France: Investigative media outlets under attack in five gagging lawsuits - Article

Media freedom groups raise concern over the recent wave of gagging lawsuits initiated by companies against several independent media outlets in France

Albania: Media must not face criminal prosecution for public interest reporting - Article

Media freedom groups raise concern over the blanket publication ban issued by Albanian prosecutorial authorities regarding a trove of hacked data. No journalist or media outlet should face criminal sanctions for publishing information in the public interest

Call for Italian political forces to take a stand against SLAPPs, a ‘slap’ in the face of freedom of information - Article

The right of citizens to be informed about matters of public interest and of journalists to write freely about them cannot and must not be hindered by SLAPPs. Civil society's appeal to the future parliament to promote measures to contrast strategic lawsuits

Also available ITA

Monitoring Report - Mapping Media Freedom January - June 2022 - Reports

The current Monitoring Report tracks media freedom violations across Europe during the first semester of 2022

European Anti-SLAPP Conference 2022 - Article

On 20 October 2022, the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) and the Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe (CASE) will host the first ever European Anti-SLAPP Conference. The event is organised under the patronage of the European Parliament, with the support of the Council of Europe, and funded by the Open Society Foundations

Why the "Greek Watergate" earthquake has only just begun - Article

A digital surveillance scandal targeting PASOK-KINAL leader Nikos Androulakis and investigative journalist Thanasis Koukakis, via Predator spyware. The so-called "Greek Watergate" is shaking the Mitsotakis government

by Alessio Giussani

The VoiCEE Podcast Episode 4: Media Independence in Central and Eastern Europe - Article

This episode is part of a podcast series that looks at Central and Eastern Europe from different angles and perspectives

Serbia: REM’s awarding of TV licences underscores media pluralism and media diversity failure - Article

The decision made by the Serbia’s Regulatory Body for Electronic Media to award four national FTA TV licences to pro-government outlets perpetuates a deeply unbalanced commercial broadcast media market and is another example of the authority’s failure to protect media diversity and pluralism in Serbia

Malta: Joint statement in support of The Shift News - Article

OBCT co-signed a statement in support of the independent media outlet The Shift News, as it faces a freedom of information battle with the government of Malta

Poland: Letter to the Ombudsman in defence of Polska Press - Article

OBCT joins a group of media freedom organisations in a letter to the Polish Ombudsman to urge him to reconsider its decision to refrain from appealing the acquisition of Polska Press by the state-controlled oil company PKN Orlen