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Media freedom in the EU

At a time when the free media is being challenged in many countries all over the world, new initiatives are aiming to further strengthen media freedom in the EU.

An essential part of democracy

Media freedom and pluralism are a vital part of democracy and of the fundamental rights of EU citizens. True democracy is not possible without a free media scrutinising those in power.

The media is a key pillar in the checks and balances that underpin democratic rule. That’s why the descent into authoritarian rule often starts with independent media being targeted. Over the last few decades, a number of states across the globe have taken this path, using coercion and often violence to persecute media outlets and individual journalists. 

Journalists continue to experience harsh working conditions with increasing financial and political pressure, surveillance, arbitrary prison sentences or violence for doing their work. An essential part of democracy and yet according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 129 journalists and media workers were killed in 2025 and 1 922 have been killed since 1993, while many more were arrested, harassed or threatened worldwide. 

Illustration of a newspaper with a pencil and a person escaping to suggest freedom.
Media freedom and pluralism are a vital part of democracy

Even in the EU, media freedom and pluralism have to be safeguarded. They are one of the four pillars addressed in the European Commission's rule of law report, which focuses on a number of core areas, including:

  • independence of the media regulatory authorities
  • transparency of media ownership
  • transparency and fairness in the allocation of state advertising
  • safety of journalists and access to information

To this end, two key EU initiatives on media freedom have complemented existing legislation:

  • the directive against strategic lawsuits against public participation (anti-SLAPP directive), proposed by the European Commission in 2022 and formally adopted in 2024, which introduces safeguards to protect journalists and human rights defenders from abusive litigation
  • the European Media Freedom Act, also proposed by the Commission and adopted in 2024, which establishes new rules to safeguard media independence, transparency of ownership, and protection of journalists across the EU

Both instruments are now in the implementation phase, with member states required to apply or transpose the new rules within the agreed timelines.

Directive against strategic lawsuits against public participation

In April 2022, the European Commission proposed a directive to counter strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs). SLAPPs are unfounded or abusive legal proceedings used against journalists, human rights defenders and others to deter, restrict or penalise their engagement on matters of public interest.

Following negotiations between the co-legislators, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union formally adopted the directive in 2024. Member states are now required to transpose it into national law (typically within two years of its entry into force).

The directive establishes a set of safeguards for individuals targeted by manifestly unfounded or abusive court proceedings in civil and commercial matters with cross-border implications. These safeguards include:

  • allowing courts to dismiss manifestly unfounded claims at an early stage through accelerated procedures, in order to limit their impact on defendants
  • granting courts the possibility to impose penalties or require compensation for damages suffered by those targeted by SLAPPs
  • providing protection against abusive litigation brought in third countries, ensuring that judgments from outside the EU do not undermine the directive’s safeguards

In addition, the European Commission issued a non-binding recommendation encouraging member states to extend similar protections to purely domestic cases and to adopt accompanying measures such as training for legal professionals and support for victims

On 9 June 2023, the Council of the European Union agreed its negotiating position on legislation aimed at protecting journalists and human rights defenders from manifestly unfounded claims or abusive court proceedings (SLAPPs).

Following this, the Council entered into interinstitutional negotiations with the European Parliament. These negotiations were successfully concluded, and the directive was formally adopted in 2024.

The directive establishes procedural safeguards against abusive litigation in cross-border civil and commercial cases, including:

  • early dismissal of manifestly unfounded claims
  • the possibility for courts to order that the claimant bears the full costs of proceedings
  • the imposition of penalties or other effective remedies on abusive claimants
  • protection against third-country judgments that could undermine these safeguards

The focus has now shifted to implementation, with member states required to transpose the directive into their national legal systems within the set deadline.

On 30 November 2023, the Council and the Parliament have reached a provisional agreement on EU law protecting journalists and human rights defenders.

On 19 March 2024, the Council adopted a law to protect persons who speak out on matters of public interest against abusive lawsuits meant to silence them.

Recommendation for member states

With the directive comes an instantly adopted complementary recommendation. The recommendation encourages member states to apply the safeguards in the proposed directive to domestic cases and in all matters, not just civil and commercial ones. It also calls on member states to take a range of other measures, such as:

  • judicial training
  • awareness raising
  • aggregated data collection at national level

European media freedom act

Another step towards safeguarding media freedom in the EU was taken in March 2024, when the Council adopted the European media freedom act (EMFA). The act entered into force on 7 May 2024. Most of its provisions entered into application on 8 August 2025.

The EMFA establishes a common framework for media services in the EU’s internal market and introduce measures aimed at protecting journalists and media providers from political interference, while also making it easier for them to operate across the EU’s internal borders.

The new rules guarantee the right of citizens to access free and pluralistic information and will set out the responsibility of member states to provide the appropriate conditions and framework to protect it.

The media freedom act builds on the revised audiovisual media services directive (AVMSD) and broadens its scope to include radio and press.

It proposes a new set of rules and mechanisms promoting media pluralism and independence across the EU.

The regulation responds to rising concerns in the EU about the politicisation of the media and the lack of transparency regarding media ownership and the allocation of state advertising funds to media service providers.

It seeks to put in place safeguards to combat political interference in editorial decisions for both private and public service media providers, protect journalists and their sources, and guarantee media freedom and pluralism.

Key elements of the regulation include:

  • an independent public service media with a stable source of funding
  • transparency of media ownership
  • protection of editorial independence
  • safeguards to ensure media pluralism and prevent media concentration
  • the European board for media services, a new watchdog for media freedom

The regulation also establishes enhanced mechanisms for cooperation between the national regulatory authorities and bodies of the member states. The objective is to facilitate the effective and consistent implementation of both the media freedom act and the audiovisual media services directive.

Member states will be able to adopt stricter or more detailed rules than those set out in the relevant parts of the regulation.

Internal safeguards for editorial independence and owner transparency

The media freedom legislative proposal was accompanied by an instantly adopted Commission recommendation to media service providers established in the EU and to the member states. The recommendation proposes a catalogue of voluntary measures for media service providers to guarantee their own editorial independence. It also encourages media service providers and member states to take action to promote media ownership transparency in the internal market.

EU support for media freedom

The existing support for media freedom in the EU rests on initiatives such as the digital services package, the media and audiovisual action plan, the European democracy action plan and the Council conclusions on the protection and safety of journalists and other media professionals.

Some of the key measures that form part of this support include:

  • implementing a media ownership monitoring system to set up a country-based database containing information on media ownership
  • providing grants to support innovation in local and regional media and boost pluralism
  • having a rapid response mechanism to provide practical help to journalists under threat
  • providing an emergency support fund for investigative journalists and media organisations
  • implementing a media pluralism monitor to identify potential risks to media pluralism

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Last review: 29 April 2026