Croatia: MFRR Media Freedom Mission to Visit Zagreb - Article

Between 19 and 21 May, Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) partner organisations will conduct a press freedom mission to Zagreb, Croatia.

Croatia: Weekly Novosti faces drastic funding cuts amid political pressure - Article

MFRR partners condemn the drastic cuts in funding for the weekly magazine Novosti, the only print media for the Serb minority in Croatia

Media Landscape in Montenegro - Article

A survey of the challenges faced by media professionals in Montenegro through the lenses of three themes: media capture, legal threats, and the safety of journalists

By Sava Mirković

Italy: MFRR open letter to the President of the European Parliament and the President of the European Commission - Article

MFRR partner organisations sent a letter to President Metsola and President von der Leyen to express serious concerns about the declining media freedom in Italy and bring to their attention the findings of the recent advocacy mission to Rome

Silencing the Fourth Estate: Italy’s democratic drift - Article

Media freedom coalition sounds the alarm on political meddling and legal threats to journalism

Also available in ITA

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

Joint Statement on the Proposal for the European Media Freedom Act - Article

We co-signed a statement welcoming the European Commission's commitment to protect journalists and editorial independence within the EU

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