Media: Liberties Report 2023. Restrictions on pluralism, crimes and threats against journalists. The case of Italy

“Physical aggressions, often by the police, and lawsuits against journalists are on the rise, data protection regulations are abused to limit freedom of information, the undisputed concentration of media ownership threatens pluralism, national security is used as a pretext for laws that restrict freedom of speech”: the problems reported in most of the EU member states in the previous year are still unsolved and sometimes even worse than in 2022, according to the Liberties Media Freedom Report 2023 which has been published today. “In Italy, the greatest concern is, on one hand, the strategic lawsuits against journalists that jeopardise their work, especially because sometimes such lawsuits have been filed by people who now play a key role in the country’s government; on the other hand, the constant politicisation of state television, which undermines the journalists’ freedom”. Drawn up by over 20 civil liberties organisations from all over the European Union, the Report shows evidence – according to the authors – and looks at the main developments of media freedom and pluralism, the safety and protection of journalists, and freedom of expression and information in 2022, “the year the media markets were shaped not only by essential regulations such as the enforcement of the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act or the European Media Freedom Act, but also by Russia’s invasion (and disinformation) in Ukraine or the general election in Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Slovenia or Sweden”.
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