Media4Democracy Podcast Launches – Six Interviews with Global Experts on Confronting the Crisis for Independent Media

Brussels, April 2022 – Media4Democracy and the INTPA G1 Human Rights and Democracy Team today launched the Media4Democracy Podcast – a series of interviews with six leading international experts in the field of media freedom, independence and sustainability.

In this series, renowned experts – among them Nobel Laureate Maria Ressa — share their analysis of the profound economic and political crisis facing independent media around the world, magnified by the global COVID pandemic. They give their insights into what governments, tech companies and the international community – including EU Delegations and institutions – can do to help independent media survive and thrive in the digital age.

You can listen to all episodes at www.media4democracy.eu/podcast or follow the links on the page to play the podcast in your usual podcast player.

• Episode One: Maria Ressa, 2021 Nobel Peace Prize Co-laureate and CEO of Rappler talks about setting up the independent media platform Rappler in the Philippines which led to government campaigns and legal cases against her, as well as the rise of online abuse campaigns on social media. She highlights the role that Big Tech plays in democracy and the importance of reigning in the power of companies.
• Episode Two: Caoilfhionn Gallagher QC, Media Lawyer, Doughty Street Chambers talks about her work to fight the culture of impunity for crimes against journalists, and discusses some of her high-profile cases defending journalists from the increasingly complex threats they face, including from ‘lawfare’ – legal tactics governments use to silence journalists at home and extra-territorially.
• Episode Three: Guilherme Canela, UNESCO, Global Head of Freedom of Expression & Safety of Journalists Section describes how independent media around the world is facing a ‘perfect storm’ of physical, technological, financial, legal and political threats – but explains why he’s optimistic that, with the right support, independent media will weather the storm.
• Episode Four: David Kaye, former UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion & Expression explains how tech and social media companies can promote and protect freedom of expression online, and he calls for governments to do more politically and financially to protect media independence as a cornerstone of human rights.
• Episode Five: Marius Dragomir, Director, Centre for Media, Data and Society at the Central European University, explains the growing phenomenon of Media Capture, how governments use it to win elections and what tech companies and international organisations such as the EU can do to strengthen media independence.
• Episode Six: Rasmus Kleis Nielsen, Director, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at Oxford University discusses the scale of the current crisis for the financial sustainability of independent media around the world, and he explains why and how governments must act to help independent media both by protecting media freedom and by implementing policies to support the financial sustainability of media.

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If you have any problems or questions about listening to the podcast series, please write to podcast@media4democracy.eu.