"Kosovo’s overall score for the MSI dropped slightly this year, in comparison to its overall score of 2.56 in the previous year’s study. Despite this decline, Kosovo remains in the “near sustainability” classification. The 2019 chapter for Kosovo shows drops in the scores for the freedom of
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speech, professional journalism, and business management objectives, and moderate increases in plurality of news and supporting institutions. Panelists noted that while Kosovo enjoys good diversity in media, the steady shift away from traditional print media to the online environment has seen ethical standards diminish." (Page 3)
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"Ce petit manuel va à titre didactique répertorier une liste d’infractions de presse pour attirer l’attention des médias et professionnels des médias sur leur responsabilité pénale dans l’exercice de la liberté de presse." (Verso)
"2017 was marred by the assassination, in Malta, of the investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, an event which represented the darkest hour for media freedom and media pluralism in the European Union since the 2015 Charlie Hebdo massacre in France. This crime has profoundly shaken Europe an
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d has had an impact on its image as a bastion of human rights and democratic values. Publishers continued to face significant economic pressures, and 2017 confirmed the decline in the revenues of the press sector and of many local and community newspapers across Europe, a worldwide trend signalling continued job losses in the sector and the lower viability of the media business as organisations struggle to find sustainable business models in the face of digital transformation. The spread of online disinformation and hate speech, including concerns about their impact on elections and referenda in 2016, represented major areas of debate during 2017. States, international institutions, and private enterprises have discussed or adopted measures – both legislative and non-legislative – to address these phenomena, and several of these measures have, in turn, raised concerns about their impact on the freedom of expression and respect for the rule of law. Due to the aforementioned concerns with regard to the economic difficulties faced by publishers, as well as online hate speech and disinformation, 2017 was noteworthy for an increased interest in the analysis of the influence of major online platforms in both public debate and public opinion. Queries over accountability, transparency and the overall effect on democracy in relation to the digital platforms have escalated. In 2017, several stakeholders expressed concerns about such platforms’ use of machine learning and algorithms in personalising news feeds, as well as their use of the end-users’ data for targeted advertising purposes." (Executive summary)
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"The toolkit encompasses a broad variety of issues, which should be considered by judicial actors in the course of their work to protect human rights. It covers legal standards of freedom of expression according to international and regional instruments and core texts and surveys pertinent jurisprud
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ence on freedom of expression from regional and sub-regional courts or quasi-judicial bodies that deal with human rights issues. The toolkit explicates conditions under which speech can be legitimately restricted, while also giving prominence to the safety of journalists and the issue of impunity, the latter representing one of the main obstacles to guaranteeing freedom of expression and freedom of information. Finally, the toolkit also addresses recent challenges to freedom of expression on the internet, including on social media, which have become vital means for sharing information and expressing views. The question of gender representation in media content and careers, and gender-specific threats for women journalists, are also addressed." (Foreword, page 10)
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"Viewership, listenership and readership in the Sri Lankan media market is highly concentrated among a few media owners, many of whom have political affiliations. Limited access to ownership information and a number of regulatory shortcomings pose a further threat to media pluralism in the country."
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(http://www.mom-rsf.org/en/countries/sri-lanka)
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"The seemingly buzzing Lebanese media market is, in fact, controlled by only a few highly politicized owners that are either directly affiliated with political parties or belong to Lebanese dynasties. Additional threats to media pluralism arise from clear editorial lines defined by politics, close t
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ies among the dynasties, and a number of regulatory shortcomings." (http://www.mom-rsf.org/en/countries/Lebanon)
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"There are 372 online media websites registered with the National Media Council; some are non-operational, while others use very basic design and graphics. They are also similar to existing media companies in terms of adopting a traditional economic, administrative and editorial model. In fact, ther
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e are not many media startups in Lebanon. These companies face major challenges, including inability to generate revenue, the type of content, and thus the number of readers, innovation on offer and companies interested in advertising on these media platforms. The most prominent media startups in Lebanon are ArabNet, Step Feed and Diwanee. There are also media companies taking their first steps in this field, such as Megafon, Figur-it, Daraj and Labneh&Facts." (Page 6)
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"L’objectif de cette étude est de présenter et de décrire les axes et les éléments les plus importants en matière de politiques publiques médiatiques, à partir d’ expériences comparées et des standards consacrés par le droit et les organisations et instances internationales compétent
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es dans le domaine de la liberté d’expression et de la liberté d’information de façon particulière et pour ce qui est de la communication en général. La reconnaissance juridique par le droit international des droits à la liberté d’expression et à la liberté d’information constitue un point de départ fondamental pour bien comprendre le rôle de l’État, des politiques publiques et de la régulation dans le domaine de la communication. Le service public de l’audiovisuel est une activité de communication exercée sous la responsabilité des pouvoirs publics et ayant pour finalité de fournir aux citoyens des contenus audiovisuels qui répondent pleinement à leurs besoins en matière d’information, de culture, de formation et de divertissement. En principe, ces besoins ne sauraient être satisfaits par le simple fonctionnement du marché privé de la communication audiovisuelle. Les aides publiques constituent aussi un mécanisme important de support de la part de l’État aux médias et de configuration de politiques médiatiques à travers des actions positives. L’existence, dans une société, d’experts en matière de politiques publiques médiatiques constitue, sans doute, un élément de support très important à l’action de l’État, ainsi qu’une garantie de la qualité de ces politiques. Les experts peuvent jouer un rôle important en interne (en travaillant ou en fournissant des services aux instances publiques) ou en externe (dans l’exercice d’une fonction plutôt analytique ou même critique)." (Résumé, page 3)
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"The present paper builds on the findings of the previous MedMedia report (Dabbous 2015) by tracking the legal changes that occurred between early 2015 and early 2018. Whenever there are recent legal changes related to broadcasting in general, such changes are mentioned and evaluated. The objective
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is to provide a critical overview of the state of public service broadcasting and the new regulatory reforms introduced since early 2015, in order to assess the impact of the Arab Spring (directly or indirectly) on the nature and performance of the public broadcasting sector in the Southern Mediterranean region, and the extent to which the wheels that were set in motion in 2011 have resulted in an improved and more democratic public broadcasting sector in these countries – one in which the notion of “the public” is supposed to be at the core of the reform endeavor. The structure of the paper follows largely that of the 2015 MedMedia report on public service broadcasting, covering legal reform in each of the Arab countries in the South Mediterranean separately. However, only 5 of the original 8 countries included in the 2015 report are the focus of the present update: Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Tunisia, and Morocco." (Page 3)
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"For more than two decades, Uzbekistan has been a country with severe restrictions on free speech and media and some of the longest-imprisoned journalists in the world. There are now tentative signs of change in Central Asia’s most populous country. Opportunities for more open debate and independe
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nt reporting are increasing, but politically-motivated prosecutions and measures of state censorship still impose pressure and a chilling effect on media outlets, journalists and other government critics. “You Can’t See Them, But They’re Always There:” Censorship and Freedom of the Media in Uzbekistan examines the situation for journalists, media outlets, and the exercise of free speech since Uzbekistan’s second president, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, assumed the presidency in 2016. Although Mirziyoyev’s government has taken some positive steps including the release of long-held journalists from prison, it has more to do to demonstrate meaningful reform in the area of free speech. It should immediately end powers of censorship, drop ongoing prosecutions against journalists, and allow effective access to information, including online. Advances for media freedom will be fleeting unless the government fully embraces freedom of speech and sends a message that peaceful criticism of government policies will be respected and protected in Uzbekistan." (Back cover)
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"The four countries concerned in this publication – Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya - each have a complex set of challenges - and opportunities - in relation to the advancement of free and independent media. Yet, they share several trends and certainly the tensions between laws pertaining to f
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reedom of expression, political actors and the judiciary practice. Four legal experts have taken up the challenge to briefly introduce in this study both the legal frameworks and the tension points, and to formulate key recommendations to address the deficiencies in law or practice. These recommendations are a means by which non-governmental organisations and rights defenders can pursue their critical advocacy work." (Preface)
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"Ein umfassender aktueller Überblick über das Medienrecht. Aufgrund der sich ständig und grundlegend ändernden Medienlandschaft und des sich wandelnden Medienrechts hat Frank Fechner in den letzten 20 Jahren sein Lehrbuch jedes Jahr überarbeitet und Gesetzesänderungen, Rechtsprechung und die e
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ntsprechende Literatur jeweils auf den aktuellen Stand gebracht." (Verlagsbeschreibung)
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"Macedonia and Montenegro saw the largest overall score increases this year, in comparison to 2017. The improvement across all objectives this year for Macedonia’s media sector can be attributed to political changes that prioritize media in democratic reforms. Although Montenegro’s score improve
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ment shows promising progress and puts it in the Near Sustainability category, weaknesses in the country’s media sector include low revenue generation, declining professional development opportunities, political biases, and low adherence to professional standards. Kyrgyzstan and Serbia saw the largest overall decreases in their scores. While Kyrgyzstan’s MSI score for the business management objective increased slightly, all other objective scores experienced a decline, moving Kyrgyzstan from Near Sustainability in 2017 to Unsustainable Mixed System in 2018. Serbia’s scores in all MSI objectives are indicative of a downward trend in the country’s media space. Among the factors feeding this spiral are: media content is more polarized now than at any time in almost 20 years; an increase in fake news; editorial pressure on media; and a poor overall economic operating environment." (Executive summary)
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"Political parties do not exist in Iran. In this situation the media, particularly the newspapers, have assumed a central role in the political life of the country." (Publisher description)
"In 2016, television broadcasts were watched by 80 percent of the population, Slovak citizens did watch more programmes in their non-mother tongue than in other EU countries." (https://medialandscapes.org)