The European Commission presented, in December 2021, an initiative to extend the list of EU Crimes to hate speech and hate crime. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) called on the EU to carry out this reform while preserving freedom of expression and editorial independence, at a hearing held today by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC). The proposed inclusion of hate speech and hate crime into the list of EU crimes will allow for harmonisation of criminal offenses ans sanctions at EU level. This initiative is part of the EU’s response to extremist ideologies online and more specifically…

From 4 to 6 April, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) will join partner organisations of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) in Italy for a fact-finding mission focused on two main topics: safety of journalists and state protection measures on one side, and SLAPPs against journalists and the need for comprehensive legislative reforms of the framework of defamation and media freedom on the other.  In collaboration with local partners, including the Italian National Federation of Journalists (FNSI), the journalists’ association Articolo 21 and the Chamber of Journalists, the MFRR delegation will address these issues from different perspectives and with…

Over 800 journalists and staff working for the Bosnia-Herzegovina public service broadcaster, BHRT, could lose their jobs imminently if its financial crisis is not swiftly resolved.   The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) called today on authorities in Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) to take immediate action to identify a sustainable solution for BHRT’s funding problems and prevent its closure. BHRT has an outstanding debt of EUR 32 million owed to it by the public broadcaster in the Republika Srpska, RTRS, who, under law, should provide a percentage of revenues collected through the license fee. This is the subject of an…

Several cases of abduction of journalists in the occupied territories of Ukraine have been reported over the last month. Some have been released while Ukrainian photojournalist Maks Levin is still missing since 13 March. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) condemned the deliberate targeting of journalists by the Russian military and denounced the torture and pressure exerted on journalists and their families in order to make them cooperate. “They jumped on me from behind, threatened me with weapons, twisted my arms and demanded that I kneel down. Afterwards, I was interrogated by different people. Those conducting the interrogation had their…

Russia’s Novaya Gazeta newspaper, whose editor Dmitry Muratov was a co-winner of last year’s Nobel Peace Prize, announced on Monday it will cease online and print operations until the end of the war in Ukraine after it received a second warning from the state media regulator RKN for allegedly violating the country’s “foreign agent” law. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) calls once again on the Russian authorities to stop the spiral of censorship and the eradication of independent media in Russia. The warning came a day after Dmitry Muratov spoke with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in a group interview with…

DOWNLOAD THE REPORT   On 28 March 2022, the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) published the report “Controlling the Message: Challenges for independent reporting in Greece”, which details the findings and recommendations of its online fact-finding mission to Greece. The mission, involving interviews with more than thirty local stakeholders, was implemented by the MFRR partners, including the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), together with Reporters Without Borders in December 2021. The partner organisations conclude that challenges to the independence of the media and the safety of journalists are systemic in the country. While the problems are not unique, their intensity…