Twenty organisations from the media industry have founded a European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) as a non-profit co-operative society. The centre, which is based in Leipzig, will work to unite Europe’s media freedom community as well as address press freedom violations in EU member states and beyond.
Founding members include journalist associations, publishing houses, academic institutions and media rights experts from across European countries.
“The Centre is meant to be the lighthouse of press freedom in Europe. It will bring together different initiatives and promote closer co-operation among European activists. We will strive for common standards of media freedom across Europe,” said Henrik Kaufholz, head of the Danish investigation initiative SCOOP and chair of the board of ECPMF.
As part of its activities, the centre will examine and research violations of press freedom and report these to the public and to Brussels. “Many violations of media freedom are under the radar of European politicians,” said board member Ljiljana Smajlović, who also heads the Serbian Journalists’ Union.
The creation of the centre was one of the two projects selected by the European Commission following a call for proposals in the field of violations of media freedom and pluralism. The Commission awarded the centre a grant of €749,000 for 2015/2016.
Hans-Ulrch Jörges, editor in chief for Special Affairs at the publishing house Gruner+Jahr, said: “We are very happy about the success of this initiative that everyone has worked very hard to achieve. This European Co-operative Society can operate independently across the whole of Europe due to its special structure.”
The City of Leipzig, along with the German Foreign Ministry and the Media Foundation of Sparkasse Leipzig are also supporting the initiative financially.
Stephan Seeger, managing director of the Leipzig Sparkasse Media Foundation, also said: “Leipzig as the nucleus of the Peaceful Revolution of 1989 is the ideal location to establish the ECP. Tens of thousands of Leipzig citizens protested against the communist state and demanded freedom of the press. In addition, the Media Campus – located in walking distance – with the latest communication technology and flexible room solutions offers optimal conditions to host the centre and to organise its workshops, seminars and meetings”.
Photo: city of Leipzig where the centre is based
