A bomb blast today damaged a building in Athens housing the headquarters of Greece’s private radio and television network Skai and Greek daily newspaper Khatimerini, but there were no casualties. Anti-terrorist police opened an investigation into the attack that focused on Greek extremist groups. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) join their Greek affiliates in condemning the blast as “an attack on media pluralism”. The homemade device went off at around 2:37 am, 45 minutes after an anonymous telephone warning to another TV network. Police cordoned off the neighbourhood in the Athens suburb of Neo Phaliro and evacuated the building, which contains…

The International and European Federation of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ) have backed their Greek affiliates, standing with 420 MEGA TV station journalists and media workers left with no pay and no jobs for over 16 months. MEGA is one of the first private TV stations established in Greece, 28 years ago, and has attracted large audiences for practicing reliable and quality journalism in news bulletins and news programs and producing very popular series. During the past months, the station was broadcasting only entertainment content, bringing in a lot of advertising money. However the journalists were left with no pay. The…

International Federation of Journalists affiliates from all over the world have backed colleagues from the Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN) who began a 24-hour general strike at 6pm today. Unions from South Africa, Australia and the US today sent solidarity messages to Greek colleagues, who are fighting to protect a Fund – Unified Journalistic Organisation of Subsidiary Social Insurance and Health Care (EDOEAP) – which for over 50 years has provided social security and welfare payments for journalists and media workers in Greece. “We the workers in news information are going on strike demanding a new ‘Charter’ for…

The two oldest newspapers in Greece, To Vima and Ta Nea, were among the publications which were supposed to cease publication last weekend. On Saturday , the media group which owns them, Lambrakis Press Group (DOL), announced the end of their publications “within days due to financial reasons.” The International and European Federation of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ), together with their Greek affiliates, are asking for time to negotiate a long term solution. As a result, over 500 media workers, including 250 journalists, most of whom are members of the IFJ/EFJ Greek affiliate JUADN (Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers),…

The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ) have strongly backed calls by Greek journalists to prevent banks forcing the closure of the country’s oldest newspapers and threatening up to 500 jobs. The IFJ and EFJ have backed demands from their Greek affiliate, the Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN), to stop the banks foreclosing on the Lambriakis Press Group (DOL) loans.  The group, which owns the oldest national newspapers To Vima and Ta Nea, is facing serious trouble after the banks threatened to call in their loans. Over 500 media workers, including 250 journalists, most of…

On 10 January, Greek police arrested the publisher and the director of Parapolitika newspaper, Giannis Kourtakis and Panayiotis Tzenos, following a lawsuit filed against them for libel and attempted extortion by Greek defense minister Panos Kammenos. The EFJ and the IFJ condemned today the massive police raid at Parapolitika headquarters in Athens and the detention of both newspaper executives. Publisher Giannis Kourtakis said he went voluntarily to the police headquarters after being informed about the lawsuit, while director Panagiotis Tzenos was arrested by police in his office, in Athens. Panos Kammenos filed a lawsuit against Kourtakis and Tzenos for allegedly…

The Steering Committee of the European Federation of Journalists decided today that the EFJ will hold its 2017 Annual Meeting in Athens, Greece, on 18th and 19th May, 2017. The meeting will be hosted by the Panhellenic Federation of Journalists’ Unions (POESY-PFJU) in the headquarters of the Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN). Dimitris Koupias, president of PFJU, said it will be “an opportunity to raise issues about press freedom and journalists’ labour rights in Greece.” Picture credit: Louisa Gouliamaki / AFP.

Update (27/10/2016): On 26 October 2016, the Council of State ruled the TV licence law unconstitutional. ———————- The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) backs its Greek affiliate, the Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN), to denounce the closure of four out of the eight private TV channels, leading to thousands of job losses, after the decision of the Greek government to launch a multi-million euro auction for four private TV licences despite protests by broadcasters and journalists. The EFJ strongly supports the mobilisation of media workers in the protest to safeguard media pluralism and independent journalism in Greece. Early this year, the Greek government has passed…

Journalists at Greece’s Alpha 989 radio station are to meet to consider action following the “unfair, illegal and abusive” dismissal of their union representative. The International and European Federations of Journalists have pledged their support to Greek affiliate JUADN following the sacking of Georgia Ioannidou. The union had given the radio station’s board a deadline to reinstate Georgia, who is also a board member of JUADN, but the company failed to act. In a statement the union said: “Our colleague has been targeted for being a union representative and her persistence in taking up issues with the personnel department such…

Greek media will strike will hold a 24-hour strike starting from 6:00 am on Thursday until 6:00 am on Friday, following the general strike that has been scheduled by the country’s public and private sector unions, including the Panhellenic Federation of Journalists’ Unions (an EFJ affiliate), for Thursday 12 November. The strike for journalists covers all print media (newspapers and magazines), public broadcaster ERT and all private TV, radio and internet media, Athens-Macedonian News Agency, Secretariat General of Information and Communication and all Press Offices. The Journalists’ Union of the Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN-ESIEA), also member of the EFJ, has called on its…

Thousands of Greek journalists who are members of the EFJ affiliates in Greece are taking part in a 24-hour strike starting from 6 am today against a draft bill on broadcasting licences that will be voted by the Greek Parliament on Saturday, 24 October. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) has backed journalists’ unions (JUADN, PFJU, ESPIT and ESIEMTH) in Greece by demanding the government to make changes to the draft bill’s provisions that are affecting the journalistic profession, labour relations and restrict access to information. The draft law stipulates that TV stations will be able to obtain a license…