The European and International Federation of Journalists (EFJ/IFJ) welcome the acquittal of all defendants in the Oda TV case, including Ahmet Şık and 11 other journalists, charged with terrorism, incitement, and obtaining secret documents. On 12 April 2017, after a six-year trial, the Istanbul’s 18th Court for Serious Crimes found that prosecutors had failed to provide enough evidence to convict journalists Ahmet Şık, Soner Yalçın, Barış Pehlivan, Barış Terkoğlu, Ayhan Bozkurt, Nedim Şener, Müyesser Yıldız, Doğan Yurdakul, Coşkun Musluk, Sait Çakır, Yalçın Küçük, İklim Bayraktar and former police chief Hanefi Avcı. Following the acquittal, Ahmet Şık – who is currently…

UPDATE (24.04.2017). Italian journalist Gabriele Del Grande has been released in Turkey. ————- The Italian affiliate of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), the Federazione nazionale della stampa italiana (FNSI), gathered in Rome on Tuesday 11 April to call for the release of Gabriele Del Grande, an Italian journalist arrested by the Turkish authorities at the border with Syria. “We hope his swift release and immediate return to Italy, while we thank the Italian diplomatic authorities, which is closely following the case”, said the General Secretary and the President of the FNSI, Raffaele Lorusso and Giuseppe Giulietti. Gabriele Del Grande…

Better contracts, more transparency in payments and a fair share of remuneration for journalists: these are on top of the agenda for the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) in the latest consultation on the EU copyright directive. The EFJ is putting forward important amendments to the proposed new rights for internet publishers. “We have heard many speeches in which EU Commissioners and Members of the European Parliament have emphasised the need for pluralistic European content online. They have acknowledged that achieving this means that the value gap between authors and those who profit from their work must be closed,” says…

The Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE), the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), and the European Association of Judges (EAJ) firmly condemn the ongoing widespread persecution of lawyers, journalists, judges and prosecutors in Turkey. After the failed coup of 15 July 2016, the Turkish government declared a state of emergency and adopted 21 decree-laws, which led to a serious undermining of human rights and the rule of law across the country. Thousands of judges and prosecutors, and hundreds of journalists and lawyers have been dismissed from jobs, detained, or arrested. A widespread censorship on media has been…

The European and International Federation of Journalists (EFJ and IFJ) wrote a letter to the Prime Minister of Montenegro expressing their grave concerns on the ongoing trial against investigative journalist Jovo Martinovic. “Together with our affiliate the Trade Union of Media of Montenegro (SMCG), we wish to recall our letter of 2 September, in which we raised our concern over the arrest of detention of Mr. Martinovic for membership of a criminal organisation and drug offences, despite compelling evidence which shows he was only doing his job as an undercover investigative journalist.” At the beginning of the year Martinovic received…

Partners of the Council of Europe Platform for the Promotion of Journalism and the Protection of Journalists are deeply concerned by the aggravating current situation in Belarus regarding mass detention of journalists. They urge Council of Europe to include Belarus to the list of the countries addressed by the Platform. Since the beginning of March 93 journalists were detained by the police, while covering protests across the country. While the majority was released the same day, at least 8 journalists were sentenced to 5-15 days in jail. The Association of European Journalists (AEJ), Article 19 (A19), the Committee to Protect…

The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ) express their deepest condolences to their German affiliate dju in ver.di. after the death of its Chairman Ulrich Janßen who died at the age of 61 on March 31 following a serious illness. Ulrich Janßen was a committed fighter for the social and professional rights  of journalists. He was an excellent trade union leader and a committed works council representative. As Chairman of the works council of the Nordwest-Zeitung publishing house in Oldenburg , Ulrich Janßen supported and inspired his colleagues. He had been involved in trade union activities since…

People are more and more relying on social media for news – This is the trend highlighted in the 2016 annual report on digital news published by the Reuters Institute for the study of journalism, although traditional media outlets are still considered as valuable and trusted brands. The study also suggests that the impact on publishers’ revenues has to be addressed. The use of platforms, social networks and mobiles should be combined with sustainable business models. The growth of social media The digital news report 2016 confirms what many studies highlighted before: television news and online news are the most…