IPI, a global network of editors, media executives and leading journalists for press freedom, said that if passed, the new rules would seriously undermine press freedom in Austria and hamper investigative journalism.
On February 24, 2021, the ÖVP party headed by Federal Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, suggested as part of a planned judicial reform that it was considering stricter criminal penalties for media which quoted or published leaked information from judicial investigations.
The ÖVP’s suggestion for tougher criminal penalties comes amidst media coverage of judicial investigations involving politicians, including Austrian Finance Minister Gernot Blümel, who is under investigation by the specialized public prosecutor’s office responsible for corruption-related crimes (WKStA).
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Tags: Austria Investigative journalism Media Law
This content is part of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR), a Europe-wide mechanism which tracks, monitors and responds to violations of press and media freedom in EU Member States and Candidate Countries. The project is co-funded by the European Commission.
