| The EU likes to think of itself as the birthplace and guardian of the free media, but at least once a year, it has a chance to look the truth in the face – and it’s not pretty. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) published their annual World Press Freedom Index on Friday, and while it’s no surprise that the situation in Europe is deteriorating, we also need to recognise that we, journalists, need to do more to hold power to account. According to the 2023-24 report, nine EU countries, or one-third of the bloc — Italy, Poland, Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Hungary, Malta, and Greece — are categorised as ‘problematic’. That is two more than the previous year. The other two-thirds are ranked as ‘satisfactory’ and ‘good’, but many of them, including Finland, Ireland, Lithuania, Czechia, Slovakia, Austria, Romania, and even France, saw drops in their scores. Those that improved are in the minority, with tiny increases. RSF called out politicians for throttling independent media, with Hungary’s ‘pro-Kremlin’ Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Slovakia’s Robert Fico, the Maltese Labour Party (S&D) government, New Democracy (EPP) in Greece, and Giorgia Meloni in Italy, all “at the forefront of this dangerous trend.” It also nodded to the “crusade against independent journalism” by Russia, with the threat of disinformation and censorship spreading far beyond its borders. But it’s not just national leaders and domestic issues causing the deterioration of media freedom in Europe. | 