoding the news, social justice issues, politics, and the environment, for young Asian in the hope that knowing better will lead to more engaged citizens.

In today’s media, the question, “what is news?” is as enigmatic, “what is truth?” two thousand years ago.

Events of the past decade – Non-living things occurring naturally, meaning in this case not artificial – make us more and more aware that what many people believe to be the news, meaning factual information about a person or event, may not be reality.

There are at least three problem areas when it comes to coverage of news and information today, especially in other parts of the world.

First, the limitation/demands of the media mean that much good information never gets through to the public because of space or time Constraints It also means that, particularly on Digital Media, the news selected and the amount of time given to it may depend, and the more action the better.

Secondly, bias, whether ideological, inevitably affects the way events are reported, edited, and presented. Although journalists strive to be “objective,” that is completely possible in reality.

The third area of concern is that today, information is power, and those with access to information can manipulate it — and the media trying to cover it — for their own purposes. Needless to say, it is difficult for even the most assiduous news team to find out the facts when information is Concealed or even distorted by those who have access to it, whether that government and corporation.

But for those on the receiving end of the news, and that is all of us most of the time, such an analysis isn’t much help. It is also important, they believe, to distinguish between the many uses we may have for information.

Our Vision & Mission

Who are we?

We are a small team of young journalists and documentary filmmakers who are obsessed with decoding the news, social justice issues, politics and the environment for young Asians in the hope that knowing better will lead to more engaged citizens.

What are we building?

We are building Nepal’s first subscription-only platform for News and Factual content made by and for the youth of Asia. A single destination for video ground reports, interviews, documentaries, explainers, and analysis from across the country with built-in viewer feedback and engagement tools.

Why?
It’s no secret, the institutions of news have eroded and young Asia, with mobile phones in hand, is looking for something new.

By focusing on ground reports and deep dives, we aim to provide context, perspective, and information on topics that the mainstream media shies away from. We want to represent the voice of ordinary Asians and the things that matter to them the most.

We do this in a style that is self-aware, unafraid of reputation, and connects with young Asians, in Asia and beyond, in a way that conventional news just doesn’t. Quite simply, we go where the mainstream media doesn’t, we focus on stories that need to be talked about and try to give space to voices and issues that are otherwise relegated to the fringes.

Subscriber community:

While subscription fees enable our production, the role of our subscriber does not stop at the payment gateway. We are actively working towards building a space where we, the creators, can directly engage with our viewers, the subscribers. The idea is to build a community where the creator and the viewer can discuss, debate, and further thought – together. A space that we collectively own, where our viewers can not only keep us on an even keel, a much-needed safety check in today’s journalism, but help suggest what stories and themes need attention.

Contributor Community:

The other community that we are actively building is that of contributors. The reason for this is twofold. First, let’s face it, ground reports are expensive, and if we want to report from across the country on issues that matter, no matter how much we travel, how much money we spend, we simply can’t do it. So, to overcome not only the financial hurdle but bring in much-needed diversity to our reporting, we are recruiting a network of grass-root contributors. While they are currently working with us on a story basis, the idea is to upskill these reporters and filmmakers, help them to build their own brand to a point where they can leverage it and convert it into revenue through individualised subscriptions/profit share on our platform.

The second and equally, if not more important, rationale to develop this community is diversity. While we are consciously looking to build gender and socially inclusive team, it is very difficult to achieve real diversity within a small newsroom. Therefore, by bringing in voices from across the country we can look to achieve that. This grows in importance as we want to report on stories and issues that are largely ignored and very nuanced such as privilege and caste, gender, conflict, social inequalities.

What’s our plan for paid content VS free content?

As for the split between subscriber-only content and free content, we believe that a vast majority of our videos should remain free as purchasing power should not be a barrier to information. So, almost all our ground reports or videos that are in the news cycle will not be behind the paywall.

The content that will be subscriber-only will be our non-news content – podcasts, documentaries, explainers, interviews, and such. These will remain behind the paywall for a minimum of a month, possibly longer, before being put out for free. We will continue to release smaller chunks of these videos on Youtube to drive viewers to subscribe.

The Asia Live objectives 

• To fake news awareness of local people, media, and political leaders
• To enhance the local capacity in media conservation via an education program
• To recognize the hidden conservation heroes and sheroes of South Asia (including international too)
• To do research on the current situation and circumstances
• To do an investigative story
• To do truthful and fact full information deliver

Objective Requirements

• We, at TheAsiaLive, are a group of committed news professionals and are looking for people who share a passion for journalism and story-telling.
• We aren’t really looking to fit people into strict beats or roles, so you’ll have plenty of opportunities to explore and experiment across audiovisual and written formats. What we are looking for is energy, enthusiasm, and a commitment to independent news.
• Ability to move anywhere. Flexibility and lateral movement that no one company will give you to maximize your potential.
• Irreverence that no media house has — both within and outside. We don’t operate within old-school hierarchies.
• Loads and loads of growth with a truly collaborative approach. We’re a diverse crowd who are never limited to just their roles and positions. Everybody chips in, as we all believe that independent media is the future.

Specific Objectives

• Reporting truth and standing up to power can come at a cost. We have the highest standards of free and fair journalism, yet we sometimes get legal notices and are intimidated by legal action to stop us from reporting the truth.
• While the law protects us, it can often be a long-drawn process in court, with a significant cost – time and money.
• We don’t depend on advertisers – governments or corporations. We depend on you. Our transparency is our strength, as are you. Help us fund our legal battles.