News Mfrr

Synergies and training are needed against SLAPP, or gag complaints

08/07/2022 -  Paola Rosà

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

Maja Sever, the first woman to lead the EFJ

01/07/2022 -  Giovanni Vale Zagreb

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)

Greece: media freedom is stifled also by criminalising "fake news"

01/06/2022 -  Mary Drosopoulos Thessaloniki

As evidenced by the latest report by Reporters Without Borders, press freedom in Greece today is in great pain. A situation that also has its roots in the unresolved regulatory framework

Italy: Concern after authorities search Report editorial office and home of journalist

27/05/2022

The partner organisations of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) today express serious concern over the searches carried out by police at the offices of Rai 3’s investigative programme ‘Report’ and the home of investigative journalist Paolo Mondani. We urge the Italian Anti-Mafia Investigative Directorate (DIA) to provide assurances that the confidentiality of journalists’ sources will not be jeapardised and to reaffirm its respect for the principles of press freedom

Launching Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) III

19/05/2022

The consortium running the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) – consisting of the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), ARTICLE 19 Europe, European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), Free Press Unlimited (FPU), International Press Institute (IPI), and Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso Transeuropa (OBC Transeuropa) – has been granted funding for 18 months from the European Commission to continue its work to defend and support press and media freedom throughout all EU member states, candidate countries, and Ukraine

Media and surveillance, the Predator scandal shakes Greece

19/05/2022 -  Alessio Giussani Athens

As Greece loses 38 positions in the annual Reporters Without Borders ranking compared to 2021, the public learns about the surveillance of investigative journalist Thanasis Koukakis. The spyware used is called Predator and it is still unclear who is behind it

Bulgaria: the media, law, and freedom of information

16/05/2022 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

In Bulgaria, media freedom has traditionally been restricted by grey areas, and journalists often come under severe pressure. This interview with Nelly Ognyanova, a leading Bulgarian expert on media law, discusses the legislative factors that define the working framework of journalism in the country

The MFRR Italy Mission, 4-6 April

13/05/2022

A video story accompanying the Italy Mission of the Media Freedom Rapid Response, a 3-day of meetings with several Italian stakeholders, institutions and journalists

JiR Milan: the new call

12/05/2022

As part of the new edition of the Media Freedom Rapid Response running from May 2022 till October 2023, the Journalists in Residence programme – Milan launches a new call for applications open to journalists and media professionals who are experiencing some risk/threat/intimidation to their person as a direct result of their journalistic work

Lawsuits like bullets. Who is afraid of journalists? The MFRR Italy Mission Report

05/05/2022

With an open dialogue among journalists, the MFRR and the European Commission, on 11 May the Media Freedom Rapid Response launches the publication of the report containing the findings of the Italy Mission, which took place in Rome and Naples from 4 to 6 April