site.bta2024 Europe Press Freedom Report: Journalists in Small Media in Bulgaria Have It Harder

The work of journalists in Bulgaria's smaller media is particularly difficult, according to the Council of Europe annual report presented in Brussels on Wednesday. In Europe as a whole, regional journalists in countries in the central and eastern part of the continent, especially Bulgaria, Hungary and Serbia, are working in more difficult conditions than their national media colleagues. In the case of regional publications, pay, institutional support and protection for journalists are weaker.

Examples of cross-border pressure on journalists cited in the report include the revelation last year by prosecutors in London that Bulgarian journalist Christo Grozev was the target of a Russian-led spy network. Grozev, a journalist with the website Bellingcat, is known for his investigations into the 2018 Novichok attack in Salisbury and the poisoning of Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny.

Some of the recommendations made to the Council of Europe in the report are to promote effective implementation of the anti-SLAPP Recommendation, aligning domestic laws in member states with its provisions and raising awareness among legislators and legal professionals; to encourage swift and full responses to alerts on the Safety of Journalists Platform and effective remedial actions by states against abuses of press freedom judges and prosecutors; to mobilize political support for the ‘Journalists Matter’ campaign to advance policies and laws that protect journalists and uphold media independence.

Recommendations to the European Commission include investigating member states violating the European Media Freedom Act and initiating infringement proceedings where necessary, holding very large online platforms legally responsible for putting in place effective measures to protect journalists’ rights.

Council of Europe member states were advised to Develop and implement National Action Plans for journalists’ safety; to establish rapid response mechanisms against threats; to establish specialized units within law enforcement and judiciary to prioritize cases involving attacks on journalists; to remove increased protection against defamation for public figures, end excessive penalties and custodial sentences for journalists, and make civil legal aid available to defendants.

The report points out that numerous elections in Council of Europe member states, at the European level, and in the US revealed a growing influence of illiberal and populist parties. These parties, often hostile to critical and public interest journalism, displayed this through derogatory rhetoric, legal constraints on media, and regulatory interference that undermined public service broadcasters. It warns that spyware poses a growing threat to journalists’ safety and source confidentiality; that state and political parties’ have concerning levels of control over media, through regulatory interference, ownership manipulation, financial pressure.

The report goes on to say: "From underfunding initiatives to outright interference in editorial independence, these tactics have weakened public trust in media institutions. The European Media Freedom Act offers hope for reversing this trend, but effective implementation by member states will be critical in ensuring the sustainability of pluralistic and independent media ecosystems."