On August 8 this year, the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) will come into force in EU member states. The regulation’s provisions aim to protect media pluralism and independence. However, according to a recent European Commission rule of law report, significant threats remain in this area. The European Parliament also calls on member states to intensify efforts to safeguard media freedom and protect journalists.
“The Media Freedom Act is a European-level law designed to ensure a proper environment for media to be independent, free, and transparent in terms of their ownership structure — so citizens can verify who stands behind a given publisher and what their situation is. This is also crucial to ensuring diversity in the media landscape, so we don’t have only government-dependent information but free and independent media operating in a pluralistic manner,” said Sabine Verheyen, Vice-Chair of the European Parliament and head of the working group overseeing EMFA implementation, in an interview with Newseria.
Under the act adopted last year, member states commit to preserving media independence and prohibiting any interference with editorial decisions. The new rules also aim to protect journalists from being forced to reveal their sources and from spyware targeting them. All services providing news and current affairs, regardless of size, will have to publish information about their owners in a national database. Media will also be required to disclose revenues from state advertising and any state financial support, including from non-EU countries.
The European Media Services Council will oversee and coordinate the implementation of these new rules. It will also act as an advisory body to the European Commission, providing expert knowledge and support on media regulation. The provisions will apply across EU member states starting August 8.
The European Commission’s recent report on the rule of law in the EU stresses that media freedom and pluralism are key elements of a society based on the rule of law, essential for democratic accountability. Member states are working on reforms to align national legislation with EMFA. However, the Commission emphasizes the need for further actions to ensure journalists’ safety, enhance independence guarantees for some public media and media regulatory bodies, increase ownership transparency, and improve fairness and transparency in the allocation of state advertising.
“The biggest threats to media freedom are concentration, lack of transparency in ownership structures, and growing autocratic tendencies in some member states that undermine media independence. Some governments expect the media always to uncritically accept what governments say, do, and demand. But that is not the role of media. Media should be the fourth estate in a free and independent democratic system — acting as a watchdog. Some governments dislike that. This is why the media sector has faced growing threats in recent years. Additionally, the economic situation for media is changing under the influence of huge platforms, social media, and other competing ways of delivering information,” the Vice-Chair of the European Parliament explained.
In a June resolution responding to the previous European Commission rule of law report, the European Parliament called for the swift implementation of the Media Freedom Act, emphasizing it as a key milestone in protecting independence, pluralism, and the integrity of the media landscape across the EU. MEPs condemned attacks on press freedom and journalists, the use of spyware against them, and political or state interference in editorial work.
“To address these problems, we need a range of laws. We have the Media Freedom Act, and a few years ago we introduced the Audiovisual Media Services Directive, imposing further obligations on social media platforms. We prepared the Digital Services Act and an anti-SLAPP directive to counter direct attacks on journalists and baseless lawsuits aimed at silencing and pressuring them,” said Sabine Verheyen.
MEPs also urge the introduction of specific aggravating circumstances in criminal law for crimes against journalists motivated by their professional activities. They recommend establishing a special EU fund to support media freedom, independent journalism, and local media.
In the chapter on Poland, the Commission noted that planned reforms to media law aim to dispel concerns about impartiality and independence of the media regulator and to strengthen the broader independence and pluralism of public service media. While progress has been made in improving licensing procedures and ensuring independent management and editorial independence of public media, challenges remain, especially regarding media pluralism protection amid foreign investments in ownership.
The government is working on a new state funding model to replace the subscription fee system and on enhancing journalist safety and protecting journalistic sources and confidential communication.
“I think Poland faces a difficult situation. Although there is a willingness to implement the Media Freedom Act and create a broader, more diverse media landscape, change is still not easy because the president and prime minister come from different political options. Under current regulatory structures, regulations can be blocked by the president,” the Vice-Chair of the European Parliament noted.
