Croatia, the assault on the local press - Article

2024 is the year of elections for Croatia: European, political and presidential elections will take place between next June and December. And with the electoral competitions, the race for control of the local media, particularly the regional ones, is gaining ground in a hardly transparent way

By Giovanni Vale 

Originally published by OBCT. Also available in ITA and BHS

MFRR letter to US President Biden - Article

The Media Freedom Rapid Response urges the President of the United Stated, in Brussel for a NATO summit, to support efforts by the European Commission to demand reform in Poland and Hungary that guarantee media pluralism and independent journalism

Poland: Purge of editors begins at Polska Press - Article

The Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) today calls on Poland’s state-controlled oil giant PKN Orlen to immediately halt its interference in the newsrooms and editorial independence of Polska Press media and to fully respect the court’s interim decision suspending its purchase of the publisher pending a review

Purchase of Polska Press by state energy giant spells disaster for media freedom in Poland - Article

An analysis by IPI: A long-feared, Hungary-style takeover of independent media in Poland gathered pace this week as a state-controlled energy giant announced the acquisition of a media company with more than 20 regional dailies, 120 weekly magazines and 500 online portals across the country, the International Press Institute (IPI) warned

Country factsheet: Hungary - Article

In 2020, a number of threats to media pluralism and transparency have continued to further marginalise and threaten media freedom across Hungary. Due to the expansion of pro-Government outlets and the weaponisation of government advertising, most Hungarian citizens receive news only from pro-government outlets. With this kind of control, there is no need to directly attack critical journalists, as they are excluded from the media market. Moreover, the coronavirus crisis had arguably the biggest effect on media freedom

PPF Group and media ownership: an exchange between MFRR and the company - Article

The prompt answer of international investment group PPF to the letter of concern signed by international press freedom organizations is quite generic and leaves many issues open, but it is a first step forward

Bulgaria: the end of a legal harassment - Article

On 28 June the independent publisher and businessman Ivo Prokopiev was finally acquitted, thus confirming that the charges against him can be considered retaliatory and intended to stifle investigative reporting. The Media Freedom Rapid Response partners are relieved but ask to stop all further legal harassment against him and Economedia. Here the statement that was issued before the trial

Media capture: Toolkit for 21st century autocrats - Article

©Text Vector/Shutterstock

The 8th of a series of thematic itineraries to explore the Resource Centre on Media Freedom through a curated aggregation of contents. 

Media Freedom in Turkey - Article

The seventh of a series of thematic itineraries to explore the Resource Centre on Media Freedom through a curated aggregation of contents

Media freedom in Bulgaria - Article

The fourth of a series of thematic itineraries to explore the Resource Centre on Media Freedom through a curated aggregation of contents. The text has been kindly proof-read by Dr. Lada Price from Sheffield Hallam University - CFOM and AEJ - Bulgaria