The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has welcomed the important measures to strengthen media freedom and pluralism in the ‘European Democracy Action Plan’ published by the European Commission.
The plan says the Commission will issue a recommendation on the safety of journalists and establish a structured dialogue with member states regarding its implementation, according to CPJ’s review.
“CPJ welcomes the European Commission’s commitment to strengthen press freedom and journalist safety at a time when it is needed more than ever,” said Tom Gibson, CPJ’s EU Representative in CPJ statement on Friday.
“But this is just the first step. EU member states should provide full and unequivocal support for the plan in order to ensure real improvements for journalists around Europe,” Tom Gibson added.
CPJ has been following the press freedom components of the European Democracy Action Plan, a broad roadmap that was scheduled after the 2019 European elections to “help improve the resilience of democracies and address the threats of external interference in European elections.”
The Commission’s Media and Audiovisual Action Plan, also published Thursday, focuses on the financial viability of the media sector, and supporting media pluralism.
nsrafsanju@gmail.com