Information as a Public Good: why media freedom is essential to democracy - Reports

This Legal and Policy Report, authored by Andrea Oleandri and produced within the STRIVE 2026 project supported by the Civil Liberties Union for Europe (Liberties) and the European Union, argues that the quality of a democracy depends on the quality of its information space, and that the traditional framing of press freedom—centred on protecting individual expression from state censorship—is no longer sufficient to guarantee a genuinely free and pluralistic media environment

SLAPPs in Moldova: Lessons from investigative media outlet Cu Sens - Article

The Moldovan investigative journalism outlet Cu Sens has faced numerous legal threats in recent years. In this interview, Felicia Crețu and Liuba Șevciuc discuss how they responded to these challenges and the lessons they learned from their experience

By Gian Marco Moisé

Originally published by OBCT. Also available in ITA

World Press Freedom Day: Six years of monitoring reveals emerging threats against media freedom in Europe - Article

To mark World Press Freedom Day, the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) is today publishing an analysis  of six years of monitoring data, which reveals in granular detail the most serious challenges and trends threatening freedom of the press in Europe

Hungary: Media freedom reform must be priority for incoming Tisza government - Article

OBCT joins MFRR partners in calling on the new Hungarian government to make media freedom reforms a priority 

EU rule of law erodes further as Commission struggles to respond - Article

Examining the most significant infringements of justice, corruption, media freedom, and checks and balances across the European Union (EU) in 2025,  the Liberties Rule of Law Report 2026 has found stagnation as the dominant trend in the rule of law, with very limited progress among Member States

Council of Europe Platform partners and other partners to conduct fact-finding mission on media freedom in Kosovo - Article

From 24 to 25 March 2026, partner organisations of the Council of Europe Platform on the Safety of Journalists and other organisations will conduct a two-day fact-finding mission to Prishtina, Kosovo. The purpose of the mission is to assess the challenges to media freedom in the country and to discuss the possible solutions with media stakeholders and authorities

EU: MFRR contributes to European Union annual Rule of Law report - Article

Last week, Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) partner organisations submitted contributions to the European Union’s annual Rule of Law report for 2026, identifying key developments for media freedom and pluralism and outlining recommendations for reform

Amendments to Albania’s Criminal Code must be strengthened to ensure full decriminalisation of defamation - Article

The undersigned organisations of the SafeJournalists Network, partners of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) today stress that recent amendments to Albania’s Criminal Code, though positive, must be strengthened to ensure decriminalisation of defamation

SLAPP in Montenegro: between hesitant courts and missed reforms - Article

Strategic lawsuits against public participation remain an under-recognized practice in the country. The ongoing proceedings before the Podgorica court, initiated by Andrej Vučić, brother of Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, against the daily newspaper Vijesti, could set an important precedent for establishing judicial practices in handling SLAPPs

By Olivera Nikolic and Massimo Moratty 

Media freedom under electoral siege: money, law, and silence between the lines - Article

When it comes to Macedonian media, Brussels notes “limited progress,” the OSCE warns of unequal access to the media space, and the civil sector speaks of a system of soft censorship and quiet dependence on state funding

By Metamorphosis Foundation