On the eve of International Women’s Day, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) publishes two portraits of women journalists, Aksana Brovach and Georgine Kellermann, who shared last week pivotal moments in their career at the second edition of Voices, European Festival of Journalism and Media Literacy in Zagreb, Croatia. One is a journalist from Belarus forced into exile to continue her journalistic work; the other is a journalist from Germany who hid her true identity as a trans woman for 37 years, fearing a hostile work environment and damage to her reputation. Aksana Brovach and Georgine Kellermann are two models…

Ahead of the International Women’s Day, on 8 March, the Gender and Diversity Expert Group (GENDEG) of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) calls upon all unions, media companies, and journalists to work towards achieving equal working and professional conditions for women journalists across Europe. “The first results from our recent survey highlight the persistent gender inequality in the media in Europe. Women journalists, particularly mothers, continue to face greater obstacles in career advancement and experience more discrimination and harassment in the workplace compared to their male counterparts. We still have a long way to go, and the whole sector…

Film and television production workers in Finland will cease work on 8 March after the Union of Journalists of Finland (UJF) and the Union for Theatre and Media (Teme) called a strike for the first time in decades. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) stands in full solidarity with the striking media workers and supports their demands for improved working conditions and higher wages.  Negotiations between the UJF and the employers’ association Palta at the office of the National Conciliator for the collective agreement for film and television production have stalled after two months. While a strike notice was issued…

Oštro, Centre for Investigative Journalism in the Adriatic region, has been the target of an unprecedented smear campaign for several weeks since Meta’s announcement to stop its fact-checking programme in the United States. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) interviewed its founder, Anuška Delić, an award-winning investigative journalist. Delić reflects on the toxic climate in which she and her team of journalists have to work. Could you tell us about Oštro and its mission? Anuška Delić: Oštro nurtures investigative and data journalism. I established it in Slovenia, and in 2021 Oštro founded a namesake sister organisation in Zagreb, Croatia. Oštro’s…

The Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) partners and SafeJournalists Network (SJN) strongly condemn the adoption of legislation in the Republika Srpska entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina which will establish a “special registry” of NGOs, many of which are independent media. Viewed as retaliation against government critics, this law raises concerns about its potential use in labeling independent media and civil society organisations as foreign agents. Our coalition has long opposed the adoption of such legislation in Republika Srpska and now calls for the approved law to be immediately rescinded and for the international community to forcefully oppose the law. On 27 February, Republika Srpska…

The risks that journalists faced covering the war of aggression of Russia against Ukraine remained the most pressing concern related to the safety of journalists in Europe in 2024, according to the annual report of the partner organisations to the Council of Europe’s Platform to promote the protection of journalism and safety of journalists. The report, entitled “Europe Press Freedom Report 2024: Confronting Political Pressure, Disinformation and the Erosion of Media Independence”, also identifies as serious threats the digital surveillance of journalists and its risks to source confidentiality, the transnational repression of journalists – notably, from Russia and Belarus -,…

By Maja Sever, EFJ President Something remarkable happened at the Voices Festival in Zagreb. Young journalists took over the microphones, cameras, social media, and stage, proving that a new generation is emerging – one that knows what it wants and how to achieve it. They were not just there to cover events; they were creating them, analysing them, raising important issues, and asking the right questions without hesitation. Over the three days of the festival, they filmed, debated, listened, and shared their experiences. Their passion for journalism did not remain just theoretical – they demonstrated what engaged and responsible reporting…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) join partner organisations of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) and the SafeJournalists Network (SJN) in strongly condemning the escalating and systematic attacks on journalists and NGOs in Serbia, where violence, obstruction, and intimidation are being tolerated and perpetrated at the highest levels of government.  In the aftermath of the deadly collapse of the roof of the Novi Sad railway station on 1 November 2024, journalists have come under unacceptable pressure while covering the tragic story and the subsequent protests. The majority of incidents logged on the Mapping Media Freedom platform are instances of…

Voices Festival 2025, held in Zagreb from 27 February to 1 March, was a time for celebration and reflection but also an opportunity to express solidarity with journalists deprived of their freedom in Belarus or forced to live in exile. The film “Under the Gray Sky,” directed by Mara Tamkovich, was screened on 28 February. The movie depicts the story of Belarusian journalists Katsiaryna Andreyeva and Darya Chultsova, who were imprisoned for reporting on protests in Minsk’s Square of Changes in 2020. Following the screening, director Mara Tamkovich met the audience and answered questions about the realities of working in…

European social partners in the audiovisual sector published their Framework of Actions on diversity and inclusion, on 26 February 2025. The document puts forward recommendations for actions by employers’ and workers’ organisations, as well as other relevant stakeholders, such as educational institutions. Recommendations are grouped in four chapters that address: the pathways into the sector; inclusive workplaces and work processes; diversity on screen; and monitoring processes. The list of suggested actions is not exhaustive but a guiding framework to be adapted and adjusted depending on each organisation, its size, its mission, and the territories it operates in. All sector organisations are however invited to take some action…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined the undersigned international media freedom and journalist groups today in raising concerns over a planned “political neutrality” audit recently approved by the supervisory body of the Lithuanian National Radio and Television (LRT) and warn that the measure could negatively affect editorial independence at the public broadcaster. Our organisations jointly question the need for such an action by the LRT Council Committee and warn that rather than improve political neutrality it could instead lead to self-censorship by journalists and management at the broadcaster. As press freedom organisations working at the EU level, we note…

The European and the International Federations of Journalists (EFJ-IFJ) join their Ukrainian affiliates, in condemning the killing of Ukrainian journalist Tetiana Kulyk, a member of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU), by a Russian drone attack in the Kyiv region on 26 February 2025.  Two days after the third anniversary of the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, journalist Tetyana Kulyk of the Ukrinform news agency and her husband, Pavlo Ivanchov, were killed in their home by a Russian drone, in the Bucha district of Kyiv Oblast. According to Ukrinform, rescuers found the two dead bodies while extinguishing the…

Azerbaijan is continuing its repression by arresting more journalists and creating an environment in which media that are not aligned with the government cannot operate untroubled. The European and International Federations of Journalists (EFJ-IFJ) condemn the latest moves by the Azerbaijani authorities to further control the information space, and call for the immediate release of the detained journalists. The last few weeks have seen yet another level of repression by the Azerbaijani authorities with the detention of several journalists and the closure of the BBC News office in Baku. On 21 February, a court sentenced journalist Nurlan Gahramanli (known as…

In a one-day workshop organised by the VOICES partners, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), and delivered by the award-winning media literacy organisation Lie Detectors on 27 February, Croatian journalists working with public and commercial media will learn how to teach children aged 10-15 basic fact-checking methods in an interactive format. The journalists will then be ready to deliver free 90-minute training sessions in local schools. “In times of unprecedented disinformation campaigns in particular via social networks, it is crucial to explain the complex and hard work of journalists and their public interest role to school kids.…

Outdated media laws, compromised public media independence, SLAPPs, as well as mounting economic, political, and physical pressures are undermining journalism and media freedom in Croatia, as outlined in the latest Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) report. Media freedom in Croatia is marred by institutional and legal challenges that successive governments have failed to address, exacerbating the erosion of media pluralism, hostility against journalists, and precarious working conditions. This environment fosters censorship and restricts access to vital public information. The outdated Media Act is ill-suited to tackle the challenges of today’s digitalised media landscape, while overly broad criminal provisions on defamation…

On 24 February 2025, Ukraine marks three years since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. While the current scale of Russian attacks against journalists cannot be compared to that at the start of the war, they remain worryingly high and persistent. Over the past two years, Ukraine has seen fewer cases of journalists killed coming under fire while reporting in Ukraine, however the number of media workers wounded while covering the war remains high. In 2024, the media community reported two more losses: Victoria Roshchyna, a freelance journalist who died in Russian captivity, in which she had been held since 2023,…