Association of Journalists of Macedonia - Support Centres

The Association of Journalists of Macedonia (AJM) provides legal and advocacy support to staff journalists, editors, media outlets and freelance journalists. The service is paid through fixed rates, while for associated members it is free.
The person to be contacted is Dragan Sekulovski, via email dsekulovski@znm.org.mk, or contact@znm.org.mk or phone +389 2 2671 201.

Pro Bono Aliance (Czech Republic) - Support Centres

Pro Bono Aliance is a Prague-based Clearing House that operates in Czech Republic. Pro Bono Aliance matches the needs for free legal aid of civil society and NGOs that provide legal, financial or advocacy support for journalists/media outlets, and/or journalist associations, with attorneys and law firms willing to provide pro bono legal services.

Media Legal Defence Initiative (MLDI) - Support Centres

Media Defence (also known as MLDI) provides legal defence to independent media, journalists and bloggers around the world who are under threat for their reporting. MLDI does this by administering an emergency defence fund, helping journalists, bloggers and independent media pay legal fees, and provides legal expertise to the lawyer(s) defending a case. 

MLDI also engages in strategic litigation to challenge repressive laws and expand the space for media freedom. Through this, it seeks to advance respect for international law and norms on the right to freedom of expression. MLDI submits cases to domestic courts and international tribunals and intervenes in cases already under way, as well as supporting national lawyers to do the same.

In countries where the threat of legal action is high and constant, MLDI provides financial support and legal expertise to national organisations that provide legal defence services to journalists.

MLDI also runs training and networking programmes for lawyers in the fields of media law and human rights. 

E-mail: info@mediadefence.org

Observatory of Media Freedom (Poland) - Support Centres

'The Observatory of Media Freedom in Poland' is a legal program founded by the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (HFHR) in 2008 and operates in Poland. Its focus is on the protection related to freedom of expression in traditional media as well as on the Internet. 

The program provides legal aid concerning inter alia issues such as criminal defamation, press law offences, protection of journalistic sources of information, the liability of the Internet service providers etc. During court proceedings, the ‘Observatory’ can as well arrange pro bono legal assistance for journalists who cannot afford to pay for regular legal aid.

Understanding the EU Rule of Law mechanisms - Reports

This briefing by the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) conveys fundamental information about the “Rule of Law Framework”, the EU assessment mechanism applied for the first time in Poland with regard to the management of state TV and radio broadcasters

Discourse in danger. Attacks on free expression in Putin's Russia - Reports

The report “Discourse in danger. Attacks on free expression in Putin's Russia” illustrates the increasing effort by the Russian government to shape the information space, from the Internet, to children’s literature, to any independent cultural spaces, including theater and academia

Media quality, media trust: a comparative perspective - Reports

Trust in the media is important not only for news organizations but also for society at large. Data collected by FÖG in the German language report “Qualität der Medien. Medienvertrauen – eine vergleichende Perspektive” shows the factors shaping media trust

Institute of European Media Law - Stakeholders

The Institute of European Media Law (EMR) is a Europe-wide network of over 180 legal experts based in Saarbrücken (Germany). The EMR was founded in 1990 as a non-profit association; today it is a partner of numerous national and European institutions. The Institute acts as a service provider and neutral platform in a number of fields of media law and policy. Thanks to its network which comprises over 180 national experts from 40 European countries, it is particularly able to carry out comparative legal studies. The EMR organises conferences and publishes research results in different publications, including its own series of books.

EMR is among the funding partners of the ECPMF.

EU Communication Policy in Its Neighbourhood in Light of Third-Party Propaganda - Reports

How EU can face Russian rhetoric and IS propaganda? A report from the Polish Institue of International Affairs

ERGA Report on the independence of National Regulatory Authorieties - Reports

The report provides recommendations on the characteristics of the independent regulatory authorities, providing elements to be taken into consideration by the Commission in the review of the AVMSD