Council of Europe - Stakeholders

The Council of Europe (CoE) is Europe's leading human rights organization seated in Strasbourg (France). The Convention on Human Rights, signed by all 47 CoE member states, is an international treaty designed to ensure the protection of human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The European Court of Human Rights, a CoE organ, ensures the implementation of the treaty. The CoE work is organized through committees working on more specific topics within the vast field of Human rights, while the commissioner for Human Rights is an impartial institution established by the Council of Europe in 1999.

The Committee of experts on protection of journalism and safety of journalists (MSI-JO) is an inter-governmental committee operating within the Council of Europe. The MSI-JO mandate is to work on the protection of journalism and the safety of journalists and other media actors, taking account of the implementation of the UN Action Plan on the Safety of Journalists. official website

 The Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media focuses on issues relating to culture, science, education, youth, sport and media in Europe. It has tree sub-commitees among which the Sub-Committee on Media and Information Society. official website

The Commissioner for Human Rights is an impartial and non-judicial institution established by the Council of Europe in order to to promote awareness of and respect for human rights in the 47 member states. His/Her main activities include country visits, conducting studies and giving advice on systematic human rights work, as well as rising awareness of topics related to human rights. official website

Promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression - Reports

The September 2015 report of the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and the protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, David Kaye focuses on the protection of sources of information and whistle-blowers

Protecting the reputation of the council - Legal Resources

Athelstane Aamodt considers attempts by local authorities to protect their reputation and analyses a recent European Court of Human Rights ruling

Media ownership patterns in post-communist Romania - 5 profiles - Reports

An analysis of the media situation in Romania, released by the Center for Media Transparency, highlights different media models in the country, their relation to politics and the deriving challenges in terms of media pluralism and transparency

Freedom of Expression, the Media and Journalists: Case-law of the European Court of Human Rights 2015 - Books

A structured insight into the European Court of Human Rights’ case-law on freedom of expression and media and journalistic freedoms 

Defence Handbook for Journalists and Bloggers on Freedom of Expression and Freedom of Information Principles in International Law - Manuals

The Defence Handbook for Journalists and Bloggers is unique in its kind as it focuses specifically on the application of international legal principles to the work of journalists

Croatia: IREX Media Sustainability Index 2015 - Reports

IREX Media Sustainability Index (MSI) considers developments over time, with a specific focus on economic sustainability, quality of journalism and management practices 

Montenegro: IREX Media Sustainability Index 2015 - Reports

IREX Media Sustainability Index (MSI) considers developments over time in the media landscape of Montenegro, with a specific focus on economic sustainability; quality of journalism and management practices 

Report by the CoE Commissioner for Human Rights following his visit to Bulgaria - Reports

This Report by Nils Muiznieks, Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, follows his visit to Bulgaria from 9 to 11 February 2015. The situation of media is one of the worring elements which called for the attention of the Commissioner.

Building digital safety for journalism. A survey of selected issues - Reports

With the rise of digital platforms, ensuring safety for journalists has become even more complex. This UNESCO study of selected challenges addresses digital security for journalism formulating recommendations for governments and journalism contributors