The European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) offers practical solidarity to journalists resident in Turkey. It extends its Journalists-in-Residence programme to up to three more journalists from Turkey and is now accepting applications. The ECPMF considers its Journalists-in-Residence Programme to be a concrete and lasting contribution to the campaign for media freedom and pluralism in Europe. “Journalists staying with us have often been fighting for years to be able to work independently and without restrictions. They are long-established colleagues who often face massive threats in their home countries”, says Christian Schult, JiR programme co-ordinator at the ECPMF.  “The…

Following the EFJ-ECPMF fact-finding mission to Estonia and Lithuania, Renate Schroeder, director of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) met with the office of Kaja Kallas (ALDE), Yana Toom (ALDE) and the office of Indrek Tarand on 15 May 2018, all Estonian Members of the European Parliament (MEP) to discuss the findings of the report. According to the mission’s findings, the biggest problem is neither fake news nor Russian propaganda, but the economic pressure on media creating a culture of “clicktivism”. Although journalistic codes of conduct in Estonia are in place and the government refrains from regulating the media market, editorial independence and…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) co-signed an open letter by seven international freedom of expression organisations on 23 March 2018, urging diplomats in Malta to make their presence felt concerning the investigation of the Daphne Caruana Galizia murder. “Your engagement in this case is setting a standard and precedent for what is permissible in the European Union”: We, the undersigning international organisations are closely monitoring the investigation of the murder of Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia and the related court proceedings in Malta. Daphne Caruana Galizia was a journalist, a blogger, a mother of three. For years, she reported…

A fund of up to €450,000 to support cross-border investigative journalism in the European Union is being launched today by the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) and the International Press Institute (IPI). The Investigative Journalism for Europe (#IJ4EU) fund is intended to foster and strengthen collaboration among European Union-based journalists and newsrooms on revelations in the public interest and of cross-border significance. The fund aims to support investigations that reflect the media’s watchdog role and that assist the public in holding those in power accountable for their actions and to their obligations. In so doing, it seeks…

Journalism is under tremendous economic pressure in the Baltics. This opens the door to political influence and PR. The governments of Estonia and Lithuania answer this with very different approaches. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) investigated the media situation in Estonia and Lithuania from 22-24 January 2018. They interviewed almost 30 experts, among them representatives from the government, academia, press councils, public service media, journalists’ organisations, investigative journalists, editors-in-chief and CEOs. First, the good news: concerning media freedom and pluralism, Estonia and Lithuania are doing comparatively well. Considering the…

#newsocracy III brings together policy makers, academics, journalists, citizens and existing initiatives for transparency of media ownership structures to discuss media ownership concentration in Europe and Spain. The event is hosted by the ECPMF, PDLI and OBCT. —————– El European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), la Plataforma en Defensa de la Libertad de Información (PDLI) y el Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Transeuropa (OBCT), te invitan a #NEWSOCRACY III, la jornada sobre concentración mediática en Europa que reunirá a políticos, académicos, periodistas e iniciativas por la transparencia en la propiedad de los medios. Discutiremos sobre acontecimientos recientes, los peligros de la situación actual y posibles soluciones. Visita la web…

Report on the April 2017 Joint International Mission In a joint mission, the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), the South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO), and the Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Transeuropa (OBCT) observed the situation of journalists and media workers in the Republic of Macedonia. The on-site research in Macedonia in April 2017 was motivated by the deterioration of the safety of journalists through the increasing number in verbal and physical attacks. This report indicates that through complex set of mechanism the previous government, as well as authorities, gave their…

The ECPMF’s Journalists-in-Residence programme is designed to host journalists from across geographical Europe who face harrassment and intimidation in their home country. It provides a temporary refuge, a safe place to rest and to continue ones work and — if so desired by those being hosted — a platform to highlight threats to media freedom back home. The ECPMF has just released a new call for applications for journalists based in the EU28 and candidate countries. Key info at a glance: Eligible to apply are journalists living in an EU28 or candidate country Two timeslots to choose from: February to…

The European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) issued an e-book with proceedings and conclusions of their recent conference, organised on 24 March in Strasbourg. Carried out with the support of the Council of the Europe (CoE), the event promoted the dialogue between the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and media freedom groups, especially on the ECtHR’s recent case law relating to freedom of expression, media and journalism. The speakers at the conference presented their views on three main themes, now summed up in the e-book: defamation, privacy and the processing of personal data; investigative journalism in relation…