What standards are needed for the safety of journalists?

Belgium (Brussels Morning Newspaper) On October 19^th, 2022, the Daphne Caruana Galizia Prize for Journalism was awarded to two journalists, Clément Di Roma and Carol Valade, for their documentary about “The Central African Republic under Russian influence”. At a ceremony in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, President Roberta Metsola stated that the prize sent a strong message. “A strong democracy needs a strong press. And there is no democracy without freedom of the press. In Europe, rights and liberties are goals we fight for, not obstacles,” she said.

This message heard in the Parliament has also been heard in the Commission, where there are ongoing efforts to boost press freedoms. Vice-President Věra Jourová visited a memorial service in Bidnija, Malta shortly after the death of Daphne Caruana Galizia. The proposed European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) is often referred to as ‘Daphne’s’ law, in honor of her loss.

The murder of Galizia in 2017 brought much-needed attention to the threats journalists face in this modern era. However, will it bring changes and provide a real safeguard for journalists? Or is the scope of the proposal simply too broad?

The European Commission presented its proposal for the act in September 2022. It focuses not only on the protection of journalists, but also on media pluralism, editorial independence, and the fight against disinformation. The act states, as its main objective, that; “Recipients of media services in the Union should be able to effectively enjoy the freedom to receive free and pluralistic media services in the internal market.” Right now, the proposal is being discussed by the European Parliament and the Member States under the ordinary legislative procedure, whereby neither of them has time limits to finish their first reading.

Too broad objective(s)?

Media Freedom will always entail a lot of different aspects. It ranges from editorial freedom to protecting independent media, and even safeguarding journalists to ensure that news can be produced in a free and safe way.

Although the Digital Services Act (DSA) aims to create a safer digital space, the EMFA is the first and the biggest international proposal that specifically focuses on protecting the freedoms that are needed for functional media. The Media Freedom Act builds on the DSA, incorporating new aspects of media protection.

Both acts aim to avoid the use of spyware against journalists and interference in editorial decisions, safeguard independent and public service media and establish a broad European Board for Media Services that would safeguard the regulations on a European level.

The challenge is that the MFA might attempt to try to solve various problems at once. By overreaching, European Institutions risk failing to address every problem satisfactorily. For example, the limitations the Act might face in assuring the freedom of publishers.

The bottlenecks of the Act

While this proposal is necessary and it is useful to implement solutions that suppress threats towards Media Freedom and journalists, it is important to look critically at the act and its existing bottlenecks.

NGO EU DisInfoLab, for example, criticizes the ‘amicable solutions’ that media outlets have to find in dialogues with platforms regarding the removal of their content, claiming that it “could undo much of the progress done in fighting disinformation” (Article 17, EMFA).

“Media regulators can now interfere with the free press, while publishers are estranged from their own publications,” said Ilias Konteas, executive director of the European Magazine Media Association, in a comment to POLITICO.

With most press outlets in Europe relying on self-regulation, publishers are afraid that this act will limit their editorial control, rather than enhance it.

These are just some examples of the considerations behind this act. The debate about this proposal is set to continue, and as the text is being studied at the European Parliament committee, this is the moment to make sure that “Daphne’s law’ meets the actionable standards for protection that journalists demand. Media also needs to wake up to the call by the Parliament president and realize that: A strong democracy needs a strong press!