Debate: Government attempts to silence free media in Poland, Hungary and Slovenia
Date: WEDNESDAY, 10 MARCH 2021
Speaker: Věra Jourová
Language: EN

Media are not just an economic sector, but also an important pillar of democracy and the rule of law. Press freedom and media pluralism are vital to democracy. Independent media play an essential role to help citizens make informed decisions, to fight disinformation and the manipulation of the democratic debate. That is why the Commission has included media freedom and pluralism as one pillar of our Annual Rule of Law Report, which was the first one published last September. The rule of law report assessed, in particular, the independence of the media regulatory authorities, transparency of media ownership, state advertising, the safety of journalists, and access to information. It looked at the situation in all Member States, including Hungary, Poland and Slovenia. The problems, and our concerns, were made very clear. We will also continue to cover media pluralism and freedom in this year’s Rule of Law Report, which is expected in July. Each Rule of Law Report is preceded by fact-finding visits in all EU countries and discussions with national authorities and a wide range of stakeholders. The media are also covered in the Article 7 procedure launched by this House in relation to Hungary. I expect us to soon have the occasion to come back to the Article 7 procedure in the General Affairs Council, where we have to discuss recent developments in relation to the media.  The COVID-19 pandemic has shown, more than ever, the essential role of journalists to inform citizens, but, at the same time, the media are facing an economic crisis which started well before the pandemic. More than ever, it is time to support the work of the media, and not to put additional burdens or pressures on them. This is exactly what the Commission proposed in December, when, for the first time ever, we presented a comprehensive approach for the media. With the European Democracy Action Plan, we put the media where they should be: at the core of democracy.  Let me highlight two initiatives, in particular, that we will present this year. A recommendation to Member States to improve the safety of journalists, and an initiative on tackling abusive litigation, the so-called SLAPP cases, (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation). Very often, threats and groundless lawsuits are used to silence free media. We will also take action to increase the transparency of media ownership and of political advertising. With the Media and Audiovisual Action Plan, which we also adopted in December, we helped the media recover economically from the crisis, adapt to the digital transformation and develop new business models. The stronger the economic situation of the media, the easier it is to resist political pressure, but there should be no political pressure in the first place. Strong leaders are those that gain respect through their actions, that accept diversity of opinions and that allow citizens to be duly informed, not trolls that try to silence critical voices. In a democracy, independent media should do their work and ask questions without fear or favour. Our job as politicians is to answer with facts, not with attacks.  Unfortunately, in recent months, additional worrying developments have happened. Allow me to name some of them, which are just examples of the worrying trends. In Hungary, most notably, we have seen that the independent Klubradio was denied the renewal of its licence on grounds which have raised concerns, and it remains off air awaiting the outcome of a new procedure. In Poland, draft legislation on an advertising tax targeting media outlets led to black screens as a sign of protest. I spoke about it here in Parliament after this happened. This draft is now being reviewed, and we expect that the voices that raised concerns will be properly heard. In Slovenia, continuous attempts to undermine the sustainable funding and the independence of the National Press Agency and frequent verbal attacks against journalists are also a cause of serious concern.  For each of these cases, the Commission has been in contact with the national authorities and continues to monitor the situation. Let me assure you that the Commission does not hesitate to act when there are issues of compliance of national laws or decisions with European Union rules. In particular, I would like to highlight that we are analysing closely the transposition of the revised Audiovisual Media Services Directive, which introduced, for the first time, new independence requirements for national media regulators. And we will also watch closely the transposition of the modernised copyright framework and continue striving for a level playing field in the online world.  This is also the aim of the new Digital Services and Digital Markets Acts. This is essential for the sustainability of the media sector, as I mentioned earlier. In the concrete cases at hand, we watch, for instance, the potential impact on telecom and taxation rules. However, the reality is, as you know well, that the competences of the Commission when it comes to media are very limited.  Whilst we will use those competences in a very diligent manner, I want us to identify how we can widen and strengthen the toolbox that the Commission has, from financial support to regulation and enforcement actions. We need a tool which recognises the role of media as the key players in democratic society. At this moment, we only have the rules which recognise the role of the media as actors on the European single market, and this is what is limiting our ability to act. We will play our role, but governments also need to fulfil their obligations to ensure that media freedom is safeguarded and to enable a healthy environment for media pluralism.