EUROPEAN MEDIA GOVERNANCE: EUROPEAN FEDERATION OF JOURNALISTS (EFJ)

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) is the largest organisation of journalists in Europe, representing over 320 000 journalists in 60 journalists’ organisations across 39 countries. The EFJ represents the interests of journalists’ unions/association and their journalists. It operates as an international non-profit association (aisbl) under Belgian law.

The EFJ fights for social and professional rights of journalists working in all sectors of the media across Europe through strong trade unions and associations. The EFJ promotes and defends the rights to freedom of expression and information as guaranteed by Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The EFJ supports its affiliates to foster trade union development, to recruit new members, and to maintain or create environments in which quality, journalistic independence, pluralism, public service values, and decent work in the media exist.

The EFJ is recognised by the European Union, the Council of Europe, and the European Trade Union Confederation as the representative voice of journalists in Europe.

EFJ work is focused on social and professional conditions of journalists. Enormous changes in the industry, driven by technological change and market restructuring, are putting new pressures on quality, pluralism and standards across European media. Journalists’ groups work to foster strong and independent trade unions, arguing that this collective voice is essential to create environments in which quality and journalistic independence can be maintained.

In a number of key areas of policy, the European Union can play a significant role in defining rules that contribute to building a culture of press freedom. These include employment and working conditions, particularly affecting freelance and casual labour, authors’ rights; regulation of traditional media markets, including public broadcasting, protection of pluralism, media ownership and the threat posed by media concentration and the establishment of social dialogue through European Works Councils. However, the EU scope for action is limited with most responsibility for cultural issues, and regulation of media largely remaining at national level.

At the same time, globalization with its shareholder-driven imperatives and flexible labour markets has proved a challenge to the workforce in journalism. Media staffs are under pressure as their companies, increasingly working across national borders, adopt harsh cost-cutting measures to meet stringent financial objectives and fierce competitive measures. They have imposed heavy cuts in editorial budgets, reduced the number of full-time jobs and created a vast pool of unprotected freelance labour. The result has created weakness, both in newsroom performance and in trade union organization.

Key Issues for EFJ

• Authors’ Rights
• Ethics
• Freelance
• Gender Equality
• Labour Rights
• Media Pluralism
• Press Freedom
• Public Service Broadcasting

 EFJ Memberships

• Steering Committee on Media and Information Society (CDMSI) Council of Europe
• Alliance for Lobbing Transparency and Ethics Regulation (ALTER EU)
• European Trade Union Confederation
• European Sectoral Dialogue in Audiovisual (EC)
• International Federation of Journalists