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. 

Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) - Stakeholders

Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) promotes press freedom worldwide and defends the right of journalists to report the news without fear of reprisal. CPJ ensures the free flow of news and commentary by taking action wherever journalists are attacked, imprisoned, killed, kidnapped, threatened, censored, or harassed.

CPJ’s work is based on its research, which provides a global snapshot of obstructions to a free press worldwide. CPJ’s research staff documents hundreds of attacks on the press each year. CPJ denounces press freedom violations, meets with heads of state and high-ranking officials, spearheads or advises on diplomatic efforts, and works with other organizations to ensure that justice prevails when journalists are imprisoned or killed. CPJ also provides practical support to journalists and media support staff working around the world through up-to-date safety and security information and rapid response assistance.

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 Federation of Journalists (EFJ) - Stakeholders

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) is the largest organisation of journalists in Europe, representing over 320,000 journalists in 72 journalists’ organisations across 45 countries.

The EFJ fights for social and professional rights of journalists working in all sectors of the media across Europe through strong trade unions and associations. The EFJ promotes and defends the rights to freedom of expression and information as guaranteed by Article 10 of the European convention on human rights.

The EFJ supports its affiliates to foster trade union development, to recruit new members, and to maintain or create environments in which quality, journalistic independence, pluralism, public service values, and decent work in the media exist.

ARTICLE 19 - Stakeholders

ARTICLE 19  takes its name from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Headquartered in London since 1987, it operates worldwide to actively promote freedom of expression and information. It campaigns with people around the world for the right to exercise these rights, in particular designing laws and policies that protect free expression, holding abusers and governments to account, and advocate for legal reforms.

ARTICLE 19 also provides practical support for journalists and media practitioners under threat.  

Access Info Europe - Stakeholders

Access Info Europe is a human rights organisation based in Madrid (Spain) dedicated to promoting and protecting the right of access to information in Europe as a tool for defending civil liberties and human rights, for facilitating public participation in decision making, and for holding governments accountable.

Albanian Media Institute - Stakeholders

The Albanian Media Institute (AMI) is based in Tirana and is engaged in media policy issues such as the improvement of media legislation, Code of Ethics, various issues related to freedom of expression and access to information. The Institute has organized several research works, and provides training courses for journalists. 

ActiveWatch Media Monitoring Agency - Stakeholders

ActiveWatch Media Monitoring Agency is a human rights organization based in Bucharest (Romania) that militates for free communication for public interest. ActiveWatch was founded in 1994 as a media monitoring department of the Catavencu Cultural Academy. It promotes 4 major directions of social intervention: good governance policies, freedom of expression, anti-discrimination and media education.