Journalists from across the Balkans and Eastern Europe met in Belgrade (Serbia) on 10-11 October 2015 to discuss the status of journalism in the region and the campaign for freedom of association to enable journalists to freely organise in unions. They discussed the struggles facing journalists, the precariousness of their employment, the low salaries and poor contracts the hostility of employers to journalists unions and the pervading climate of insecurity and fear. This is a struggle not just for improved conditions for journalists, but for a healthy and vibrant journalists sector that can play its democratic role in serving the…

”Two weeks ago I would have been much more pessimistic when it comes to ‘Social Europe’, but it seems that the European Commission led by President Jean-Claude Juncker  is working on a package, which has a strong social dimension, something the EU has lacked dramatically in recent years,” said Thomas Händel (GUE/NGL, Germany), Chair of the European Parliament Committee on Employment and Social Affairs. Philippe Leruth, Chair of the EFJ Labour Rights Expert Group and EFJ Director Renate Schroeder had a open discussion with the German MEP Händel covering themes such as the increasingly precarious working conditions in the  media and journalism…

In view of the ongoing trilogue negotiations, informal tripartite meetings attended by representatives of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on reaching  the proposal for an EU directive “on the protection of undisclosed know-how and business information (trade secrets) against their unlawful acquisition, use and disclosure”, journalists’ and media organisations express their great concern regarding a potential damaging impact on press freedom. The following letter has been sent to the rapporteur, shadow-rapporteurs, members of the European Parliament Legal Committee, the Permanent representatives of the EU member states (COREPER) and relevant  contacts in the European Commission. Trade Secret versus…

The wave of labour organising is increasing in US media companies. On Tuesday, digital journalists at Al Jazeera America voted to organise with the NewsGuild of New York, an IFJ affiliate, in an election prompted after the network failed to recognise the union. In recent months, editorial staff at Gawker, Salon, ThinkProgress and Vice Media have become members of the Writers Guild of America. Staff of Guardian US joined the NewsGuild, so as Al Jazeera America. Journalists at the Huffington Post have also held discussions about unionising. “Staff claim is the same everywhere,” noted Ricardo Gutiérrez, General secretary of the EFJ. “Journalists…

How do you imagine journalism in 2025? What if social media becomes the primary source of information and media worldwide? Will the public continue to pay for content? How will robot journalism develop?  Will printed newspaper still exist? A recent Dutch Journalism Fund (DJF) study mapped out four scenarios of the future of journalism. See you in ten years. The Dutch study “What’s New(s)?  Scenarios for the future of journalism” showed four scenarios of the Dutch journalism in 2025. The trends mapped out in the study was based on interviews with journalists, publishers, philosophers, chief editors, scientists, technology experts and managers…

Journalists and media workers in Turkey, Hungary and the Balkans are facing increased hostility as they do their jobs, according to a survey of the verified incidents reported to Index on Censorship-EFJ-RSF’s Mapping Media Freedom project. Since May 2014, Mapping Media Freedom project has been documenting media violations throughout the European Union, including candidate and neighbouring countries. The project is an interactive platform that allows the reporting, mapping and monitoring of threats to media freedom. Mapping Media Freedom is run in partnership with the European Federation of Journalists and Reporters Without Borders, and is partially funded by the European Commission. The…

The Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, was greeted with honour at the Brussels Royal Palace this Monday morning. After the warm welcome of the Belgian King and Queen and the Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel, Mr Erdoğan was pleased to receive accolades from the European Commission President, Jean-Claude Juncker, and the European Council President, Donald Tusk. All of those who welcomed him to Brussels should know that they gratify one of the worst censor of press freedom in Europe. In only two days, the International and the European Federations of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ) submitted five serious violations of press freedom…

The 13th Congress of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) was held from 30 September to 2 October at the House of Mutuality in Paris. Five hundred delegates attended, discussed and voted some reports on the future of European workder and trade unions in the 39 countries covered by the ETUC. The delegation of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) consisting of three journalists Paco Audije (FAPE, FeSP), Patrick Kamenka (SNJ-CGT) and Jean-François Cullafroz (CFDT-Journalistes). But the Swedish delegation with fifteen members included an EFJ member, Jonas Nordling, president of the Union of Swedish Journalists (Svenska Journalistförbundet). Luca Visentini, the…

Journalists’ unions in the Czech Republic should improve their recruitment policy. That’s one of the main conclusions of the EFJ-OSNPM survey on journalists’ working conditions in the Czech Republic. In the framework of the EFJ/IFJ Regional Development Fund, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), the Union of Journalists and Media Workers of the Czech Republic (OSNPM) and the Austrian union GPA-djp organised a survey to investigate the working conditions of Czech journalists and media workers. The online survey was launched on 19 May 2015. Around 2,500 journalists and media workers were invited to participate to the survey. Ricardo Gutiérrez, EFJ…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) has written to Michel Platini, President of the the Union of European Football Association (UEFA) calling for an immediate investigation of the ban imposed by the Croatian Football Federation (HNS) on journalists and photographers working for the Croatian daily Index.hr. On 24 September, the HNS issued a ban on journalists from Index.hr preventing them from covering any events and press conferences. The journalists are also banned from attending football matches of the national football team and covering press conferences as well as entering HNS premises. Only yesterday  journalists of Index.hr portal  were physically restrained…

The European Trade Union Congress (ETUC) in its 13th Congress in Paris on 29 September – 2 October, with the presence of over 700 trade union delegates, have unaminously voted a motion tabled by the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) on Solidarity with Turkish and Kurdish journalists suffering repression. The EFJ welcomes the adoption of the motion and thanks for the support and solidarity expressed by the trade union delegates at the ETUC Congress. The motion reads: For freedom of speech. In recent years journalists, trade unionists and press collaborators in Turkey – a European Union candidate country – have…