Poland: Letter to the Ombudsman in defence of Polska Press - Article

OBCT joins a group of media freedom organisations in a letter to the Polish Ombudsman to urge him to reconsider its decision to refrain from appealing the acquisition of Polska Press by the state-controlled oil company PKN Orlen

Malta: Public Inquiry recommendations must be implemented - Article

A year on from the publication of the Public Inquiry report into the assassination of Malta’s leading investigative journalist, Daphne Caruana Galizia, the undersigned organisations urge the Maltese authorities to comply with their international human rights obligations and implement the report’s recommendations without further delay to ensure effective protection of journalists going forward. We are concerned at the lack of implementation of the recommendations of this milestone Public Inquiry

Hungary: Media freedom groups welcome EU court referral over Klubrádió frequency - Article

Move by EU Commission is belated but important signal it will use legal toolbox to defend independent media

2022 World Press Freedom Index - Monitoring tool

The 2022 edition of the World Press Freedom Index developed by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) assesses the state of journalism in 180 countries and territories

2022 Rule of Law Report: country chapter on the rule of law situation in Italy - Reports

The 2022 country chapter on the rule of law situation in Italy analyses four key areas: the justice system, the anti-corruption framework, media pluralism and media freedom, and other institutional issues related to checks and balances

2022 Rule of Law Report - Reports

On 13 July 2022, the European Commission adopted the third Rule of Law Report, which includes 27 country chapters and new recommendations to each Member State

Synergies and training are needed against SLAPP, or gag complaints - Article

Media expert lawyer Andrea Di Pietro positively comments on the anti-SLAPP package of the European Commission and stresses the need for training initiatives aimed at legal practitioners, to recognise and combat the gag complaints that threaten freedom of expression and the right of citizens to participate in the public debate

by Paola Rosà

Albania: Letter to Prime Minister Edi Rama from international press freedom organisations - Article

OBCT signed a letter addressed to Albanian PM Edi Rama in protest against a decision to ban journalists from attending press conferences after they asked challenging questions. Such an arbitrary restriction seriously affects the ability of the press to carry out its watchdog role. Albanian translation is available below

Maja Sever, the first woman to lead the EFJ - Article

Quickly resolving the economic issue relating to journalists, fighting harder against SLAPPs or gag complaints, using the rule of law to improve media conditions. These are the keywords of Maja Sever, the first woman to lead the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ)

by Giovanni Vale

2022 Rule of Law Report: country chapter on the rule of law situation in Romania - Reports

The Rule of Law Report is an annual document produced by the European Commission from 2020. It aims at addressing issues such as the state of the judiciary, freedom of the media, corruption, and other questions which have emerged as crucial for a comprehensive analysis of the state of rule of law across the EU