EU's Rule of Law Report 2024: Progress in media reforms amid ongoing concerning challenges
The European Commission's 2024 Rule of Law Report paints a mixed picture of media freedom and pluralism across the EU and its candidate countries in the Balkans. It reveal notable strides in the EU’s rule of law framework, yet obstacles remain. At a time when polarisation is rife and the spread of disinformation is rampant across Europe, the EU must take decisive action to uphold its core democratic values. As we move forward, the collective effort to enhance media freedom and uphold the rule of law will be critical in fostering a transparent European Union.
BFMI is closely monitoring the progress of the EU states: Greece, Slovenia, Bulgaria, and those on the path to accession: Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia. Highlights from the report are below.
EU Member states
In Greece, significant progress has been made in judicial independence, and some further progress in corruption, media freedom, and NGO independence. However, issues remain with political interference in the judiciary and partial progress has been achieved in its legislative processes. Recommendations include enhancing prosecution records for high-level corruption, implementing stronger protections for journalists, improving public consultation processes for new laws, and improving the registration system for civil society organisations.
In Slovenia, the media environment reveals a blend of progress and stagnation. While recent improvements in governance have bolstered the independence of Radio Television Slovenia and the media regulator is poised to expand its competences, limited resources and persistent political interference remain significant hurdles. Efforts to enhance media ownership transparency and ensure fairness in state advertising are underway, supported by new legislative measures and a handbook aimed at improving the management of information requests. Despite these positive developments, the media sector is also struggling with deteriorating working conditions for journalists and prevalent online harassment.
In Bulgaria, while access to public information has improved, concerns persist over the insufficient safeguards protecting the independence of the media regulator. The government is working on a draft law to strengthen public service media independence, but the media regulator is yet to appoint a new Director General for national television. Although there are several registers for media ownership, enforcement of disclosure obligations remains flawed. Recent progress in the transparency of state advertising allocation is noted, but political and economic influence over media persists despite existing legal safeguards for editorial independence. Journalists also continue to face threats, despite recent steps to protect them from strategic lawsuits against public participation.
Accession countries
This year's report breaks new ground by including chapters on the most advanced enlargement countries Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia, underscoring the EU's commitment to supporting their reform efforts and guiding them on the path to accession.
Serbia continues to struggle with the independence of its media regulator (REM), highlighting ongoing concerns about political influence and the regulator’s ability to fully exercise its mandate. REM has also been found ineffective in countering foreign information manipulation or interference. Furthermore, the proposed measures in the media strategy aimed at enhancing transparency in ownership structures and advertising funded by state have not been implemented. Journalists in Serbia face frequent refusals by public bodies to disclose information of public importance or they receive no response at all. There is also an increasing number of SLAPP lawsuits, which put a pressure on the media’s operations.
In Albania, there has been an increase in investigations, prosecutions, and convictions for corruption, yet these achievements are overshadowed by concerns about the political affiliations and perceived conflicts of interest of media regulators. These issues undermine the independence of the audio-visual regulatory authority, compounded by limited regulations on media ownership transparency and a high concentration of ownership that erodes media freedom. The fair allocation of state advertising and other resources remains unassured, and the independence of the public broadcaster is continually challenged. Although recent amendments to the Law on the Right to Information have brought some improvements, implementation has been inconsistent. Meanwhile, the legal framework for protecting journalists exists, but verbal and physical attacks, smear campaigns, and strategic lawsuits against public participation persist, highlighting the need for comprehensive reforms to enhance media freedom and transparency.
Montenegro adopted in June a legislative package on media pluralism and media freedom, which introduces improvements in the transparency of media ownership. It prohibits public sector advertising in media that have not published that information. Montenegro made strides in equipping its media regulator with comprehensive sanctioning instruments, addressing its long-standing challenges in enforcing the regulatory framework by granting it the power to impose fines in case of violations of the law. At the same time, the issue of limited information on the public sector payments to media outlets, including on advertising, remains.
North Macedonia faces resource constraints and a lack of cooperation among national authorities, hindering effective corruption prosecution and media freedom. Challenges also remain when it comes to transparency of media ownership and concerns have been raised regarding certain elements of the reintroduction of state-funded advertising.
