Bosnia and Herzegovina Radio and Television (BHRT) is facing catastrophic financial difficulties and risks being shut down, leaving 800 employees with no job, if a funding agreement is not reached. The European and International Federations of Journalists (EFJ-IFJ) appeals to the BHRT management and politicians to find a solution as a matter of urgency. The national public broadcaster was deprived of its only source of income, when the state-owned electric utility company Elektroprivreda BiH did not collect the TV licence fees from the citizens along with their January electricity bills. The contract with Elektroprivreda BiH was not renewed last December…

As the Council of the EU is expected to vote on the AI Act on 2 February 2024, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) urges the EU Member States to reach a long-awaited political agreement on this important text for journalism. The media reported that Germany and France were still blocking several provisions just a few days before the vote, suggesting that negotiations are not yet completely concluded. They fear that this regulation will subject their startups to increased scrutiny related to foundation models. In Germany, the coalition government could withhold its backing for the law. With an internal consultation…

30 January 2024 11:00 CET Register here   On 30 January, international media freedom groups will hold a webinar and press conference to mark the publication of a major report assessing the landscape for press freedom and independent journalism in Greece, following a mission to Athens in September 2023. The report examines the clear period of deterioration in media freedom in the EU Member State over the last few years, identifies the reasons behind this deterioration, and sets out recommendations for steps to be taken to address these many challenges. It also provides a detailed analysis of the measures taken…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) welcomes the call by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) to enforce Council of Europe standards on media freedom. This must be the top priority for the next Secretary General of the Council of Europe, who will be elected in June. Meeting in Strasbourg on 25 January, PACE emphasised the pressing need “to enforce the high standards on media freedom which the Council of Europe has established, to ensure effective protection of journalists and to uphold in all member States a friendly and safe environment for media independence and pluralism”. It…

Journalists sometimes find themselves in high-risk environments for their physical safety, because of the nature of the assignment or because they are ill-equipped and poorly trained in safety issues. According to a 2022 EFJ survey about the risk perceptions and safety concerns of journalists in Europe, media professionals seriously lack training and awareness while threats and intimidation at work are increasing. Based on these findings, the ‘Local Cross-Border Investigative Journalism’ (CBLocal) project integrated an important element of journalists’ safety in its grant programme supporting cross-border investigations. Four journalists underwent an online safety course for two weeks with media safety expert…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) today joined 17 other media freedom and journalist organisations in writing to the EU’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, the High Representative for the European Union on Foreign and Security Policy, urging him to call for the protection of journalists and respect for the freedom of the press amidst the Israel-Gaza war. The letter outlines the unprecedented number of journalists who died: the Israel-Gaza war one of the single worst events for the loss of journalistic life in such a short space of time. Since the beginning of the war in Gaza, the International Federation…