Media

48 questions about Europe, data and journalism

12/09/2019

The European Data Journalism Network (EDJNet) launches a survey to understand how data can improve the way journalism reports about Europe

Croatia: journalists under attack

12/09/2019 -  Giovanni Vale Zagreb

Minatory writings on walls, physical attacks, and threats. Reporters Without Borders expresses deep concern for what it sees as a real attack against journalists in Croatia

Montenegro: Joint call on the authorities to acquit journalist sentenced to 18 months in prison

09/09/2019

OBCT and the undersigned organizations call on the Montenegrin authorities to acquit investigative journalist Jovo Martinović, convicted for marijuana smuggling and criminal association and sentenced to 18 months in prison despite overwhelming evidence that his only links with organized crime were those of a reporter

Serbia, Maja Pavlović's hunger strike

29/08/2019 -  Jelka Jovanović Belgrade

It's her third hunger strike over a year. The reason is always the same: to draw attention to the terrible state of the Serbian media, in particular her Kanal 9, one of the first private broadcasters in Serbia

Joint call on Russia to provide an enabling environment for journalists covering the Moscow protests

23/08/2019

OBCT supports a coalition of eight media freedom and journalists’ organisations that are calling on Russian authorities to immediately stop the harassment of journalists who have been covering the recent protests in Moscow. The statement

Women journalists and online harassment: the resistance in Bosnia

22/08/2019 -  Paola Rosà

A daily occurrence in Balkan newsrooms and a risk factor for press freedom according to international bodies, online harassment against women in the media is on the rise everywhere

Albania, the controversial media law

06/08/2019 -  Matteo Trevisan

Concerns persist over the approval of the new package of amendments aimed at modifying two important laws on the Albanian media, the so-called "anti-defamation package"

Turkey: freedom of expression is still possible

22/07/2019 -  Francesco Brusa

Şükran Şençekiçer, host of online television channel Medyascope, is certain: in Turkey – despite government repression – some have survived and do good journalism. And here we must start again, with courage and enthusiasm

Turkey: acquitted Erol Önderoğlu, Ahmet Nesin e Şebnem Korur Fincancı

17/07/2019

OSCE Media Freedom Representative welcomes today’s acquittal of Turkish journalists Erol Önderoğlu, Ahmet Nesin and human rights defender Şebnem Korur Fincancı

Turkish think-tank report escalates harassment of journalists

10/07/2019

OBC Transeuropa and 20 other human rights and freedom of expression organisations condemn a Turkish pro-government think-tank’s report that accuses leading international media of being biased against the government and singles out their correspondents for attack. The organisations regard the report as a dangerous escalation in the harassment of journalists.

Western Balkans, media freedom is deteriorating

09/07/2019 -  Majlinda Aliu Pristina

Press freedom in the Western Balkans remains under attack: threats by organised crime are often accompanied by those by the institutions. A conference in Prishtina discussed the issue

Ukraine: the new language law, Porošenko's last act

05/06/2019 -  Martina Napolitano

Before leaving the presidential chair to the newly elected Volodymyr Zelensky, Petro Porošenko signed a new language law – one that puts minority rights under strong pressure

The conditions for a pluralistic digital future: interoperability, transparency, and control over data

13/05/2019 -  Giorgio Comai

A reflection on the necessary conditions to be not only "users", but also "citizens" of the digital spaces in which we live: owners of rights, owners of one's own personal data, free to choose which services to use, which suppliers to turn to, and free to know what criteria determine what appears on our screens

What if Facebook was a non-profit?

13/05/2019 -  Niccolò Caranti

The essential problem behind misinformation is the Internet business model. Let's try to imagine a different one, one in which Facebook and Google are not for profit

Farewell to Dejan Anastasijević, master of journalism

06/05/2019 -  Boro Kontić

Boro Kontić, chief editor of the Sarajevo Media Centar, remembers Dejan Anastasijević: "A man who was a professional in the true sense of the word, honest and determined, always well informed and witty, a man who made Serbian journalism better"

Disinformation, technology giants, and our critical skills

16/04/2019 -  Fazıla Mat

Online disinformation is a complex phenomenon that can become extremely harmful to society. As we are faced with the power of technology giants, short-term policies, and implications for freedom of expression, it is crucial to promote critical thinking, media literacy, and reflection on these issues in all age groups

Joint statement in support of Erol Önderoğlu, Şebnem Korur Fincancı and Ahmet Nesin

12/04/2019

OBC Transeuropa, along with several international organizations, signed this declaration to support Turkish journalists and activists Erol Önderoğlu, Şebnem Korur Fincancı and Ahmet Nesin, who have been subjected to a trial lasting almost three years and for whom a verdict is expected on April 15, 2019. The Turkish government is called on to cease oppression of journalists, academics and writers.

Serbia: new, heavy pressures on independent media

12/04/2019 -  Vukašin Obradović Belgrade

Yet another worrying case of threats and pressure on Serbian media not aligned with power. This time, targets include our Belgrade correspondent Dragan Janjić

Online advertising – going beyond Zuckerberg's promises

03/04/2019 -  Giorgio Comai

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg called for more Internet regulations. Far beyond these proposals, we need a public and independent archive of all online advertising, not just in times of elections

Hard days for Croatian journalism

21/03/2019 -  Giovanni Vale Zagreb

As Croatia approaches the EU Council presidency semester in January 2020, Zagreb registers a negative record: it is the only European country where public TV sues its own employees

Turkey needs to respect foreign media outlets’ independence

13/03/2019

Pressure on international media in Turkey is increasing. German journalists have been expelled from the country as their press accreditations were not renewed. International freedom of expression organisations urge Turkey’s authorities in a joint alert to revoke the decisions, to stop the expulsion of international journalists, to renew press cards to foreign media outlets, and to respect their independence.

The regulation of political communication during electoral campaigns in Italy

22/02/2019 -  Sofia Verza

In Italy, regulation on political communication in the media largely emerged from concerns with extensive use of TV ads in the 1990s, when Silvio Berlusconi entered politics. Two decades later, there is an urgent need to update this regulation to the digital age

How the Mafias came to Slovakia

21/02/2019 -  Pavla Holcová Cecilia AnesiLuca RinaldiKaratína Jánošíková

In post-communist Slovakia organized crime families from around the world found fertile ground. In memory of investigative journalist Ján Kuciak, killed one year ago, OCCRP and its partners are publishing new findings on the nexus of mafias and corruption

Russians or not, the vulnerabilities are there: let’s fix them

15/02/2019 -  Giorgio Comai

Disinformation campaigns, dubious practices on social media, murkey financing of political campaigns and lobby groups, timed hacked and leaks: new structural vulnerabilities to our democracies are there for anyone to exploit. It’s time to focus our public conversation on new policies and practices that can mitigate these risks

Turkey, journalism is not a crime

14/02/2019 -  Burcu Karakaş

Articles used as evidence against the accused, long periods of detention, a definition of "terrorism" with vague boundaries. In Turkey, the press freedom situation continues to cause concern. The report by our correspondent

Serbia, media and power

13/02/2019 -  Francesco Martino

More and more power in the hands of President Aleksandar Vučić, mainstream press too friendly with power, growing difficulties for independent journalism. Serbia's media today, told by Stevan Dojčinović, director of the KRIK investigative portal

Dossier: Disinformation

11/01/2019 -  Niccolò Caranti - Fazıla Mat

"Fake news" or disinformation is one of the most pressing issues of our times. Building on the materials of the Resource Centre on Press and Media Freedom in Europe, OBCT devoted its latest special dossier to this topic

Croatia, a thousand lawsuits against journalists

18/01/2019 -  Giovanni Vale Zagreb

There are over a thousand ongoing trials against journalists or Croatian media, and the list is not complete. The complaint of the Association of Croatian Journalists

Montenegro: Jovo Martinovic sentenced to 18 months in jail

15/01/2019

A court in Montenegro today sentenced the independent journalist Jovo Martinović to 18 months in jail. The ECPMF and its partners are appalled by the verdict and condemn Martinović's conviction in a joint statement

A media freedom edit-a-thon in Madrid

11/01/2019

An edit-a-thon will take place in Madrid on January 18th to boost the availability of accurate knowledge on media freedom in the largest open encyclopedia worldwide