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50% Off for Life
A personal note from Maya Plentz — and an important ask
THE BRIEF counts on your support to keep our independent coverage of the United Nations, diplomacy, and global tech policy governance.
We are launching our first major membership drive — and are offering a 50% lifetime discount for new paid subscribers.
Why This Moment Matters
When I started covering the United Nations in New York, in the early 2000s, the UN was at the center of a polarizing global debate. The Iraq War, Kofi Annan’s principled leadership, and the ill-informed criticism from far-right think tanks and media outlets made thoughtful UN reporting essential.
I felt the absence of nuanced, informed coverage of multilateralism.
I built my career in the UN ecosystem — first reporting from inside the UN, as a reporter, website editor, and broadcast news presenter and producer at the News & Media Division of the UN Department of Public Information, under the leadership of Shashi Tharoor, who was Kofi Annan’s Under-Secretary-General for Communication and Public Information.
Later, when advising European Commissioner Carlos Moedas on financing research and innovation through the European Union’s Horizon 2020 and the Horizon Europe Framework Programme for Research and Innovation, to create a favorable environment for European tech unicorns to thrive, I stressed the importance of supporting reliable, credible, factual news outlets to make science news — and commercial applications of research — available to the general public.
Now covering Geneva diplomacy, and building THE BRIEF as a platform that champions facts, context, and the value of international cooperation, I hope to inform diplomats posted around the world, including Geneva, Paris, London, and New York, as well as UN officials spread throughout the globe, on the burning issues of economic development policy, in particular tech policy, as it is so pervasive to our lives.
Today, much like 20 years ago, the UN and the multilateral system face unprecedented pressure — political, financial, and structural. But there is even less independent media explaining what is actually happening inside these institutions.
THE BRIEF fills that gap. But to keep doing it, we need your support.
Why Become a Paid Subscriber?
If you’ve followed THE BRIEF, you know our mission:
Report what others overlook
Tech governance at UNESCO, WTO digital negotiations, AI regulation, cybersecurity diplomacy, humanitarian innovation — these stories rarely make mainstream headlines.Explain global governance in a clear, accessible way
Not institutional PR, but real analysis, interviews, and on-the-ground reporting.Give voice to diplomats, UN staff, policy experts, and innovators
The people who quietly shape international rules that affect everyone.Highlight the intersection of technology, regulation, and geopolitics
A rapidly growing space desperately in need of serious journalism.
Why Now?
Our funding environment has shifted. At the same time, the demand for reliable coverage has never been higher.
Geneva, Paris, London, Brussels, and New York are overflowing with critical decisions on AI governance, trade, digital policy, and humanitarian reform that will shape the next decade. THE BRIEF is one of the very few outlets following these stories closely.
To keep producing original interviews, on-site coverage from UN agencies, diplomatic analysis, explainer series on treaties and negotiations, and our expanding video and podcast formats, I’m asking for your support.
Get 50% off forever
What You’ll Get as a Paid Subscriber
In-depth analysis of UN, WTO, UNESCO, and diplomatic developments
Interviews with ambassadors, UN leaders, and tech policy experts
Special series from UN HQs in Geneva, Paris, and New York
Priority access to Q&As, event invitations, and briefings
Early access to THE BRIEF’s documentary, podcast, and video interviews
A real community of people who care about global governance and facts
In other words:
You’re not just supporting journalism — you’re strengthening multilateralism at a time when it is under attack.
If THE BRIEF has ever helped you:
understand a complex UN process
discover the personalities shaping foreign policy
prepare for a multi-stakeholder meeting
follow a treaty negotiation
understand what the UN agencies do
the stakes for implementation of UN reform
learn something about the history of diplomacy
or simply stay connected to the world of diplomacy and global affairs
…then please consider becoming a paid subscriber today.
Your support — at any level — makes a direct difference in sustaining the only independent, Geneva-based publication dedicated to UN & tech governance reporting.
Thank you for being part of this community.
Together, we can strengthen informed global dialogue — when it’s needed most.
Maya Plentz
Founder and Editor-in-Chief, THE BRIEF
We cover UN offices and conferences with our partners and correspondents in:
Geneva | Paris | New York | London | Vienna | Nairobi | Copenhagen | Dakar | Bonn