Strategic Media Visits and Media Funding Scheme 

Strategic media visits are guided group visits of accredited journalists in ESO member and partner states to ESO sites, either in Chile or Germany, that aim at strengthening the visibility of ESO in high-profile media outlets. For these visits, ESO normally organises, and covers the cost of, meals, accommodation and, in the case of visits to the observatory sites, internal Chile flights. 

As of 2025, as part of a pilot for a new funding scheme for media visits, ESO will also contribute up to 500 EUR per journalist towards the cost of international flights, if needed and desired. This funding will initially be available only to those participating in “international” strategic media visits (see types of strategic visits below). Eligible journalists can apply to participate in these strategic visits and, hence, receive this contribution towards their international travel. 

Strategic visits complement our standard media visits, organised on a per-request basis and tailored to the needs of individual media visitors. Travel costs for standard visits are not covered by ESO. 

Who can apply 

Active journalists, including freelancers, reporting for high-profile media outlets in ESO member and partner states (Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom + Australia and Chile) are eligible to apply to join our strategic visits.

How to apply 

Journalists interested in joining this year’s international strategic media trip need to apply five to six months in advance of the visit (e.g. if the visit is planned for late November, the deadline for applications would be end of June). You can find dates and further details for this year’s trip below.

Applications must be written in English and include:

• A cover letter (max 1 page) detailing the journalist’s motivation to travel to an ESO site, the type or types of pieces that would be produced as a result of the visit, and where and when (roughly) they would be published. It should also provide an estimate of the international travel costs the applicant is expected to incur, as well as disclose sources of funding (beyond ESO’s support) in paying for the trip.
• A summary of experience (max 1 page): a short CV detailing professional affiliations, previous experience and acclaim.
• For freelancers only: a letter from an editor of a recognised high-profile media outlet confirming they will publish the applicant’s story or stories following their visit to an ESO site.

Applications should be sent to Bárbara Ferreira at press@eso.org with subject line “Application for strategic media visit”.

Evaluation criteria 

Submissions will be evaluated by a panel of ESO staff according to the following criteria:

• Distribution plan for the published pieces, with a focus on impact and popularity
• Experience of the candidate
• ESO strategic factors (e.g. we may favour an applicant from a country where ESO has reduced visibility)

Successful applicants are expected to publish at least one substantial item reporting on ESO’s activities and products within six months of the visit. This can include text, radio stories, TV/video or multimedia features, published in any official language of ESO member or partner states.

For any queries about the strategic media visits and their associated funding, please contact Bárbara Ferreira (press@eso.org).

Types of strategic visits and dates 

International 

ESO typically organises one international strategic visit each year for 5-10 journalists of all ESO member states and Australia. The details for this year’s visit are as follows:

When: 19-21 November

Where: ESO’s Paranal Observatory, Atacama Desert, Chile.

Duration: 2 nights, 3 days

Facilities: ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) and its Interferometer (VLTI); ESO’s Extremely Large Telescope (ELT; under advanced construction). Optional: ESO’s Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy (VISTA) and the south site of the Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO-South; under initial construction), depending on time and site availability.

Chile 

Separate strategic visits for reporters in Chile to ESO's observatory sites in the country are organised each year whenever deemed relevant. For information on planned strategic visits for Chilean reporters to ESO’s observatories, please contact ESO at contacto@eso.org.

ESON 

Sporadically, additional strategic visits for media of a specific ESO member state may be organised by members of the ESO Science Outreach Network (ESON), in collaboration with ESO. Please contact the ESON Coordinator Mariya Lyubenova at mlyubeno@eso.org for information on planned visits for reporters of your country.

Disclaimer: Any coverage of ESO, its projects and activities that results from media visits is at the discretion of the media outlets, entirely independent of ESO and subject to the outlet’s editorial policies. ESO staff exerts no control over the content of the pieces, but is available to provide additional materials (e.g. photos and videos) and to fact-check segments of the piece if needed.  

Any financial support is provided by ESO on a voluntary basis. This scheme does not establish any legal entitlements for journalists to any support. A rejection of an application is not appealable.