On 4 March 2016, five months before the coup attempt of July 2016, one of the biggest daily newspaper was seized by the Turkish authorities on charges of being affiliated with the Gülen movement. Created in 1986, the newspaper was initially a strong supporter of President Erdogan’s AKP until it became increasingly critical and subsequently the movement which it was affiliated with accused of infiltrating the institutions in order to create a “parallel state”. Many journalists and media workers were first quickly sacked without any compensation. Despite being fully managed by government-appointed trustees since March 2016, the newspaper was banned by…

In order to honor their memory, a silent vigil will be organized by Jan Kuciak and Martina Kušnírova’s friends and colleagues outside the International Press Center at Residence Palace, rue de la Loi 155 (Brussels) on Thursday (1st of March 2018) from 12:30 to 13:30.  The European and International Federation of Journalists (EFJ/IFJ) are deeply shocked to learn of Jan Kuciak‘s death, a 27-year-old Slovakian reporter working for “Aktuality.sk” news portal. His body was found on 25 February alongside his partner Martina Kusnirova at their home in Velka Maca, some 65 kilometres from the capital Bratislava. Slovakian police launched a murder probe on Monday 26 February 2018. Kuciak’s reporting focused…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) welcomed the letter sent to Frans Timmerman, the vice-president of the European commission, initiated by six Members of the European Parliament (MEPs)  on 19 February 2018 who called for the introduction of a new EU directive that addresses Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP) towards journalists. The letter was signed by the following MEPs: David Casa (European People’s Party), Ana Gomes (Socialists and Democrats), Monica Macovei (European Conservatives and Reformists), Maite Pagazaurtundúa (Alliance of Liberals and Democrats), Stelios Kouloglou (European United Left, GUE/NGL), and Benedek Jávor (Greens). The proposed EU Anti-SLAPP directive would aim to protect journalists from vexatious, abusive lawsuits and other…

“Serbia has to establish an adequate environment for media work” said today Nils Muižnieks, Council of Europe (CoE) Commissioner for Human Rights, following a four-day follow-up visit to the country carried out from 19 to 22 February 2018. As concerns freedom of the media, the Commissioner noted the agreement of all media actors that he met that Serbia has a solid legislative framework governing this field. ”Serbia also has great investigative journalists, some of whom have been presented with prestigious international awards. The Commissioner for Information of Public Importance, whose importance for investigative journalists’ work cannot be overstated, is a…

The 8th European Investigative Journalism Conference & Dataharvest will be held from May 24th to 27th 2018 in Mechelen near Brussels. The European Investigative Journalism Conference & Dataharvest, organised by Journalismfund.eu, is the most relevant networking event for investigative and data journalists in Europe. Join the EIJC in Mechelen, Belgium from 24 to 27 May 2018 for the most interesting edition yet!  #EIJC18 & Dataharvest offers hugely inspiring investigative journalism cases, ample opportunities to meet interesting colleagues and coders, and tons of training sessions to brush up your skills hands-on. Check out our programme outline. This is the one conference you do not want to miss! Register now and take advantage of our early bird rates. Deadline 28th of February. Also don’t…

Over 120 journalists, representatives of journalists’ organisations, national media regulators and press councils, as well as academics, politicians, and civil society activists gathered on 15-16 February at the Solidarność Centre in Gdansk, Poland, for a conference on “Free European Media”. The event has concluded with a number of proposed steps, including the need to strengthen partnerships between all stakeholders. The event has been organised by the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) in cooperation with the Council of Europe (CoE), the Nordic Journalism Centre, the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) and the International Press Institute (IPI), with the support…