14 Amendments of Dominique BILDE related to 2017/2209(INI)
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Recalls that the formation of public opinion is based upon a social pact between citizens and media professionals aimed at influencing those in powmedia professionals have the task of informing both citizens and political decision-makers for the purposes of general interest; notes with the gravest concern that the financing system for the press has collapsed, resulting in dominant media players using information to pursue political and commercial propaganda objectives, thereby dramatically loweringmedia ownership being concentrated in the hands of an ever-decreasing number of players, a situation which lends itself to manipulation of information, thus making it more likely that the quality of information and giving rise towill be lowered and phenomena such as ‘fake news’ will thrive;
Amendment 25 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Maintains that information should be termed ‘fake news’ if, and only if, it is factually incorrect and not, therefore, when it is accurate but presented in support of a political position at odds with prevailing political opinion;
Amendment 29 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Maintains that giving a political slant when presenting particular political or topical issues is intrinsic to engagement in politics and a sine qua non for the exercise of freedom of opinion, belief, and expression and that condemnation of the ‘fake news’ phenomenon should not be tantamount to political censure of political opinions at odds with the mainstream Western media view, still less should it be used to exert pressure on sovereign states via their official media organisations;
Amendment 31 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 c (new)
Paragraph 2 c (new)
2c. Points out that a distinction has to be made between ‘fake news’ and illicit – that is to say, manifestly illegal – online content such as hate speech or incitements to violence, which is a matter for the criminal law of the Member States concerned and cannot, therefore, be the subject of a joint legislative act;
Amendment 32 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 d (new)
Paragraph 2 d (new)
2d. Notes that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed concern on 1 June 2017 about the German law on hate speech and ‘fake news’, as it considered some of its provisions to be incompatible with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, adopted on 19 December 1966;points out, however, that, notwithstanding the disquiet expressed by the highest UN authorities, the German law in question entered into force on 2 October 2017 and the Commission, in a communication dated 28 September 2017, stated that it wishes to model its own legislation on that law;
Amendment 33 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 e (new)
Paragraph 2 e (new)
2e. Maintains that the term ‘fake news’ should not be misused in a politically biased way against some media outlets, including official media organisations of certain non-EU countries, and that, by the same token, all objective acts of disinformation should be condemned, since respected official news organisations have sometimes disseminated and lent credence to questionable information for which the sources had not been fully verified, one example being CNN, which on at least one occasion has given credence to adverse reports concerning the US President, Donald Trump, that eventually proved to be inaccurate and unfounded;
Amendment 45 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Maintains that pluralism is an obligation in public service media and journalists’ claims to be neutral cannot be deemed sufficient to meet it;
Amendment 47 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Maintains that the disaffection among ordinary Europeans with traditional media can be explained in part by the inadequate diversity of opinion and expression within the media and the widening gap between the shades of public opinion and the opinion conveyed by the media; points out that several recognised studies have highlighted the narrow range of views held by media representatives, which is out of step with the world population in general, and that, according to a recent study by the Zurich University of Applied Sciences, 70% of journalists in the public service Swiss Broadcasting Corporation place themselves on the left of the political spectrum;
Amendment 51 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 c (new)
Paragraph 3 c (new)
3c. Maintains that unrepresentativeness of this kind and the lack of diversity of opinion among media players affect news coverage: during the American presidential campaign, for example, according to the BBC, 200 newspapers supported the Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton, whereas only 20 backed the Republican candidate, Donald Trump, who in the end polled about 63 million popular votes and secured a majority within the electoral college, thereby winning the presidency of the United States;
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Points out that the Commission has refused to set up an independent committee of inquiry to investigate this murder and is thus ignoring the call made on 2 November 2017 by eight international news organisations;
Amendment 63 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Points out that the Commission was aware of Malta’s shortcomings regarding the rule of law and freedom of expression, as its own media pluralism watchdog had expressed reservations on those points back in 2016;
Amendment 64 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 c (new)
Paragraph 4 c (new)
4c. Points out that whereas the Commission has already used its powers to impose sanctions on sovereign states, for example Hungary, it has so far done nothing to address the fact that Malta has been found wanting as regards press freedom and the rule of law;
Amendment 70 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Points out that, conversely, subsidies granted to the media, whatever the degree of interest that they might arouse among the public, undermines pluralism by skewing the media offering in relation to public expectations and that a media outlet should not, therefore, be kept financially viable purely by the artificial means of subsidies;
Amendment 71 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Emphasises that a critical use of media content is essential to people’s understanding of current issues and to their contribution to public life; calls, therefore, on the Commission and the Member States to promote and support media literacy projectpoints out that education, which is the responsibility of Member States, is the way to develop critical thinking and that bringing this about must be one of the prime goals of education systems.