In recent years, migrations have been widely covered by the European media, often in controversial terms. With the outbreak of the pandemic, the situation has changed dramatically, but not for the better. An analysis
The Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) announces the first MFRR Summit, taking place online between 17th and 20th March. Locked Down: Protecting Europe’s Free Press will feature keynote speeches by Irene Khan and Věra Jourová, and bring together 32 journalists and experts from 16 countries to explore the threats facing media freedom in Europe across eight panels and two workshops
Time till 4 March to sign the statement in which the undersigned groups, representing a range of different public watchdogs (including journalists, activists, NGOs, lawyers, trade unions and whistleblowers), call on the Council of Europe (CoE) to act on the growing threat of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs)
Ukraine has gained some positions in the global ranking of media freedom – sadly, only because of demerits of others, as the situation in the country shows no improvements
An agreement between Telekom and the Telenor company threatens to completely alter the media market in Serbia. Telekom – with public money and agreements with other groups – threatens to become the dominant actor in Serbian media landscape, penalising media critical towards the government
MFRR partners share their concerns over the 4th February decision by a court in Budapest to reject the temporary license extension to Klubrádió in Hungary, warning it will have far-reaching implications for what remains of media pluralism and independent journalism in the country
The partners of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) express serious concern over the €10 million euro lawsuit launched against Italian news magazine L’Espresso by a former Vatican Cardinal over its reporting on his alleged involvement in a corruption scandal involving the use of Holy See funds
The Steering Committee of the BH Journalists Association and the Free Media Help Line strongly condemn the threats made by Adnan Čakalović, senior expert associate of the Sector for Refugees and Displaced Persons at the Ministry of Human Rights and Refugees of BiH, to Zinaida Đelilović, journalist of the online magazine Žurnal
There are two main discourses about Syrian refugees in Turkey's media: they are depicted either as "guests to help" - thus implicating moral superiority over Europe - or as a "threat", highlighting their otherness from the country's socio-cultural identity. Either way, disinformation is everywhere
After receiving death threats, editor-in-chief of Nezavisne novine Sandra Gojković-Arbutina is worried that the state will again fail to identify and sanction the perpetrator
A swirl of new acts and strategies has been announced in the last couple of weeks by the European Commission, including the European Democracy Action Plan, the Digital Markets Act, and the EU’s Cybersecurity Strategy. If we ask the right questions about foreign interference, these are all part of the answer
In recent years, Russia has been increasingly present in the West's hearts, minds, and debates, including in cultural production. Here we talk about three famous television series that brought the theme of Russian interference in the political life of Western countries onto the small screen
With the growing concerns about disinformation activities by Russia and China, the EU and - to varying degress - individual countries have shown increasing interest and initiative in the area of propaganda and strategic communication
A video conceived and directed by Désirée Klain, representative of the journalists association Articolo21 for the region Campania, with the collaboration to the script by Paola Rosà of OBCT. It is meant as a tool of understanding, dissemination, awareness raising
In Italy, similarly to other European countries, there is basically no structured initiative aimed at increasing the cybersecurity of the key actors of our democratic system. New measures are needed that do not entail increasing dependence on a small number of tech companies: cybersecurity in politics cannot exist independently of politics
The international anti-SLAPP coalition invested time and funds to draft a model directive that would help tackle the issue of vexatious lawsuits: now this paper will be presented to EU institutions and stakeholders, and could serve as a pattern for the promised EU initiatives against SLAPPs
For the platform Mapping Media Freedom, the Italian journalist Nello Scavo recalls his story and accuses the Italian government of non answering too many questions: "the silence that comes from unanswered questions was intended to discredit the work of journalists"
As the list gets longer of European journalists and activists targeted by vexatious lawsuits, institutions deliver concrete commitments for legislative actions and interventions that OBCT has also solicited in the last, intense year of transnational advocacy
Since the fighting with Armenia began in late September, Azerbaijan's government has severely restricted, when not completely blocked, Internet access. Pro-government media outlets have been spared from the restrictions
The partner organisations of the Council of Europe Platform for the promotion of journalism and the safety of journalists express their urgent and deep concern about the ongoing risks of injury and harm to media workers reporting on the armed conflict inside Nagorno Karabakh, and condemn any arbitrary restrictions imposed by state authorities engaged in the conflict because they represent undue interference in the ability of journalists to perform their important role of informing the public through free and independent reporting
19 international media freedom organisations and journalists associations renew their call against impunity in Malta. Here the full text of the call published by the Media Freedom Rapid Response
MFRR partners and media freedom organisations condemn the verdict and the entire proceedings. Beyond the violation of Martinovic’s human rights, his prosecution and conviction contribute to a chilling effect on media freedom in Montenegro
We believe it is abundantly clear that the number and nature of the spurious defamation lawsuits against Necenzurirano are not aimed at achieving justice, but instead at silencing the outlet by forcing its journalists to fight time-consuming and costly legal battles, draining them financially and discouraging them from further reporting
Upon leaving the hearing, Italian journalist Nello Scavo and Maltese blogger Manuel Delia were insulted by a crowd of people in support of Gafà. ECPMF condemns the insults, recalling that verbal threats from high-profile individuals can lead to acts of violence and send a message of impunity
In order to understand the needs of media workers all over Europe, OBCT is launching a survey inviting to answer to a few questions: journalists, stakeholders and media outlets have the possibility to describe what they are suffering in terms of intimidations and threats
Together with the Media Freedom Rapid Response, OBCT signs a letter to the Greek authorities undermining press freedom and threatening the public’s right to know by restricting access for media workers to sites where refugees and asylum seekers are held following the fire that destroyed the Moria camp
