At the beginning of the war in Ukraine and the bombing of major cities, the IFJ and the EFJ launched a special Safety Fund to support journalists in need in the country through their affiliates IMTUU and NUJU as well as journalists trying to flee Russia. Ernest Sagaga is the head of IFJ Safety and Human Rights Department. He tells us about the use of the fund and the IFJ/EFJ work to support journalists in the region. 1. There has been a massive show of solidarity by journalists across the globe to support media professionals in need in Ukraine. Can you describe the type…

The National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU) confirmed on 23 March that Ukrainian journalist Viktor Dedov died on 11 March in Mariupol after his flat was bombed. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) sends its condolences to the family and friends of the journalist. The EFJ once again calls on the Russian occupier to stop the bombing of civilian targets in Ukraine. Viktor Dedov was the chief operator of the Ukrainian television station Sigma-TV. He was at home when two shells hit his apartment. The second mortally wounded Dedov. The family was unable to bury the journalist because another…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) expressed concern over the recent move by the Programming Council of public service broadcaster RTV in Slovenia intending to restrict criticism made by the journalists’ trade union representative about the public broadcaster. The EFJ affiliate in Slovenia, the Union of Slovenian Journalists (SNS), denounced a violation of trade union rights and freedom of expression. On 17 March 2022, the Programme Council of RTV, the public broadcaster’s governing body in charge of media content, adopted the following decision: “Based on the explanations of the management of RTV Slovenia, the Programming Council hereby concludes that the:…

Russian authorities said Tuesday they had launched a criminal case against a popular journalist for alleging that the Russian army deliberately shelled a maternity hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine. Alexander Nevzorov is the first prominent reporter to be probed for spreading alleged “false” information about the Russian army under new Russian legislation. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) condemns this judicial action and the state censorship that prevents journalists from doing their work in Russia. Alexander Nevzorov, 63, is a veteran Russian journalist and a former member of the Russian parliament, as an independent deputy. “Nevzorov published deliberately false information about the…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined civil society, media and journalist organisations committed to the EU’s efforts to champion the rule of law in Europe to provide advice for strengthening the 2022 rule of law reporting cycle with a civil society statement. This followed other efforts to strengthen the process. As the reporting cycle has entered its third edition, we welcome progressive improvements such as the inclusion of country-specific recommendations. These recommendations are key to ensuring follow-up actions to the reports, thereby strengthening their impact and accountability on national-level and EU-wide reforms on the rule of law. To this…

The Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe (CASE) has launched a new report entitled “Shutting out criticism: How SLAPPs threaten European democracy”   based on data collected about 570 abusive lawsuits in 29 countries over the last 10 years. The first-ever comprehensive study aims to identify the scale, nature, and impact of SLAPPs in Europe. Initiated by wealthy and powerful litigants, Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP) is an abusive legal system attempting to intimidate and silence public watchdogs through lengthy and expensive litigation that drains a target’s resources and chills critical voices. This form of legal harassment is one of the…

Gender equality and diversity in the media are far from the reality, highlighted in a two-day conference organized by the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) in cooperation with its affiliate, the Andalusian Journalists Union (SPA) and the Federation of Journalists Unions (FeSP), in Malaga on 14 and 15 March. The conference is a part of a two-year project on “Trust in media” funded by the European Commission.  The conference also called for actions from media companies to step up their efforts and responsibility to make a culture change in the newsrooms. If the media wants to maintain trust from the…

Over 150 journalists, representatives of journalists’ organisations and press councils, as well as academics, politicians, and civil society activists gathered on 17-18 March at the Solidarność Centre in Gdansk, Poland, for the second edition of the Free European Media conference. Participants, including Vera Jourova, European Commission Vice-President, Patrick Penninckx, Head of Information Society Department of the Council of Europe, presented new recommendations to support the development of free media. Thursday evening’s event on the war in Ukraine brought together Ukrainian, Russian, Belarusian and Moldovan journalists, including Andrei Bastunets, President of the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) and Mykola Semena, delegate…

Ukrainian media outlet Hromadske has revealed today that one of its journalists, Victoria Roshchina, has been missing since 15 March 2022. The media fears that she is “a prisoner of the Russian occupiers”. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) calls for her immediate release. According to Hromadske, Victoria Roshchina had planned to go last week to Mariupol, a city that has been shelled by Russian troops for more than two weeks. On 12 March, her colleagues were unable to make contact. She was probably detained a few days later, on 15 March, by Russian forces in an unknown location. “For…

The Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) invites you to a summit taking place between 22-24 March focusing on boosting media freedom, strengthening independent media and ensuring the safety of journalists in Europe. The Summit panels will all be streamed online on the MFRR YouTube channel, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Specialised workshops for journalists, media professionals, journalist association representatives, and journalism students will take place on Zoom. Registration for the workshops is required. The MFRR Summit 2022 will open with a video message by Věra Jourová, Vice President of the European Commission for Values and Transparency, followed by a keynote address by Roberto Saviano, an Italian journalist and…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) today called on the international community to put pressure on Russia to end the blockade of Mariupol in Ukraine. A large-scale humanitarian disaster in this major city in eastern Ukraine must be avoided. The EFJ supports its Ukrainian affiliates, the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU) and the Independent Media Trade Union of Ukraine (IMTUU), in their efforts to evacuate journalists and media workers from Mariupol. After a series of failures due to the lack of a ceasefire, evacuations in Mariupol accelerated on Tuesday as residents ran out of food and water. About 20,000…

Fox News camera operator Pierre Zakrzewski and Ukrainian producer and fixer Oleksandra Kuvshynova, also known as Sasha, were killed on 14 March while reporting from Horenka, a city close to Kyiv. Fox News reporter Benjamin Hall was seriously injured in the same attack. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ) denounced the targeting of media workers reporting on the front lines in Ukraine and urged the international community to investigate these attacks. Fox News reported that the journalists’ vehicle “was struck by incoming fire” yesterday as the crew was heading towards the city of Irpin. Only Benjamin Hall’s serious condition following…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined its partners today in calling on the Member States of the European Union to set a global example of support for media freedom in crisis by extending emergency shelter and visa waivers to Russian journalists fleeing the country, as well as Belarusian journalists seeking refuge from war and repression. Independent journalists and media in Russia are currently experiencing the most severe and wide-ranging crackdown in the last thirty years. Leading broadcasters have been silenced or shuttered; dozens of news websites have been blocked; use of the word “invasion” or “war” have been banned;…

Fox News reporter Benjamin Hall was attacked and seriously injured on 14 March while reporting on the outskirts of Kyiv. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ) condemn the systematic targeting of media workers reporting on the front lines in Ukraine and urge the international community to investigate these attacks. Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine’s interior minister, said the news crew probably “came under mortar or artillery fire” from Russian forces as they were heading towards the city of Irpin, which sits just 20km north-west of Kyiv. He also confirmed on Telegram that Hall was in a serious condition…

The Russian authorities arrested journalist Marina Ovsyannikova, an editor with the Russian television channel Channel One, on 14 March. During the evening news, she appeared behind the presenter holding up a sign reading “No to war. Don’t believe the propaganda. They are lying to you. Russians against war”. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) demands the immediate release of the journalist. Marina Ovsyannikova interrupted the evening broadcast on Russian state TV network Channel One on Monday with a sign blasting Russian war against Ukraine. “Stop the war, no to war!” she shouted. Ovsyannikova was promptly arrested. The authorities say she…

An award-winning US journalist working in Ukraine, Brent Renaud, has been shot dead in Irpin, outside Kyiv, on Sunday 13 March. Ukrainian police said he had been targeted by Russian soldiers. Two other journalists were injured and taken to hospital. It is the first reported death of a foreign journalist covering the war in Ukraine. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) condemn the killing and call for the killers to be brought to justice. Brent Renaud, 50, was a journalist and documentary filmmaker who lived  and worked in New York City and Little Rock, Arkansas. He had previously…