The Media Resilience Network (MDRNet) is a newly launched initiative from Vita Activa designed to provide free, confidential mental health and peer support to journalists, especially those from underrepresented communities and newsrooms under strain. Offering one-on-one peer support, culturally attuned coaching and counseling, crisis and harm reduction services, and tailored “Task Force” assistance for local newsrooms, MDRNet (nicknamed “MotherNet”) aims to meet journalists at moments of emotional distress, professional doubt and physical risk. Operating via secure platforms like Signal and staffed beyond traditional business hours, the network emphasizes safety, trust and accessibility at a time when many reporters feel exposed and unsupported.
The launch comes amid alarming findings: 80% of surveyed journalists reported burnout or chronic stress in the past year, and just 2.5% described their mental health as excellent. According to Luisa Ortiz Pérez, executive director of Vita Activa, the crisis stems from relentless news cycles, shrinking newsroom resources, the rise of AI-driven workloads, disinformation and growing mistrust from both the public and within news organizations. Ortiz argues that mental health is not a luxury but essential infrastructure for journalism and democracy. By professionalizing care that has historically happened informally among peers, MDRNet seeks to help journalists stay grounded, safe and connected so they can continue doing the work that keeps communities informed.
Vita Activa received an infrastructure grant from Press Forward last year. This Q&A is lightly edited from a recent conversation with Ortiz after MDRNet’s launch ahead of the Knight Media Forum.
