In Macedonia, anti-press rhetoric leaves journalists feeling vulnerable
April 19, 2017 4:05 PM ET
As the political crisis in Macedonia, triggered by allegations of mass surveillance by intelligence agencies, deepens the environment is increasingly unsafe for journalists who report critically on the ruling Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE)...
Will the EU's actions speak louder than its words on Poland's new media law?
January 7, 2016 2:21 PM ET
On January 13, the European Commission--the so-called guardian of EU treaties--will meet in Brussels to debate a troubling law passed in Poland today that, according to reports, paves the way for the government to take control of public service...
Orbán walks fine line in Brussels with Hungary's media law
November 3, 2014 12:21 PM ET
"With the Islamic state offensive, the Ebola epidemic and Ukraine, Hungary is not on anyone's mind in Europe," mused one of our interlocutors during the Committee to Protect Journalists' fact-finding mission in Budapest in October. "Viktor Orbán has really...
In Barroso-Aliyev talks, press freedom takes a back seat
June 27, 2013 5:02 PM ET
"We in Europe are also not perfect," José Manuel Barroso said last week while hosting a joint press conference in Brussels with Azerbaijan's head of state, Ilham Aliyev. The president of the European Commission, who is supposed to defend the...
Red flags in the European Union press freedom debate
February 7, 2013 1:01 PM ET
The European Union enjoys waving the banner of press freedom overseas. However, it is sometimes at a loss when it has to define its approach to press freedom among its own member states. Last year, the EU tried and failed...
Greek far-right party casts shadow on Europe press freedom
May 9, 2012 11:11 AM ET
The celebration Tuesday of the 50th anniversary of the Association of European Journalists (AEJ) should have been a joyful and lighthearted affair. Dozens of journalists from all parts of the European Union had traveled to Brussels to share memories, new...
The global impact of EU media policies
March 2, 2012 5:30 PM ET
The state of press freedom inside the European Union has a significant effect on press freedom outside the EU. That was the message that CPJ Senior European Adviser Jean-Paul Marthoz and I delivered this week when Brussels' leading think...
Criticism of Hungary's media controls keeps growing
January 24, 2012 11:23 AM ET
"Klubrádió solely wants to provide news and present different opinions and never meant to play any emblematic role. But, because of the decision of the Media Authority, it has became the symbol of free speech in Hungary," stated the...
Press freedom issues may keep Macedonia from EU
October 17, 2011 4:19 PM ET
The European Union accession process has been hailed as the best tool in the arsenal of democracy promotion. By adhering to the acquis communautaire, the EU's total body of legislation, and to the Copenhagen criteria that define the democratic nature...