Türkiye: Big tech should protect free speech and resist state censorship - Article

Ahead of Türkiye’s municipal elections on 31 March 2024, 22 rights groups and journalists’ organisations jointly call on social media platforms to uphold the free expression rights of their users and resist state censorship. They should also fully disclose all government requests to restrict accounts or content, and be transparent about informal government pressure to restrict content on their platforms.

Trudeau against Facebook: social media, copyright, and information - Article

In protest against the new Canadian law that requires social media to pay news organisations every time a user shares a link, Facebook has blocked access to news portals, earning the condemnation of Prime Minister Trudeau. In Europe, meanwhile, new regulations are on their way on the removal of content, advertising, and disinformation

By Paola Rosà

Originally published by OBCT in ENG and ITA

Serbia: Penal Code amendments require open and comprehensive debate - Article

We co-signed a statement calling for a broader and open consultation on the amendments of the Penal Code proposed by the Ministry of Justice

Media Freedom in the Age of Citizen Journalism - Books

This timely book explores how the internet and social media have permanently altered the media landscape, enabling new actors to enter the marketplace, and changing the way that news is generated, published and consumed

Rush to pass ‘fake news’ laws during Covid-19 intensifying global media freedom challenges - Legal Resources

17 states passed some form of regulation targeting disinformation during pandemic, handing autocrats new censorship tools. An overview by IPI

IPI's "Digital Censorship: Turkey’s New Social Media Law and Its Implications for Free Media" (Aug 31, 2020) - HTML5 video

The IPI Turkish National Committee hosted the English-language webinar “Digital Censorship: Turkey’s New Social Media Law and Its Implications for Free Media” following the passage of Turkey’s controversial new social media regulations in July which dramatically expands government control over free expression on social media and online platforms

Albanian media law: a letter of concern - Article

The MFRR partners and SEEMO are alarmed by reports that the Parliament will approve the media law package without respecting international standards. Here the letter sent to Albanian authorities:

EU must act on Hungary media market distortion - Article

A coalition of 16 press freedom, freedom of expression and journalists‘ organisations have urged EU Competition Commissioner Margarethe Vestager to act on complaints that the Hungarian government has violated EU state aid rules to undermine media pluralism

Spain: a new law against fact-checking - Article

An analysis by Javier Luque, IPI Head of Digital Communications, for Media Freedom Rapid Response: polarization and attempts by far-right party to smear fact-checkers and journalists corner press freedom in the country

Poland: new plans to limit foreign-owned media - Article

The governing Law and Justice (PiS) party announces the will to pass the new law before the end of its term in 2023. This is a new threat to media freedom coming from legislation within the EU, and the platform Mapping Media Freedom keeps track of it, too