The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) publishes its position paper on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the future of journalism in Europe, after it was adopted by the EFJ Steering Committee in Brussels, on 30 September.  The spread of AI profoundly affects reporting practices that had been used in newsrooms until now. AI is able to assist journalists’ work in helping with translation and fact-checking. But it can also be used maliciously to generate misinformation, or give preference to a small number of media sources in its training and output, thus harming media pluralism and information integrity. AI in journalism must…

Following the publication of the so-called “transparency template” by the European Commission’s AI Office on 24 July, most AI model providers will be required to publish summaries of training data as of 2 August 2025. Although these templates were initially designed to facilitate copyright enforcement by obliging AI developers to disclose the origin of their training data, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins the media and creative sectors in criticising the finalised template, having repeatedly called for more detailed transparency obligations. Required by the AI Act, this obligation for AI model providers to disclose the data used to train…

The Panhellenic Federation of Journalists’ Unions (POESY) launched itsCode of Ethics covering the use of artificial intelligence by journalists at its unveiling event in Athens, on 13 May 2025. Adopted by the five member unions of the federation, the code was developed over the course of a year by a committee of legal experts, journalists and ethics experts.  At the heart of the initiative is a ten point ethical framework that aims to protect journalistic integrity, uphold public trust, and safeguard democratic values, some including training and awareness, journalism ethics as a compass, editorial responsibility,  transparency and accountability, and impartiality…

From automating transcriptions to generating synthetic images, Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools have become embedded in news production. While these tools offer promise, they also raise urgent questions about jobs, ethics, intellectual property, and the safety of journalists. On the eve of World Press Freedom Day 2025, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) advocates for an AI future that respects the fundamental values of journalism. “In times of crisis and revolution, it is necessary to refocus on the basics, on what makes journalism what it is: the respect for facts and the public’s right to the truth. AI should help journalists…

Brussels, 17 February 2025 Dear Executive Vice-President Virkkunen, Dear Commissioner Micallef, The AI Office is currently tasked with the critical responsibility of successfully finalising the ‘General-Purpose AI Code of Practice’ by May 2025. As representative organisations of authors and performers from all disciplines, in their capacity as creative workers and rightsholders (copyright and related rights), we write to you to express our concerns about the second draft of this Code of Practice, which was recently published and discussed. As it currently stands, it does not show sufficient progress and fails to take into account the comments expressed by our organisations.…

The European Commission has released a draft template for the summary of training data designed to support the implementation by AI model operators of the transparency obligations from the AI Act. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) calls on the EU Commission’s AI Office not to be influenced by the Big Tech industry when formulating these obligations and urges to protect the legitimate interests of authors. In order to implement the transparency requirements of the AI Act for providers of generative AI models, the AI Office is currently working on so-called templates. These templates will set the legally binding framework…