Council of Europe launches an Internet platform to protect journalism and promote safety of journalists

Across Europe, journalists and other media actors are attacked, harassed, detained and even killed because of their work or reporting. Alarmed by this situation, the Council of Europe together with the partner organizations decided to establish this platform by signing a Memorandum of understanding. Council of Europe launches an Internet platform to protect journalism and promote safety of journalists. The Council of Europe is launching today –in co-operation with five partner organizations– an Internet platform aimed at protecting journalism and promoting the safety of journalists. Via the platform, the partner organizations –Article 19, the Association of European Journalists, the European Federation of Journalists, the International Federation of Journalists and Reporters Without Borders– will issue alerts concerning media freedom threats and will bring them to the attention of the Council of Europe institutions. This platform is designed to facilitate the compilation, processing and dissemination of factual information, verified by the partners, concerning serious physical threats to journalists and other media personnel, threats to the confidentiality of media sources and forms of political or judicial intimidation.

The platform will enable the Council of Europe to highlight serious concerns about media freedom and journalists’ rights, to react more effectively in response to these threats and to initiate a dialogue with the member states concerned on possible remedies and protective measures. The follow-up actions undertaken by the Council of Europe will also be included on the platform.

Across Europe, journalists and other media actors are attacked, harassed, detained and even killed because of their work or reporting. Alarmed by this situation, the Council of Europe together with the partner organizations decided to establish this platform by signing a Memorandum of understanding.-016D-