The existence of a vibrant and independent local media ecosystem serving the public interests of its local communities is a cornerstone for our democratic societies. They are the key to empowering citizens to grasp and exercise their rights in the communities where they live. And they are better placed to gain trust and engagement from their native audience and to confront dis/misinformation. However, the very existence of these media has become uncertain across different parts of the European Union. The robustness of a region’s or community’s local media ecosystem also serves as a meaningful indicator of a state’s vulnerability to…

Four European organisations are joining forces to strengthen cross-border, local investigative journalism in Europe through the “Cross-border Local” project. With financial support from the European Commission (Creative Europe), Transitions (Czech Republic), SSE Riga Centre for Media Studies (Latvia), the European Federation of Journalists (Belgium), and Journalismfund Europe (Belgium) will undertake a multifaceted, 1.3 million € programme that will impact the journalism profession in Europe. This project will target journalists and news outlets from all Creative Europe participating countries (EU and non-EU). Cross-Border Local will revolve around three main support mechanisms: A grant programme Addressing the shortage of local independent journalism in many countries, this initiative will award grants…

TRADE UNIONS FOR A FAIR RECOVERY: Strengthening the role of trade unions in mitigating the impact of the COVID-19 crisis COVID-19 has underlined the importance of Social Dialogue in societies across Europe. While it has come to the forefront during the pandemic, it is crucial that effective social dialogue is at the heart of the National Recovery and Resilience Plans (NRRPs). Strong unions are essential for a fair recovery ! The pandemic has been asymmetrical, affecting different countries in different ways. To adequately tackle this, the EFJ and the ETUC are launching an initiative funded by the European Commission which…

Journalists and media workers have always been considered “high risk” workers because of the nature of their work. But in reality, there is both a lack of awareness of health and safety issues and of protective measures and policies in place for journalists and media workers. As speed is essential for breaking news, there is barely time to carry out risk assessments for journalists. However, journalists face omnipresent risks to their health and safety, whether in the workplace or more dangerous or volatile environments. Since 1990, 371 journalists and media workers have lost their lives on assignment.  The COVID-19 pandemic…

The presence of far-right parties in European politics has become more prominent, creating favorable conditions for Euroscepticism, xenophobia, and intolerance. According to a report published by the Index on Censorship with the support of the EFJ, it shows that journalists and media outlets are targeted in a kaleidoscopic array by political leaders, businesses and the general public. The report identified a trend in increasing political interference in the media. The first is direct interference in the operations of media outlets, either by politicians requesting editors or others involved in the production of news to alter or halt a story, or…

With the proliferation of the so-called “fake news”, rebuilding trust and  ensuring quality in journalism are becoming ever more important to fight against disinformation. How can journalists and media reach a diverse audience and provide trustworthy information to citizens to participate in the democratic processes and make informed choices? Meanwhile, the question of finding sustainable financing for journalism remains as a challenge. Today, journalists are working in an increasingly precarious condition – more workloads, longer hours and more demands on multiple skills. Without decent working conditions and sustainable financing models, quality journalism can barely thrive. The new project, Trust and…

Stars4Media is a training programme for European media organisations aiming at facilitating cooperation between media professionals (“rising stars”) to accelerate media innovation and cross-border coverage. Media professionals, media organisations and tech companies from EU countries have the chance to cooperate around bottom-up Initiatives to test ideas and technologies, develop new business models and produce journalistic content. Partners of the project are the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), Europe’s Media Lab (Fondation EURACTIV), the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), and the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA). The project is co-funded by the European Commission. Read more about the project team. You can learn here about the first…

The digital revolution is largely impacting the way journalists and media are producing and sharing news content. In this changing media landscape, self-regulatory bodies, which were created before the digital revolution for most of them, must adapt to the involving environment. This project aims at highlighting the important role of press and media councils in times of decreasing trust towards journalists and media outlets combined with increasing disinformation on new media. It will look at the digital challenges through 4 main components: academic work to provide data and analysis regarding existing press councils, awareness campaign to promote media self-regulation, visibility…

Combating misinformation and disintermediation by restoring trust in journalism The lack of media literacy in the newsrooms is growing, especially when it comes to disinformation in the news ecosystem, and the debate about the role of journalists is missing from the debate. The attempts to restore trust in media would often fail if publishers, editors, and journalists are not placed at the core of the debate. Moreover, the majority of media literacy toolkits that are available today were produced outside Europe, by US universities or major IT companies, thus creating a gap for European mindset and European legal frame. Recognizing…

On February 2018, the EFJ took part to the kick off meeting of a 24-month project called Monitoring the implementation of the Framework of Action on gender equality and mapping initiatives to promote diversity in the European audiovisual sector.  A framework of action was agreed by social partners in 2011, this project will focus on where are we now? Partners include : UNI MEI, FIA, FIM, EFJ, ACT, EBU, AER, independent broadcasters Overall objective The aim of this project is to monitor how the Framework of Actions on Gender Equality in the Audiovisual sector (FoA) is currently implemented in the EU…

The digital shift in journalism has resulted in pressure on business models of traditional and digital publishers, and a change in the way that news is packaged and distributed. Cost-cutting, overburdened staff and fast news cycles have led to poor working conditions for journalists and questions of quality and trust in the media. The EFJ’s new project Managing change in media works with social partners including the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and News Media Europe (NME) to find innovative ways to address these key issues. The project emphasises rights for all workers, social dialogue and gender equality. Activities: 5 thematic…

Title of the project : openMedia, investigating press freedom Lead Applicant : openDemocracy Partner organisations : EFJ, Index on censorship, King’s College London The recently launched openMedia project aims to investigate and expose commercial interference in editorial decisions. The project is run by openDemocracy with the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) as a partner alongside the Index on Censorship and King’s College London. The project believes that there has not been enough of a concerted, ongoing spotlight on the extent and effects of commercial influence over the media, despite the dangerous consequences it poses for press freedom. For now, the…

Lead Applicant : European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) Associated organisations : BusinessEurope, CEEP, BDA, DA, MEDEF, EFBWW, EFFAT, EFJ, EPSU, ETF, IndustriAll and UNI Europa Project financially supported by : DG EMPL 01 Budget Line – European Union In recent years, Transnational Company Agreements (TCAs) have become an increasing practice in multinational companies (MNCs). This is the result of the internationalisation of industrial relations in which European and International trade unions (TUs) on the one hand, and some MNC’s, on the other hand, have found a common ground for action. In previous years, both the ETUC and BUSINESSEUROPE have worked…

Accompanying the transformations of the market and of individual careers in the European audiovisual and live performance sectors: a social dialogue perspective A European partnership project (Feb. 2017 – Jan. 2019) Trade unions and management of the EU social dialogue committees on live performance (LP) and the audiovisual sector (AV) have conversations on the developments affecting the sector and the implications of those developments for social dialogue for many years already, and skills development in the AV and LP sectors has a prominent place on the work programme of both committees. The evolutions of the sector activities and occupations, in…

The media industry are undergoing drastic changes due to the emergence of new technologies in the way news are produced and consumed as well as the structural changes driven by the economic crisis. The emergence of online journalists, social media journalists, multi-media journalists, entrepreneurial journalists and many other forms of doing journalism has not only challenged the traditional notion of being a journalist, it has also led to demand for jobs, new skills, training and protection of their professional and social rights. With the financial support of the European Commission (DG Employment), the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) is undertaking…

The Association of Journalists of Macedonia has launched the EU-funded project “Journalists’ Network for Media Freedoms in Macedonia”, under the media freedom priority of Instrument for Pre-Accessing Assistance (IPA). The project aims to develop AJM’s network of journalists and raise awareness about ethical reporting, media self-regulation and help improve the national practice in line with the EU principles and the standards of Council of Europe.Creating an enabling environment for free media and to improve the protection of journalism is the main goal of this Project. By strengthening the capacities of both the Association of Journalists of Macedonia and the self-regulatory…

#MediaAgainstHate is a Europe-wide campaign led by the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and a coalition of civil society organisations. We aim to counter hate speech and discrimination in the media, both on and offline, by promoting ethical standards, while maintaining respect for freedom of expression. Our work is underpinned by the belief that the rights to equality and freedom of expression are mutually reinforcing and essential to human dignity. The media and journalists play a crucial role in informing both policy and societal opinion regarding migration and refugees. As hate speech and stereotypes targeting migrants proliferate across Europe, balanced…

  Many journalists get attacked because of their profession. But female journalists often have to face different forms of violence than men: threats of rape or sexual and abusive comments are gender-based and hit women more often. As a reaction to these specific circumstances, ECPMF has launched an alarm centre for female media workers, where they can inform the Centre about attacks against them and seek help or advice. Threats can be reported via encrypted messaging. The emails will only be opened by female staff at ECPMF headquarters, who will take care of the cases reported. All contents will remain…