Multimedia / Media Freedom in Europe - Resource Centre by OBCT

Interview with Emilia Șercan

19/10/2023

Emilia Șercan was one of the speakers at the international conference dedicated to the rule of law and press freedom organised in Rome on 17th October 2023 as part of the MFRR project. In her speech, she underlined the crucial role that law enforcement authorities play in ensuring safe and enabling working conditions for journalists and media workers.

Learn more about the international conference on OBCT's dedicated dossier .

Interview with Nello Trocchia

17/10/2023

Nello Trocchia was one of the speakers at the first public event of the CASE Italia working group on combating SLAPPs, organised in Rome on 16th October 2023 as part of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) project. In this video he explains what it means to be the target of reckless complaints and how much these represent an attack on citizens' right to be informed.

Interview with Vittorio Di Trapani

17/10/2023

Vittorio Di Trapani was one of the speakers at the first public event of the CASE Italia working group on combating SLAPPs, organised in Rome on 16th October 2023 as part of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) project. In this video he invites civil society to build a solid network of associations, unions, and movements that have the Constitution and the European values of democracy and freedom at heart.

Interview with Sara Manisera

17/10/2023

Sara Manisera was one of the speakers at the first public event of the CASE Italia working group on combating SLAPPs, organised in Rome on 16th October 2023 as part of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) project. In this video she explains what it means to be a freelance journalist targeted by a reckless lawsuit because of a public speech on the extent of the mafia phenomenon in Italy.

Interview with Cecilia Anesi

17/10/2023

Cecilia Anesi was one of the speakers at the first public event of the CASE Italia working group on combating SLAPPs, organised in Rome on 16th October 2023 as part of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) project. In this video she explains the many ways in which SLAPPs threaten the survival of an independent investigative newspaper.

Media, politics, and vexatious lawsuits - An Italian perspective

31/08/2023

An excerpt from the 2023 MFRR Summit dedicated to “Press Freedom on the Line” - which took place from the 29 to the 31 of March dedicated to the spreading of the SLAPP phenomenon in Italy. Recently, Italy has drawn the attention of several international organisations working on media freedom. A cause for concern is the rapid succession of defamation lawsuits and subsequent legal proceedings against Italian journalists and intellectuals brought up by politicians and high-ranking public figures. By exploring the case study of Italian newspaper Domani – which in a matter of months has been respectively threatened to be sued and sued by two high profile public figures – the discussion focused on defamation, SLAPPs, and the challenges Italian media face when reporting on public figures.

Surveying the landscape - Initiatives to counter spyware

30/08/2023

Within the context of the 2023 MFRR Summit dedicated to “Press Freedom on the Line” - which took place from the 29 to the 31 of March - this discussion explored the strengths and weaknesses of the current draft of Article 4 of the EMFA, through a comparative analysis of the existing independent authorities that the article requires member states to designate, in order to deal with complaints about breaches of provisions of the article itself. The lack of judicial ex-ante evaluation mechanisms were discussed as a key missing element which has attracted much criticism from media-focused NGOs and civil society organisations which have been called upon to provide feedback by the Commission.

Rule of Law Reports - Protecting media pluralism and independence?

30/08/2023

Within the context of the 2023 MFRR Summit dedicated to “Press Freedom on the Line” - which took place from the 29 to the 31 of March, this panel discussed the potential of the Rule of Law (RoL) mechanism by looking at the experience of transnational coalitions employing the RoL report for Europe-wide advocacy work. It addressed the following key questions: How can European mechanisms such as the Rule of Law (RoL) report contribute to strengthening the protection of independent journalism across Europe? To what extent does it help foster an open and informed debate in member countries?

CASE Day of Action - an initiative against SLAPPs

14/07/2023

On July 10 the Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe (CASE), of which OBCT is a member, promoted a Day of Action dedicated to the campaign against SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) targeting activists, human rights defenders, and journalists.

SLAPPs in Italy: Roberto Saviano on public figures seeking to silence criticism on questions of public interests

21/06/2023

This video was recorded at the margins of the panel co-organized by ARTICLE 19 Europe and Osservatorio dei Balcani Caucaso Transeuropa as part of the Media Freedom Rapid Response and the Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe (CASE) for the #ijf23 in Perugia, Italy.