EBU and EFJ to deepen collaboration to promote strong and free Public Service Media
On 7 October 2025, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) met with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) at the EBU headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. The two long-standing partners, committed to defending public service media across Europe, discussed the need to strengthen their cooperation to address the unprecedented challenges facing public service media today.
In a political environment marked by the growing presence of far-right parties in European governments, both organisations share deep concerns over increasing hostility towards public service media and journalism. Recognising the growing challenges faced by reporters covering conflicts, demonstrations and divisive topics such as politics, migration, climate, the EBU Academy provides training programmes on physical, psychological and digital safety, most of them available to members and journalists working for any media. The EFJ and EBU discussed joint advocacy and stronger collaboration for reporting attacks.
During the meeting, the EFJ and EBU also shared perspectives regarding digital transformation and Artificial Intelligence, as well as media regulation – particularly the implementation of the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) and the forthcoming debates on revising the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD).
Other topics raised during the discussion included how to enhance cooperation between local media and public service media, the issue of news avoidance and the declining interest – especially among younger audiences – in engaging with public service media content, as well as the challenges posed by social media platforms, whose attention-driven models amplify disinformation and toxic content.
“Journalists and journalism are the first line of defence for democracy and against disinformation, but we do not fight this battle alone. With our colleagues from the EBU, we share the same values and many common ideas – I believe our cooperation will be fruitful, strong, and decisive for the future of free and professional journalism in Europe, and for strengthening independent public service media, which are essential for protecting journalism and freedom of expression,” said EFJ President Maja Sever.
EBU Director of News Liz Corbin said: “Strong partnerships are vital to the future of independent journalism. By working closely with partners such as the EFJ, we can better protect media freedom, support the safety and integrity of journalists, and ensure public service media will continue to deliver trusted, high-quality news to audiences everywhere, which is increasingly vital in times of political and digital disruption.”
The EFJ delegation was composed of EFJ President Maja Sever, EFJ Director Renate Schroeder and four members from the EFJ Broadcasting Expert group (BREG) from Austria (Christiana Jankovics, GPA), France (Soraya Morvan-Smith, SNJ-CGT), Italy (Maria Gabriella Capparelli, Usigrai) and Norway (Anne Berit Larsen, NJ).
