Romania: Publication of stolen pictures of Emilia Șercan and leak from criminal investigation must be investigated swiftly and independently - Article

Ten European and international press freedom and freedom of expression organisations, members of the MFRR and their partners, have reacted to the harassment of Emilia Șercan, expressing serious concerns about the case and its implications for media freedom in Romania. Today, the ten organisations sent an open letter to the Romanian authorities calling for swift and independent investigations. The letter recalls that the threats and harassment of Șercan are set against a background of recent aggression and undue pressure against journalists and media workers in Romania coming from politicians, prosecutors, police, and military officers

The State of Democracy in 2021 - Reports

The report monitors ten issues that are essential for evaluating the state of democracy and rule of law in a country. Among them, it analyses access to information of public interest, public media funding, threats and harassment against journalists and activists, freedom of association and of assembly in Romania

MFRR to hold press freedom mission to Italy - Article

From 4 to 6 April, representatives of all partner organisations of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) will be in Italy for a fact-finding mission focused on two main topics: safety of journalists and state protection measures on one side, and SLAPPs against journalists and the need for comprehensive legislative reforms of the framework of defamation and media freedom on the other

Media Capture in Bulgaria: Hidden Alliances and Vested Interests - Reports

Third report as part of IPI’s campaign on media capture: a new report on media freedom and independence in Bulgaria. The report explores the capture of media by vested business and political interests and the corrupting relationship between media owners and politicians as they compete for power and profit

Media Capture in the Czech Republic: lessons learnt from the Babiš era and how to rebuild defences against Media Capture - Reports

This IPI report examines growing pressure on the public-service broadcaster Czech Television (CT) under the Babiš government. In this light, the report looks at key reform proposals to strengthen Czech public media’s defenses against future attempts to compromise its independence, and it also details how government advertising funds were directed to benefit Mafra media owned by Babiš and recommends policy reform to end the abuse of government funds to reward positive media coverage

Recommendation CM/Rec(2022)4 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on promoting a favourable environment for quality journalism in the di... - Legal Resources

Adopted by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on 17 March 2022 at the 1429^th meeting of the Ministers' Deputies

Spain: Energy company launches €17.6 million SLAPP lawsuit against El Confidencial - Article

MFRR partners condemn the vexatious SLAPP lawsuit against the newspaper El Confidencial by the Spanish electricity company Iberdrola, which is claiming €17.6 million for alleged “reputational damage”. The MFRR partners see the lawsuit as another example of the urgent need for the introduction of anti-SLAPP legislation at the EU and national levels and reform of the current legal provisions on protection of honour and reputation in line with international freedom of expression standards

Needs and Gaps Brief No. 2: Ireland - Article

The second of a series of briefs presenting the results of the forthcoming Needs and Gaps analysis

Curated by Maria Francesca Rita

UN-EU High-level Policy Dialogue on safety of journalists and media freedom - Article

Under the title "Protecting the safety of journalists, media freedom and pluralism in the European Union: challenges and opportunities", a full day of discussions and meetings will analyze the state of media freedom and safety of journalists, collecting recommendations and stories. On 24 February 2022, from 9:30 to 18:00, the event will be both in-person in Brussels, and online

Liberties Rule of Law Report 2022 - Reports

The Liberties Rule of Law Report 2022 is the third annual report on the state of rule of law in the European Union, presenting country and trend reports on democratic records by civil society organisations across the European Union. Published by the Civil Liberties Union for Europe, it provides information and analysis from the ground of the state of the rule of law in 17 EU countries