The Vjesnik enters a new era

Announcement to readers of Hrvatski Vjesnik – The Croatian Herald

Dear Readers,

As the Chairman of the Board, I am writing to deliver some important news regarding the future of our prized institution, The Croatian Herald (Vjesnik).

Over four decades, The Vjesnik has been a pillar of our community, a trusted source of news and cultural connector for our Australian-based diaspora. The media landscape has changed enormously over that period, especially over the last decade. It has left us with an inevitable decision to catch up and progress with the digital times, but one we feel can positively impact and strengthen the Croatian community for generations to come.

Currently, we are facing similar challenges to that of many media organisations - dwindling newspaper sales and advertising revenue, particularly from Government sources which for so long was a vital revenue stream for The Vjesnik.

I joined The Vjesnik board in 2018 as the newspaper's future was in grave doubt and requiring backing. If it were purely a financial decision, we would have stopped printing The Vjesnik six years ago. The last four years have been particularly challenging, with COVID-19 accelerating The Vjesnik’s decline as printing and distribution costs tripled whilst sales and advertising plummeted, placing an even bigger financial burden on me to keep the newspaper afloat.

We have made the decision to focus our efforts on transitioning The Vjesnik into a digital publication (website and social media channels) from April 2025. As such, we are making the difficult but necessary decision to print our final weekly edition of The Vjesnik on Wednesday March 26, 2025. Thereafter we will transition to a monthly newspaper until the end of June 2025. Unless print sales of the monthly edition pick up significantly, the likelihood is that we will permanently cease printing The Vjesnik, with the absolute focus switching to digital.

Make no mistake, this is not the end of The Vjesnik. Instead, we are determined to keep the Croatian community alive and we are committed to re-engaging the younger generations and enticing future generations to maintain a connection to the Croatian community via an expanded digital offering, which will include sport, culture and events.

I am committed to investing in the resources required to make this a success, and this will include expanding our editorial team to give the digital migration every chance of succeeding, as we don’t underestimate the increasingly vital role The Vjesnik will play in preserving the rich Croatian culture that our parents, grandparents and ancestors worked so hard to establish, amid the challenges that many migrant communities face.

I would like to pay tribute to the editorial team, with special acknowledgment of our Editor-in-Chief, George Sabljak, whose leadership has been instrumental in guiding us through some turbulent times over the past 13 years. I would also like to thank the hundreds, if not thousands of contributors and editors, since The Vjesnik’s inception, all of whom have helped create this institution.

We believe this decision will help preserve and strengthen The Vjesnik’s legacy, so we ask you, the readers and the Croatian community, to support us as we enter this new era. We will provide more updates over coming weeks and months.

Ivan Filipović
Chairman of the Board
Hrvatski Vjesnik - The Croatian Herald