UNESCO - Stakeholders

UNESCO is the UN specialized agency with the mandate to promote "the free flow of ideas by word and image", and to nurture freedom of expression, media development, and access to information. It provides governments with technical advice on legal, regulatory, policy and other critical issues, and educates and builds capacities of journalists, media professionals and institutions.

UNESCO has a long-standing experience of promoting freedom of expression and media development in transitional countries, particularly in South East Europe and Turkey. In this respect, UNESCO contributed to the Guidelines for EU support to media freedom and integrity in enlargement countries 2014-2020.

From 2009 until 2011, UNESCO implemented the project "Alignment to International Standards in the Media Sector of South East European countries". From 2013 to 2015, a second project was implemented under the title "Media Accountability in South East Europe". In January 2016, the project "Building Trust in Media in South East Europe and Turkey " was launched, with the aim of supporting media accountability mechanisms, internal governance of media entities and media and information literacy in EU candidate and potential candidate countries with financial support of the European Commission, DG Near. 

International Press Institute (IPI) - Stakeholders

The International Press Institute (IPI) is a global network of editors, media executives and leading journalists. The institute is dedicated to the furtherance and safeguarding of press freedom, the protection of freedom of opinion and expression, the promotion of the free flow of news and information, and the improvement of the practices of journalism. 

IPI works by:

• conducting direct advocacy with governments
• raising awareness on violations of media freedom through news coverage, research and analysis
• leading programmes and campaigns to further change
• offering platforms for cooperation, networking and skills exchange among our members
• promoting high-quality, independent journalism through the development of best practices at the global level
• providing opportunities for dialogue among diverse journalistic communities, in line with IPI’s founding principles

IPI runs a project called OnTheLine, that aims at promoting online journalists’ safety and countering threats against press freedom and freedom of expression in the digital sphere.

European Press Prize - Opportunities

The European Press Prize is an award programme for excellence in journalism across all 47 countries of Europe. It was founded in 2012 by seven European media foundations

World trends in freedom of expression and media development: Special digital focus 2015 - Reports

Since 2011, UNESCO increased its activity in monitoring the status of press freedom and safety of journalists, with emphasis on cases of impunity for violence against journalists. This Special Digital Focus 2015 devotes specific attention to selected digital-era trends such as Online hate speech, Digital security and digital rights

Press freedom in Turkey's inter-election period - Reports

Pressure on journalists operating in Turkey has severely escalated in the period between the two parliamentary elections held on June 7 and November 1st 2015. The report has been produced following an Emergency Press Freedom Mission conducted by 8 organizations in October 2015. It assesses the rising pressures and threats on journalists as a serious obstacle to free and fair elections

Backgrounds, Experiences and Responses to Online Hate Speech: A Comparative Cross-Country Analysis - Reports

With funding from the EU's Fundamental Rights and Citizenship Programme, a recent report by the PRISM project has empirically investigated online hate speech in France, Italy, Romania, Spain and the UK

Information security. Protecting your story, your source and yourself online - Manuals

This manual is designed by the Center for Investigative Journalism (CIJ) to instruct journalists and media organisations on how to practise information security in the digital age, how to protect their work, your sources, and communication flows which may be endangered by dfferent factors

Eroding Freedoms: Media and Soft Censorship in Montenegro - Reports

This report published by WAN-IFRA, the Center for International Media Assistance (CIMA), and the Montenegrin Centre for Civic Education (CCE) focuses on the impact of soft-censorship in quickening an already serious decline in media independence in Montenegro 

Surveillance: Critical Analysis and Current Challenges - Part 2 - Academic Sources

The second volume of Media and Communication 2015 Special Issue on surveillance explores the effects in term of privacy erosion deriving from the pervasive surveillance practices

European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) - Support Centres

ECPMF offers several support programmes for journalists at risk.

- Journalists-in-Residence programme: The ECPMF’s Journalists-in-Residence (JiR) programme offers temporary shelter for journalists facing harassment and intimidation as a direct result of their work. Journalists get the chance to rest and recuperate in a safe and discreet place, and also to continue their investigative work at their own pace and use their time in Leipzig for networking and finding solidarity. The JiR programme lasts for either three or up to six months, and includes a rent-free furnished apartment in Leipzig, as well as a monthly stipend to cover basic living costs. It also covers travel and visa expenses, health insurance, psychological counselling, and journalism-related training sessions on topics like digital security, mobile reporting and social media management. More info here .

- Legal support: ECPMF offers and coordinates legal support on matters related to free speech for individuals and organisations working in countries located geographically in Europe. More info here .

- Helpdesk: he Helpdesk is ECPMF central tool for responding to the individual needs of journalists at risk and under threat. ECPMF supports media professionals across Europe in order to find a place of safety in emergency cases and we assist exiled journalists in Germany, irrespective of their origin. More info here .

- Women’s Reporting Point: it aims to deepen a gender-specific aspect of the safety of journalists and encourages female media workers to report it if they are subjected to harassment or they witness it in their journalistic work. Reports received are given priority, treated confidentially and are only handled by women staff. More info here .