Members of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR), after completing a mission to Bucharest, concluded that much of the media coverage of Romania’s electoral campaigns is seriously compromised by political capture and that media are failing to provide the fair and balanced political reporting necessary for the public to make informed electoral choices.  The MFRR’s two-day mission to Romania, 17-18 June, was held just one week after the European and local elections had been held. With presidential elections due in September and parliamentary elections in December this year, the MFRR calls for an urgent reform of the system of party…

On 26 June 2024, the daily edition of the Greek newspaper Avgi, was shut down by SYRIZA, its main stakeholder, without further notice after 72 years of existence. The International and European Federation of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) stand in full solidarity with the workers of Avgi and join their affiliate, the Union of Journalists of Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN), in condemning the “sudden death” of the daily edition of the historic newspaper and the impact of the decision on its workers.  On 25 June media workers at Avgi were informed at 4pm by the board of directors of the President of…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) in welcoming the release of Australian journalist Julian Assange, after 14 years of judicial harassment and five years in prison. The dropping of 17 of the 18 charges that he faced avoids the criminalisation of the normal journalistic practices of encouraging sources to confidentially share evidence of wrongdoing and criminality. But by forcing Julian Assange to plead guilty to a crime he didn’t commit, the US is keeping up the pressure on any journalist, anywhere in the world, who reveals classified information on US national defense. Julian…

In response to the EU sanctions against Russian media that were approved in June 2024, Russia’s Foreign Ministry has announced that it is banning 81 media outlets from European Union countries from broadcasting in Russia. The International and the European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) strongly condemn these restrictions, which prevent Russian citizens from freely accessing information from EU media outlets, thereby breaching the public’s right to know. On 25 June, Russia’s Foreign Ministry announced its decision to block access to prominent EU media outlets across Russia and released a list of 81 publications, including  leading EU and pan-European media from…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins the undersigned members of the Media freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) in welcoming the start of the trial, on 26 June, of two suspects accused of the 2021 killing of Greek investigative journalist, Giorgos Karaivaz. We also call on the authorities to redouble efforts to identify those who ordered his murder.  Giorgos Karaivaz was shot dead on 9 April 2021, near his home in Alimos, by professional hitmen who then escaped on a motorbike. The suspects were apprehended in April 2023, and have since been held in pretrial detention. The trial must conclude by…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) coalition partners in expressing serious concerns about the alarming deterioration of media freedom in Italy. A letter has been sent to the President of the European Parliament, Ms Roberta Metsola, and the President of the European Commission, Ms Ursula von der Leyen. We are drawing attention to the findings of our urgent advocacy mission to Rome on 16-17 May.   Dear President of the European Parliament, Ms Roberta Metsola, Dear President of the European Commission, Ms Ursula von der Leyen,   We are writing to express our…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) coalition partners in standing in solidarity with the Slavko Ćuruvija Foundation, which has unwaveringly campaigned against the continued impunity for the 1999 murder of Serbian journalist Slavko Ćuruvija. New legal action brought by two of the individuals acquitted of Ćuruvija’s murder now threatens to undermine the foundation’s campaign for justice. For over a decade, the Foundation has sought justice for Ćuruvija, an esteemed editor and publisher who was shot in front of his home in Belgrade in 1999. Twenty years later, four former state security officers were…

Just over a month ago, the annual meeting of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) unanimously adopted a resolution demanding the immediate release of journalist Pablo González Yagüe, who has been held in Poland since February 28, 2022 on vague espionage charges. This Wednesday, the EFJ joins the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), their affiliates in Spain (FAPE, FeSP, FSC-CCOO, ELA, UGT) and other organizations defending journalists, in demonstrating outside the Polish consulate in Madrid, to once again call on the Polish authorities to put an end to the journalist’s interminable pre-trial detention. “It is not tolerable that a country…

The International and European Federation of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ), together with the International Press Institute (IPI), have sent a letter to the Lithuanian authorities expressing concern about the draft amendment to the Lithuanian Law on National Radio and Television (LRT). The draft was submitted by Mindaugas Lingė, Member of Parliament, on 14 June 2024 as part of efforts to increase Lithuania’s defence spending. The draft, which threatens the public broadcaster’s funding model, was submitted without prior consultation with LRT. We urge the authorities to engage in an open and transparent discussion with LRT to ensure that any changes to the funding…

Slovakia’s parliament approved the government’s planned revamp and leadership change at public broadcaster RTVS on Thursday, overruling concerns the changes will bring RTVS under political control and harm media freedom and media pluralism. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) urges Peter Pellegrini, President of the Slovak Republic to veto the public broadcasting bill. Contrary to the European legal standards, including the newly adopted European Media Freedom Act (EMFA), the new Slovak legislation risks transforming public media into government propaganda outlets. Under the new law, RTVS’s director will be replaced years before his term expires. A nine-member supervisory council, appointed by…

The European and International Federations of Journalists (EFJ-IFJ) join Council of Europe Platform on Safety of Journalists partners to express concerns over crisis within Kosovo’s Public Broadcaster RTK. The partner organisations urge the board of RTK to ensure that the public broadcaster continues to serve the public and not political interests. We sent the following letter to the board of RTK: Dear Chair of the RTK Board, Mr. Besnik Boletini, Dear members of the RTK Board, We are writing to you on behalf of the partners of the Council of Europe Platform to Promote the Protection of Journalism and Safety…

Around 80 local journalists, journalists’ organisations, media researchers and experts from 19 EU countries gathered during the two-day Local Journalism Festival in Brno organised by the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and Masaryk University in Brno, Czech Republic.  Opening the Festival, EFJ President Maja Sever stressed that “the beginning and end of good journalism that serves the public interest is strong and independent local journalism, and that connection with citizens and the community is the essence of our work.” “Local journalism is the backbone of independent journalism. Without it, we cannot safeguard our democracy. Journalists, their unions and associations, civil…

Russian journalist Artem Kriger, who works for independent media SOTAvision, was arrested on 18 June and placed in pre-trial detention, on charges of allegedly helping late opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), labelled as “extremist”. The International and the European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) condemn the repeated detention of critical journalists on similar charges and call on the Russian authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Artem Kriger and all journalists imprisoned in the country.   On 18 June, the Moscow Basmanny Court held a closed trial and placed Kriger in pre-trial detention until 18 August. The journalist challenged the decision…

On 18 June 2024, a journalist working for the French independent news portal Blast was arbitrarily arrested by the police and detained for refusing to hand over her sources. She was released after thirty-two hours of detention. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins its French affiliates the SNJ, SNJ-CGT and CFDT-Journalistes in denouncing this blatant violation of the confidentiality of journalistic sources and arbitrary detention.  On 18 June 2024, protestors gathered outside of the headquarters of the company Exxelia, which is at the heart of a judicial investigation by the Paris court for complicity in war crimes, following a…

Two Russian journalists have been killed in separate incidents in Russia’s occupied Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine. Journalist of News.ru, Nikita Tsitsagi, died on 16 June, in a drone attack amidst ongoing battles. Earlier, Valery Kozhin, a cameraman of Russian state-controlled media NTV, also died after a shelling attack near Horlivka, on 13 June. The International and European Federation of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) strongly condemn these killings and urge the authorities to conduct a swift investigation into the deaths of the journalists. According to a report from News.ru, Tsitsagi lost his life while reporting in the town of Vugledar, which was…

Mensagem de Lisboa is a community-focused media outlet based in the Chiado district in Lisbon, Portugal. Their mission is to disclose the small and human-interest stories in a big metropolis like Lisbon, an objective in line with the opportunity offered by the Local Media for Democracy (LM4D) funding scheme. “There are only a few projects that allow you to do what this project does: to work at the purely local level,” said Catarina Cavalho, editor and co-founder of Mensagem de Lisboa. “Community media is especially needed in these times of greater polarisation and distancing between communities.” They partnered with trusted…