Deteriorating working conditions undermine press freedom, says study

Deteriorating working conditions of journalists put press freedom in danger, according to a study published by the University of Fribourg and the Federal Office of Communications in Switzerland. The study participated by 1000 journalists who are members of the affiliate of the European Federation of Journalists, impressum, proves that the deteriorating working conditions have a negative impact on press freedom and quality of journalism. The results suggest that economic pressure from advertisers and the media owners are jeopardising the editorial freedom of media. Ricardo Gutiérrez, EFJ General Secretary said: “The conclusions are clear: we fought hard to ensure that press…

FT interns win fight over internship pay

Interns working for the British newspaper Financial Times will now receive payment for their work following a successful negotiation by the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) in the UK. The deal brokered by the NUJ is part of the overall pay settlement of an above-inflation rise for all FT staff from April. Unpaid internship remains a common practice in the UK particularly in the journalism industry. According to a report published by the National Council for the Training of Journalists in 2013, 82% of graduate entering into the profession have done an internship, of which 92% of them were unpaid.…

Tribute to Charlie Hebdo

Following the devastating attack on Charlie Hebdo, the global journalists community launched solidarity action and paid tribute to the journalists killed in the attack. Below is a picture gallery compiled by the journalists’ union (Syndicat National des Journalistes) in France.