The Portuguese Journalists’ Union (Sindicato dos Jornalistas) today filed a complaint with the European Commission concerning the new statutes of LUSA, Portugal’s state-owned news agency, arguing that they violate European law on the protection of editorial independence. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) calls on the European Union to act swiftly to assess the case and ensure compliance with the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) in the event that a violation is actually found. According to the union, the amendments to the statutes, introduced by the Portuguese government in January 2026, breach several provisions of the European Media Freedom Act…

A new government bill which would overhaul the funding model for the Czech public media risks financially weakening the broadcasters, eroding safeguards for their financial independence and violating European Media Freedom Act (EMFA), the undersigned Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) partners, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and other media freedom, journalist and freedom of expression organisations warn today. Our organisations call on the European Commission to closely assess this bill regarding its compatibility with Article 5 of EMFA and to ensure that no reforms are undertaken which threaten the financial, editorial or institutional independence of the Czech public media.…

On 30 March 2026, the Federation of Culture and Mass-Media FAIR-MediaSind notified the European Commission and European Parliament of repeated violations of the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) by the Romanian government. The European and the International Federation of Journalists (EFJ-IFJ) fully support their affiliate’s request to initiate dialogue with Romanian authorities and assess the country’s compliance with the Regulation. Although the EMFA entered into force on 8 August 2025 and is directly applicable in all Member States, the government led by Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan has failed to implement key provisions of the regulation establishing a common framework for…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined the International Press Institute (IPI) and media freedom partners in providing a formal contribution to the public consultation into the draft act to amend the Polish Broadcasting and Television Act – a major and much needed overhaul of the country’s media legislation. The draft reform, published by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, also represents a core element of the implementation of the EU’s European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) in Poland. The public consultation closed on January 23. The submission was made by IPI along with the European Centre for Press and…

The European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) comes fully into force today, 8 August 2025. Yet, in most EU Member States, the EMFA is still a long way from being implemented. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) is calling on all EU governments to fulfil their obligations and execute the necessary reforms without delay for the EMFA to become the long-awaited shield that protects free and independent journalism in the European Union. “It’s historic. For the first time, there is a regulation dealing with the work of journalists, protecting journalism, media pluralism, transparency and many other issues we have never been…

On 23 July, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) submitted its contribution to the European Commission’s consultation on the European Media Freedom Act’s (EMFA) Article 18. Under Article 18, very large online platforms (VLOPs) will be required to respect new procedural safeguards when they intend to remove or restrict the visibility of journalistic content. The EFJ underlines the importance of a strong journalists’ privilege to protect editorial content from arbitrary and opaque content moderation practices deployed by VLOPs. To benefit from Article 18’s safeguards, media service providers must complete a self-declaration attesting to their compliance with specific criteria, such as adherence to editorial standards…

The Council of Europe’s European Audiovisual Observatory (EAO) published a report analysing the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) ahead of the entry into force of several articles in February 2025. The report highlights both the weaknesses and the strengths of the EMFA, whose application could vary depending on the will of national governments. Although the EMFA has many loopholes, it is the first legal document capable of protecting media freedom and the work of journalists in general. Published in December 2024, the report is divided into 3 main sections: “Legal basis and (ongoing) controversy”, “The EMFA in a nutshell”, and…

The Council of Europe’s European Audiovisual Observatory (EAO) published a report analysing the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) ahead of the entry into force of several articles in February 2025. The report highlights both the weaknesses and the strengths of the EMFA, whose application could vary depending on the will of national governments. Although the EMFA has many loopholes, it is the first legal document capable of protecting media freedom and the work of journalists in general.In this article, we have summarised the main points raised by this report. The institutional framework Chapter IV of the EMFA introduces the institutional…

On 8 November 2024, Article 3 of the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) on the right to access to a plurality of editorially independent media content came into force in the European Union. For the first time in EU law, Member States have a positive obligation to protect this right “for the benefit of free and democratic discourse“. In practical terms, all Member States must ensure that framework conditions are in place to guarantee European citizens access to editorially independent information. As the EMFA is a regulation, its first Article to be implemented is now “enforceable”, even in the absence…

The European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) entered into force on 7 May 2024. The new rules will fully apply at national level in each EU member state as of 8 August 2025. It has been said this is a historic act as the European Media Freedom Act, called “EMFA”  is the first European regulation dealing with all media. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), together with other media freedom groups, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and civil society organisations, has worked hard for over two years to get an ambitious act. A future-proof act against the growing attacks against journalism,…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) strongly condemns the request by seven governments to legalise spying on journalists through the EU Media Freedom Act. The EFJ calls on the European Parliament and the European Commission to reject this illiberal and repressive request. The negotiations on the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) are coming to an end. On Friday 15 December, the last trilogue will only deal with Article 4 of EMFA and the deployment of spyware against journalists. In the meantime, Investigate Europe, Disclose and Follow The Money revealed documents, showing that some governments (France, Italy, Malta, Greece, Cyprus, Sweden,…

As the negotiations on the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) are drawing to a close, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) today co-signed a letter to the policymakers calling for international standards to be respected on the protection of journalistic sources (Article 4). Considered a basic condition for press freedom by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), the protection of sources risks being weakened by EU Member States. The signatories are deeply concerned about the chilling effect that could ensue if the final text maintains the paragraph to the national security responsibilities of Member States and sets conditions for…

Thirteen journalists’, press freedom and civils society organisations, including the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), are calling on EU Member States, the European Commission and the European Parliament to impose greater transparency on the media and their relations with political decision-makers and economic players. Citizens have a right to know. The current negotiations on the final version of the EMFA must incorporate these transparency guarantees. Read our open letter about the transparency of media ownership and state advertising. Joint open letter on media ownership and state advertising transparency in the trilogue negotiations of the EMFA The provisions of the European…

Today, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined 18 organisations representing public service media, journalists, media workers, civil society, as well as the cultural and creative industries in urging the EU’s trilogue negotiators to effectively protect the independence of public service media in the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA). Maja Sever, EFJ President, said: “The weakening of Article 5 is unthinkable for anyone who sincerely wants media pluralism and independent journalism in Europe. There is no place for “seeking to” or warning by distorting competition in the market. To serve the public, public service media must have a solid framework…

At the plenary session in Strasbourg, the European Parliament (EP) adopted yesterday, with an overwhelming majority, (448 votes in favour, 102 votes against and 75 abstentions) its position on the European Media Freedom Act. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) appreciates the European Parliament’s continued commitment to preserving and promoting media freedom in an ever more hostile and fragile media environment. Many essential changes have been made since the legislative process began, but concerns about spying on journalists remain. “After a year of advocacy in close cooperation with other media freedom, civil society and digital rights organisations, we are happy to have…