UPDATE 25/07/2026: On 24 July, Italian police arrested a man who has confessed to committing the crime. Local reports said the evidence gathered so far suggests the motive was not related to Esposito’s journalism. —————— Sports journalist Luca Esposito has been killed in Eboli (southern Italy). His charred body has been identified on a piece of farmland in Cioffi. The European and International Federations of Journalists (EFJ-IFJ) join their Italian affiliate FNSI in calling for a thorough investigation to determine whether the crime was linked to his work as a journalist. Luca Esposito, 53, was an employee of the Regional…

The European Commission’s 2026 report on the rule of law, published on 17 July, underestimates the seriousness of the attacks on press freedom and media pluralism. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) calls on the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and the Committee of the Regions to take a critical look at this report. The EFJ believes that the EU’s mechanisms for addressing the decline in the rule of law are largely ineffective, as, despite four years of recommendations from the European Commission, most Member States have failed to turn guidance into tangible action. The report…

The Trump administration announced on 16 July it will drastically shorten visas for foreign journalists in the United States to 240 days, down from years, and cut those for Chinese journalists to only 90 days, raising concerns over press freedom. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) strongly condemns this drastic restriction, which is clearly intended to instil a reflex of self-censorship in the journalists targeted. The Trump administration has moved to tighten visa rules for foreign students, journalists and cultural exchange visitors. Student and cultural exchange visas would be limited to four years. Visas for journalists, which previously lasted for…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins the International Press Institute (IPI) in welcoming the infringement proceedings initiated by the European Commission against 14 EU Member States over their inaction or delays in transposing the Anti-SLAPP Directive. The countries included are Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Spain. The EU infringement proceedings were initiated on 15 July, with letters of formal notice sent to these Member States for failing to notify about progress made in implementing the Directive. States now have two months to respond and update about measures taken or could…

Record levels of physical violence against journalists, death threats and online smear campaigns, entrenched impunity, and tight political control over the media landscape – media freedom in Serbia is in a deepening crisis with a rapidly closing window for independent journalism to operate. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), together with its partners of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) and the Council of Europe’s Safety of Journalists Platform, today presents a report which outlines the deteriorating situation for media freedom and safety of journalists in Serbia. The report is a result of an international mission to Belgrade that took…

By Renate Schroeder, EFJ Director (originally published on July 6 on CMPF blog section) With Big Tech being the gatekeepers of information and with AI, GenAI, chatbots accelerating, visibility, authority and viability of journalism is ever more at stake. With algorithms prioritising disinformation, toxic news, emotions and lies, with politicians lying bluntly and using smear campaigns against journalists in autocratic manners to silence their watchdog function, the space for honest journalism is shrinking. We watch the rise of the creator economy and the shift of audience trust away from institutions (and traditional media) toward individuals. At the same time, there…

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has just handed down two judgments upholding journalists’ rights. The first upholds the conviction of a blogger who had insulted and threatened journalists in Slovenia. The second condemns Switzerland for having unjustly prosecuted journalists from the daily newspaper “Le Courrier” following their investigation into the Geneva-based billionaire Jean-Claude Gandur. Between 2010 and 2012, Slovenian blogger Mitja Kunstelj continuously targeted two journalists, publishing posts containing vulgar language, slurs, and false allegations regarding their private and sexual conduct. The journalists repeatedly sought civil remedies and restraining orders, which the blogger ignored. Mitja Kunstelj continued to republish…

On 7 July, Luxembourg’s Chamber of Deputies approved a new media law, granting journalists the right to access information held by public institutions. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) joins their affiliate, the Association Luxembourgeoise des Journalistes Professionnels (ALJP), in welcoming the new legislation as a step forward in strengthening the media’s role in holding power to account. However, we regret that the law does not stipulate a maximum processing time for journalists’ requests and the fact that the country’s government agencies may decide to redact or withhold documents if they believe the omitted content lacks public value.…

On 9-10 March 2026, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined its Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) partners for its third visit to Rome in five years. The MFRR mission found that Italy has continued on a negative trajectory, resulting in a further erosion of media freedom. This report presents the findings from the mission and MFRR’s ongoing monitoring, offering an analysis of the four most urgent issues identified by the consortium.The persistent political interference in Italy’s public broadcaster Radiotelevisione Italiana (Rai) epitomises the most concerning trend in the Italian media sector, its governance and funding models failing to comply with…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins its German affiliates, dju in ver.di and DJV, in calling on the German government to abandon its plans to gut Germany’s Freedom of Information Act. The proposed amendments threaten press freedom and core human rights essential to transparency and public participation in a democracy based on the rule of law. On 2 July, the coalition committee of the German government, comprised of the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) and the Social Democratic Party (SPD), decided to significantly amend Germany’s Freedom of Information Act. The changes will severely restrict the ability of the public, including…

The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty, published a letter today addressed to the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Azerbaijan, seeking clarification regarding the criminal proceedings against journalist Afgan Sadigov, editor-in-chief of the news website Azel.tv, who was arrested on 8 June and subsequently remanded in pre-trial detention. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) welcomes the Commissioner’s letter and calls on the international community, including the Council of Europe and the European Union, to press Azerbaijan to guarantee Sadigov’s safety and freedom of movement. The journalist must be able to leave Azerbaijan and reunite with his family…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined the undersigned media freedom, freedom of expression, journalists’ and human rights organisations express profound alarm at the recent wave of detentions and arrests of journalists and civil society representatives in Türkiye in the immediate lead-up to the NATO Summit in Ankara on 7-8 July. In the last two weeks, Turkish authorities have launched a coordinated crackdown on critical voices in the country, including independent media. In this period, the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) monitoring platform Mapping Media Freedom documented 11 journalists and media workers detained under vague or unjustified pretexts, many with…

Three journalists were detained in a new wave of countrywide police raids in Turkey ahead of the NATO summit, which begins today in the capital city Ankara. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) join their affiliates, DİSK Basın-İş, Türkiye Gazeteciler Sendikası (TGS), Türkiye Gazeteciler Cemiyeti (TGC), Gazeteciler Cemiyeti (GCD) and İzmir Gazeteciler Cemiyeti (IGC), in calling for the immediate release of the detained journalists. On 5 July, T24 journalist Buse Söğütlü, OdaTV journalist Ceren Erdoğdu and Nihaplus journalist and Bianet contributor Abbas Vural were detained in the second wave of pre-dawn police raids conducted in at least eight cities ahead of the NATO summit in Turkey. They…

On 3 July, the Belgian Competition Authority (Autorité belge de la Concurrence or ABC) conditionally authorised the takeover of the IPM media group – publisher of the daily newspapers “La Libre”, “La Dernière Heure” and “L’Avenir” – by the Rossel media group, publisher of the daily newspapers “Le Soir” and “Sudinfo”, paving the way for the creation of a monopoly on daily newspaper publishing in the French-speaking part of the country. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins its affiliate, the Association of Professional Journalists (AJP), in calling on the publisher to inform, consult and negotiate the terms of the…

On 3 July, 2026, a forensic analysis by the Citizen Lab revealed that Stelios Kouloglou, former Member of the European Parliament and investigative journalist, was targeted and infected with Pegasus spyware, developed by NSO Group, on or around 21 October 2022, and again on 6 and 7 March 2023. At the time, Kouloglou was serving as a substitute Member of the Parliament’s Committee of Inquiry to investigate the use of Pegasus and equivalent surveillance spyware (PEGA Committee). This revelation is especially alarming because of the specific institutional context in which the targeting occurred. A member of the very committee mandated…

The imprisonment of Yıldız Tar, a journalist who has worked for many years on human rights, LGBTI+ rights and freedom of expression, deepens concerns over the use of criminal investigations and pre-trial detention against journalists because of their professional work, in Turkey. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) are calling on the Turkish authorities to release Yıldız Tar immediately. Journalist Yıldız Tar, editor-in-chief of LGBTQ+ rights publication Kaos GL, was arrested on charges of “membership in a terrorist organization” after being detained on 23 June in pre-dawn police raids in Ankara, Turkey’s capital, ahead…