The results of a survey from the  National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU), “Frontline Local Media Report”, shed light on the difficulties encountered by print local media outlets in the country since February 2022. The report aims to help media outlets in need to restart their journalistic work for public interest. A total of 30 local newspapers were surveyed about their journalistic work in times of Russian occupation and the restart of newsroom work after the liberation of the occupied territories.  The survey found that the average length of forced stoppage due to the Russian occupation was six months. …

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined the French unions le Syndicat National des Journalistes (SNJ), the CFDT-Journalistes, and dozens of journalists and media outlets in bringing its support to TV5MONDE journalist Mohamed Kaci. The journalist was summoned by his management to justify a question he asked during an interview, however, the meeting only took place after a public statement was issued. The EFJ deplores the fact that the journalist was not supported by his management but instead publicly denigrated and, as a result, exposed him on social media.  Soutien ! https://t.co/v73nT1bPPM — Emma Audrey (@emma_audrey_fr) November 28, 2023 On…

To mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, on 25 November 2023, the Gender and Diversity Expert Group (GENDEG) of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) reminds all media workers and media organisations that violence is not part of the job. Female journalists are heavily affected by physical, psychological and sexual violence as part of their work. Surveys carried out between 2018 and 2023 in the following European countries reveal that:  In Belgium, 4 out of 10 female journalists experienced harassment in newsrooms; In Spain, 88% of the female media workers reported having suffered situations of…

Audience research methods was the topic of the two workshops organised by the Local Media for Democracy (LM4D) project, as part of a series of workshops developed for this project. Journalists from the first round of grantees of the LM4D Media Funding Scheme attended the two online meetings on the subject.   Understanding audiences in the modern and ever-changing digital environment is crucial not only for developing content and distribution strategies, but also for developing innovative products and business models.  “LM4D offers a capacity building program to assist local media in achieving their project objectives and strengthening their long-term sustainability. The…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) is organising a networking event on sustainable journalism for local communities in Zagreb, Croatia, on 4-5 December 2023, as part of its Local Cross-Border Journalism (CBLocal) project, with its partners: Journalismfund Europe, Transitions and Stockholm School of Economics (SSE Riga). The exchange event will focus on sustainable funding models and the event outcome is an action plan with recommendations for local and European policymakers, media managers and professional representative organisations of journalists. It will not only provide networking opportunities for the media professionals and stakeholders to exchange ideas and good practices, but will also highlight…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins other organisations of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) and the SafeJournalists Network (SJN) today in expressing shared dismay at a recent defamation verdict by a judge in North Macedonia which recommends shutting down one of the country’s leading investigative media outlets and expects this damaging ruling to be swiftly overturned on appeal. Our organisations warn that this ruling – and the alarming recommendation by the judge – represent a clear violation of international standards, a fundamental failure of the recognition of public interest of the journalism in question, and an attack on…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins the Swedish Union of Journalists Svenska Journalistförbundet today to call on the Turkish government to retract its demand to close the online investigation media outlet Nordic Monitor. We believe that the Turkish government is applying pressure on its Swedish counterpart by requesting the country’s NATO delegations to close the website, whose articles are sometimes critical of the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. According to Nordic Monitor, the confidential request was revealed unintentionally by Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Burak Akçapar on 25 October, during deliberately prolonged deliberations between the two countries, to review Ankara’s…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and its Belarusian affiliate, the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ), were guests at the 2nd Council of Europe workshop dedicated to Belarusian journalists in exile, on 20-21 November, in Warsaw. The event provided an opportunity to highlight the unwillingness of Big Tech, and even its complicity with the repression of the Belarusian regime. The EFJ calls on Tech Giants to stop supporting the Belarusian dictatorship and to protect media freedom wherever it is threatened. The event was organised by the Council of Europe and the Justice For Journalists Foundation. It was attended by around…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) to call on Azerbaijani authorities to release Abzas Media director Ulvi Hasanli, chief editor Sevinj Vagifgizi and Hasanli’s assistant, Mahammad Kekalov. The EFJ believes that the two journalists and Kekalov are the victims of police manipulation to prevent them from continuing to investigate the corruption of those in power in Azerbaijan. On 21 November 2023, the Khatai District Court in Baku ordered that Hasanli, Vaqifqizi and Kekalov be remanded in custody for four months. If found guilty of “conspiring to bring money into the country unlawfully”, the…

The Broadcasting Expert Group (BREG) of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), which represents public service media experts from all over Europe, strongly supports the strike by France 3’s local programs. Since 4 September 2023, an absurd, fast-track reform has been imposed on employees, suppressing national news editions and putting regional editions in serious difficulty. Our colleagues in local newsrooms across France are having to produce much more content without additional resources. Staff are already stretched to the limit, and there is a shortage of additional journalists across all local programs. Employees are exhausted, overworked and stressed. They do not…

For an innovation- and creator-friendly AI Act: Europe’s creative community urges EU policymakers to put transparency back at the heart of the EU AI Act We represent the collective voice of hundreds of thousands of writers, translators, performers, composers, songwriters, screen directors, screenwriters, visual artists, journalists, and other creative workers whose human artistry lies at the core of the creativity that our societies cherish and enjoy on a daily basis. As the AI Act is entering into the final round of negotiations, we urge all policy makers to prioritise maximum transparency on training data and artificially generated content to provide…

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…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined the undersigned partner organisations of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) and South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) in condemning the insulting and threatening behaviour of the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, towards journalist Snezana Mitrović and her employer N1 television. We call on the politician to publicly apologise and end all intimidating practices against all media in the future. Our organisations further warn that this aggressive rhetoric towards a member of the media, and indications of state monitoring of media, are the latest examples in a decades-long list of pressure by…

The owners of the Slovene daily Večer decided to move the media’s newsroom in Maribor, to another building, owned by the current mayor of Maribor Saša Arsenović. The relocation could jeopardize the newspaper’s autonomy. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) stands by the Večer journalists and calls on the owners of the media outlet to abandon the relocation of the newsroom.  The decision to move the newsroom was announced by Večer on 13 November 2023. The company that owns the newspaper Večer Mediji (Večer Media), led by director Miha Klančar, pointed out that the relocation to Galerija Gosposka would allow…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and other partner organisations of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) today condemn the summoning of Radiotelevisione Italiana (RAI) presenter Sigfrido Ranucci by the Parliamentary Committee for the general direction and supervision of radio and TV broadcasting. We see this summons as another intimidation practice targeting an independent investigative TV programme, whose reporting has been critical of a number of members of the current government.  Our organisations also urge the Italian Parliament to guarantee the independence of the Italian public service broadcaster (RAI) and halt unjustified political interference on its journalistic output. On 25…

The digital transformation has encouraged local and community media outlets to explore new strategies for audience engagement and content distribution, according to a recent blog post by the Centre for Media Pluralism and Media Freedom (CMPF). Researchers Urbano Reviglio and Danielle Borges surveyed various best practices of local and community media in Europe. They found innovative responses offered by local media outlets to engage audiences amidst the harsh competition of the attention economy. Newsletters are one of the most popular strategies, which are used by media outlets around the region as a tool to deliver customised and specifically-targeted news to their readers.…