Activities of Alice KUHNKE related to 2020/2009(INI)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on strengthening media freedom: the protection of journalists in Europe, hate speech, disinformation and the role of platforms
Amendments (62)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5
Citation 5
— having regard to the work carried out by the Council of Europe to promote the protection and safety of journalists, including Recommendation CM/Rec(2018)1[1] of the Committee of Ministers to member states on media pluralism and transparency of media ownership and the declaration by the Committee of Ministers on the financial sustainability of quality journalism in the digital age, recommendation CM/Rec(2016)4[1] of the Committee of Ministers to member States on the protection of journalism and safety of journalists and other media actors, and its 2020 annual report entitled ‘hands off press freedom’1a _________________ 1a https://rm.coe.int/annual-report-en- final-23-april-2020/16809e39dd
Amendment 3 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 a (new)
Citation 5 a (new)
— having regard to the Resolution 2300 of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) of 1 October 2019 on ‘Improving the protection of whistle-blowers all over Europe’1b _________________ 1b http://assembly.coe.int/nw/xml/XRef/Xref- XML2HTML-EN.asp?fileid=28150⟨=en
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 b (new)
Citation 5 b (new)
— having regard to the UN Human Rights Committee’s General Comment No 34 on Article 19 of the ICCPR (Freedom of opinion and expression),
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 c (new)
Citation 5 c (new)
— having regard to the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity,
Amendment 7 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 d (new)
Citation 5 d (new)
— having regard to the relevant resolutions of the UN General Assembly, the UN Human Rights Council and the reports of the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression,
Amendment 8 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 e (new)
Citation 5 e (new)
— having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the UN Convention against Corruption and the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and the Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions,
Amendment 9 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 f (new)
Citation 5 f (new)
Amendment 10 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 g (new)
Citation 5 g (new)
— having regard to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the commitments there into, inter alia, promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, including by ensuring public access to information and protecting fundamental freedoms,
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 h (new)
Citation 5 h (new)
— having regard to the Commission communication of 10 June 2020 on ‘tackling COVID-19 disinformation - Getting the facts right’,
Amendment 16 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 11 a (new)
Citation 11 a (new)
— having regard to the Commission’s EU Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2024,
Amendment 17 #
— having regard to Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2019 on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law1d, _________________ 1d OJ L 305, 26.11.2019, p. 17.
Amendment 21 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 14 a (new)
Citation 14 a (new)
— having regard to the outcomes of the World Press Freedom Index, published by Reporters Without Borders, and to those of the Media Pluralism Monitor of the European University Institute’s Centre for Media Pluralism and Media Freedom,
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 34 a (new)
Citation 34 a (new)
— having regard to the EU Human Rights Guidelines on Freedom of Expression Online and Offline, adopted on 12 May 2014, recognising artistic freedom as an inherent component of freedom of expression alongside media freedom,
Amendment 31 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 34 b (new)
Citation 34 b (new)
— having regard to the work carried out by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA),
Amendment 34 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas media freedom, pluralism and independence, as well as the safety of journalists, are crucial components of the right of freedom of expression and are essential to the democratic functioning of the EU and its Member States;
Amendment 37 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas the right to inform and the right to be informed are part of the core basic democratic values on which the EU is founded; whereas the media play an essential role in democratic society by helping to inform and empower citizens, through widening their understanding of the current political and social landscape, and fostering their participation in democratic life; whereas freedom of opinion and expression are indispensable for the fulfilment of other human rights and fundamental freedoms;
Amendment 43 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. whereas key democratic tasks of the media include strengthening transparency and democratic accountability; whereas investigative journalism fulfils a necessary watchdog role that assists the public in holding governments and institutions, at all levels, accountable for their actions and obligations; whereas whistleblowing is a fundamental aspect of freedom of expression and is also instrumental in detecting and reporting irregularities and cases of corruption within the public and private sectors;
Amendment 44 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A c (new)
Recital A c (new)
Ac. whereas, in the context of fighting corruption and maladministration in the EU, investigative journalism should receive particular consideration and financial support as a tool serving the public good;
Amendment 48 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas media capture, hate speech and disinformation are increasingly being uexploited for political purposeds as tools to intensify social polarisation, which is in turn exploited for political purposes; whereas combating these phenomena is not only relevant to the domain of human rights, but is also a fundamental factor in terms of the defence of the rule of law and democracy in the EU;
Amendment 57 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas journalists and other media actors continue to be at risk of violence, threats, harassment, pressure, self- censorship, public shaming and even assassination in the EU as a result of their investigative activities to protect the public interest and their daily reporting on key issues, such as social protests;
Amendment 60 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
Da. whereas public authorities have the duty not only to refrain from implementing restrictions on freedom of expression, but also the positive obligation to adopt measures which promotes the development of free, independent and pluralistic media;
Amendment 64 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D b (new)
Recital D b (new)
Db. whereas in several Member States, SLAPPs are a continued practice used to scare journalists into halting investigations into corruption and other matters of public interest;
Amendment 68 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E a (new)
Recital E a (new)
Ea. whereas female journalists are disproportionately targeted by harassment and abuse and face gender-specific forms of violence, such as sexual and online harassment; whereas online harassment and abuse is often highly sexualized, based not on the content of their work, but on their physical traits, cultural background, or private life; whereas these threats lead female journalists to self- censorship and have a chilling effect on press freedom and freedom of expression; whereas threats and attacks against female journalists also hinders media pluralism in terms of gender diversity in media production;
Amendment 72 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E b (new)
Recital E b (new)
Eb. whereas artistic freedom is an integral part of the fundamental right of freedom of expression and is essential for Europe’s cultural diversity and democratic health; whereas attacks to artistic freedom are proliferating but remain invisible;
Amendment 76 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas the global COVID-19 crisis is having a devastating social and economic impact on the media sector, especially freelance media workers, both for the organizations confronting it and for the journalists as individual workers;
Amendment 84 #
G. whereas the internet and social mediabusiness model of dominant online platforms which is based on micro-targeted advertising plays a role in spreading and amplifying hate speech and fostering radicalisation leading to violent extremism, including through the circulation of illegal content;
Amendment 92 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H
Recital H
H. whereas the AVMSD obliges the authorities in every Member State to ensure that audiovisual media services do not contain any incitement to hatred based on race, sex, religion or nationalitysex, racial or ethnic origin, nationality, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I
Recital I
I. whereas the spread of false newsmisinformation and disinformation available via social media or search websites poses a threat to the freedom of speech and expressionto information, to democratic discourse and to the independence of the media, and has strongly impaired the credibility of the traditional media;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital J
Recital J
J. whereas disinformation and misinformation related to COVID-19 mayhave caused panic and social unrestdiscord and needs to be addressed; whereas measures to combat disinformation cannot be used as a pretext for introducing disproportionate restrictions on press freedom;
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Reiterates its continued deep concern about the state of media freedom within the EU in the context of the abuses and attacks still being perpetrated against journalists and media workers in the Member States because of their activitieswork, as well as the growing public denigration and general weakening of the profession, weighing particularly heavily on local, investigative and cross-border journalism;
Amendment 114 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Deplores that journalists and media workers often work in precarious conditions with regard to their contracts, salaries and social guarantees, which compromises their ability to work appropriately and thus hampers media freedom;
Amendment 118 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Underlines the crucial role that investigative journalists play in holding power to account and performing their functions as watchdogs for democracy and the rule of law and highlights that whistle-blowing is an essential element for investigative journalism and freedom of press; deplores that journalists and whistle-blowers have been subject to legal prosecution instead of legal protection when, acting in the public interest, they disclose information or report suspected misconduct, wrongdoing, fraud or illegal activity;
Amendment 127 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Strongly reiterates its call on the Commission to treat attempts by Member State governments to damage media freedom and pluralism as constituting a serious and systematic abuse of powers and as going against the fundamental values of the EU as enshrined in Article 2 TEU; welcomes, therefore, the Commission’s intention to include a specific chapter on monitoring media freedom and pluralism in its Annual Report on the Situation of the Rule of Law within the EU; urges the Commission to take into account the impact of the emergency measures taken in 2020 in the context of COVID-19 on press freedom, media pluralism and safety of journalists; in this context, recalls Parliament’s repeated call for a permanent, independent and comprehensive mechanism covering democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights in the EU; considers that the EU mechanism on democracy, rule of law and fundamental rights must enshrine media freedom as an essential pillar of a democratic system;
Amendment 130 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Reiterates the need for a comprehensive annual monitoring of the state of press freedom in each Member State which could be built on the Media Pluralism Monitor and should include concrete country by country recommendations to lower risks to media freedom, as well as specific analysis of areas in which the EU could act; asks the Commission for continued monitoring of the protection mechanisms for journalists in the Member States and make country specific recommendations;
Amendment 131 #
3b. Calls on the Member States to create and maintain, in law and in practice, a safe and secure environment for journalists and other media actors, including foreign journalists pursuing their journalistic activities in the Member States, enabling them to carry out their work in full independence and without undue interference;
Amendment 132 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 c (new)
Paragraph 3 c (new)
3c. Calls on the Commission to set up a EU hotline as a rapid-response mechanism for journalists requesting protection; calls on the EU institutions to have a contact point in order to follow the cases of journalists requesting protection and to ensure that adequate attention is paid to their situation;
Amendment 133 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Highlights the irreplaceable role of public service media and stresses that it is essential to ensure and maintain their independence from political interference; condemns attempts by Member State governments to silence critical and independent media and undermine media freedom and pluralism, in particular attempts to control public service media and social network; deplores the fact that in some Member States public broadcasting has become an example of single political partypro-governmental propaganda, which often excludes opposition and minority groups from society and evenand even in some cases incites violence; stresses that safeguarding independent authorities and ensuring strong independent oversight of audiovisual media against undue state and commercial intervention is crucial; highlights and deplores that similar motivations have driven undue restrictions on artists in an attempt to further restrict the space for open and fearless debate; recognizes that sufficient and sustainable funding for public interest media is essential and should be provided in a manner that guarantees media freedom, independence and pluralism; calls on the Commission and Member States to ensure that journalists are given the proper tools to inquire and receive information from EU and Member State administrations without facing arbitrary decisions denying their right of access to information; deplores any attempts to deny access to information by the use of delay tactics, bogus reasons for dismissal or unjustified narrowing of the scope of information that was requested;
Amendment 161 #
5. Reiterates its concern that fewabout the lack of specific legal or policy frameworks protecting journalists and media workers from violence, threats and intimidation can be identified at national level within the EU; calls on the Member States and the Commission to ensure the effective protection and safety of journalists and other media actors as well as of their sources, including in a cross-border context; strongly reiterates its call on the Commission to present proposals to prevent so-called ‘Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation’ (SLAPP), in particular, legislative proposals to establish minimum standards for protection at the EU level;
Amendment 162 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Is deeply concerned about the increasing political attacks on the media and deplores the lack of protection of journalistic sources; recalls Member States’ obligation to carry out prompt, impartial and effective investigations into attacks perpetrated against journalists and urges to step up efforts to end threats and attacks against journalists and media workers, to ensure accountability, and to guarantee that victims and their families have access to the appropriate legal remedies; calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure that reporting mechanisms are accessible, safe and secure, and that the claims of investigative journalists and whistle- blowers are professionally investigated; calls on the implementation of the EU Human Rights Guidelines on Freedom of Expression Online and Offline, which highlight that the EU will take all appropriate steps to ensure the protection of journalists, both in terms of preventive measures and by urging effective investigations when violations occur;
Amendment 169 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 b (new)
Paragraph 5 b (new)
5b. Expresses deep concerns about the raise in attacks against female journalists and media workers, and underlines the importance of taking a gender-sensitive approach when considering measures to address the safety of journalists and media workers; reiterates its call to Member States to take a gender-sensitive approach when considering measures to address the safety of journalists;
Amendment 172 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 c (new)
Paragraph 5 c (new)
5c. Underlines that media have a powerful role to play in promoting gender equality and anti-discrimination; is concerned that women and other discriminated groups remain invisible in news content, or often depicted in stereotypical ways; recalls that in the media sector, women are increasingly impacted by structural barriers;
Amendment 173 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 d (new)
Paragraph 5 d (new)
5d. Underlines that the lack of gender equality in managerial and content creation roles in European media organisations represents a risk for media pluralism; urges the Commission and the Member States to take active steps to promote gender equality in the media sector, so that also more women can be in creative or decision-making positions which would enable the media to contribute to the reduction of gender stereotypes;
Amendment 175 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Stresses that excessiveHighlights that media ownership concentration remains one of the most significant risks to media pluralism and is seen as creating barriers to diversity of information and viewpoints; stresses that concentration of ownership in the content- producing and content-distributing sectors may threaten citizens’ access to a range of content; recalls the findings of media freedom organisations during their fact finding missions stressing that in some Member States especially local media are not able to fulfil their role anymore, being fully dependent on advertisement of local business-political groups; underlines that media pluralism, which depends on the existence of a diversity of media ownership and of content as well as independent journalism, is key to challenging the spread of disinformation and ensuring that EU citizens are well- informed;
Amendment 181 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Underlines the importance of ensuring the transparency of funding sources and of media ownership structures; calls on the Commission to strengthen efforts to ensure that the media proactively publish information about their ownership structures, including their beneficial owners, and that clear rules are put in place to also prevent potential conflicts of interests arising in media ownership structures, with a special emphasis on avoiding political interference;
Amendment 186 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Is concerned about attempts to take advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to punish independent and critical media and introduce restrictions on the media’s access to and scrutiny of government decisions and actions, hampering proper and informed debate on those actions; stresses the role of journalism and the free flow of information as essential to the EU’s efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic; points out that journalism plays a crucial function at a moment of public health emergency, and that as media freedom is curtailed, similar tactics are deployed to restrict other freedoms of expression used by other actors to legitimately scrutinise government decisions and actions, notably artists;
Amendment 193 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to urgently introduce EU and national emergency recovery packages to protect the jobs and livelihoods of journalists and media workers, support companies and fund public service media through the COVID- 19 crisis; stresses that in the face of the pandemic and its aftermath; stresses that European citizens need professional, economically secure and independent journalists; reiterates in this context, also in the face of the pandemic; reiterates its call for the creation of a permanent European fund for journalists in the framework of the next MFF (2021- 2027), as redrafted following the COVID- 19 crisis, offering direct financial support for independent journalists and media outlets, including female journalists, freelancers and self-employed media workers; recalls that a special focus should also be given to independent media startups, particularly local, in Member States where media freedom has worsened during last years, media ownership concentration increased significantly and public service media are under threat of political influence;
Amendment 198 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Stresses that press freedom should be a priority for the European Commission and that a coherent EU Media Freedom and Independence Strategy should be established; recalls the urgent need to have permanent budget lines and financial support for investigative journalism and urges the Commission to step up efforts to move forward in this direction;
Amendment 201 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 b (new)
Paragraph 8 b (new)
Amendment 205 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Condemns all types of incidents of hate crime and hate speech both offline and online motivated by racism, xenophobia or religious intolerance, or by bias against a person’s disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex characteristics or minority status that occur regularly within the EU;
Amendment 210 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. CDeplores the increasing levels of hate speech across the EU; calls on the Member States to strongly condemn and sanction hate crime, hate speech and scapegoating by politicians and public officials, at all levels and on all types of media, as these phenomena directly normalise and reinforce hatred and violence in society; stresses that sanctions should always be in compliance with the international standards of freedom of expression;
Amendment 217 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Reiterates its call on the Member States to take further measures to prevent, condemn and counter hate speech and hate crime, so as to fight organisationscounter thate spread of hate speech and violence in public spacesoffline and online;
Amendment 222 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Takes note of the Code of Conduct on Countering Illegal Hate Speech Online, promoted by the Commission, and of its fourth evaluation round, from which it emerge; recalls that journalists and civil society organisations should be systematically included in evaluations and reviews of the Code of Conduct; recalls that the IT companies part of the Code of Conduct only review requests for removal against their rules and community guidelines; highlights that the IT companies are removing on average 72 % of thcontent they deem to be illegal hate speech upon notified to themcation;
Amendment 226 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Points out that Member States must ensure, by all appropriate means, that the media, including online and social media, as well as advertising, are free from all incitement to violence or hatred directed against any person or group of persons; points out that xenophobia is, hatred on grounds of ethnic origin and anti-Muslim hatred are among the most commonly reported ground of hate speech; reiterates its call on the Commission, the Member States and social media companies to counteract the spread of racism, xenophobia and, LGBTI-phobia and religious hatred on the internet, in cooperation with the relevant civil society organisations;
Amendment 228 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13a. Expresses its concern about the lack of reporting of hate crimes by victims owing to inadequate safeguards and to the failure of authorities to investigate properly and to end impunity for hate crimes in the Member States; calls on the Member States to develop and disseminate tools and mechanisms for reporting hate crimes and hate speech, and to ensure that any case of alleged hate crime or hate speech is effectively investigated, prosecuted and tried;
Amendment 230 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 b (new)
Paragraph 13 b (new)
13b. Underlines the key role of civil society organisations in fostering media literacy and helping to prevent the spread of hate speech; recalls that programs that have been deemed as utilizing effective strategies to combat hate crime and hate speech are focused on cooperation, communication, conflict resolution, problem solving, mediation, and bias awareness;
Amendment 234 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Notes that the new digital environmentdigital technology and the social media hasve exacerbated the problem of the spread of disinformation and has resulted in online platforms playing an influential role in publishing, disseminating and promoting news and other media content; reiterates its concern about the potential threat disinformation poses to the freedom to information, the freedom of expression and the independence of the media;
Amendment 242 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Paragraph 14 a (new)
14a. Recalls that online platforms are part of the online public sphere where public debate take place; calls on the Commission to ensure safeguards for platforms to respect fundamental rights and freedom of speech;
Amendment 251 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Recalls that political profiling, disinformation and manipulation of information may beis often used by political parties and private or public entities, and reiterates its concern about the fact that evidence of interference is continuously coming to light, oftsometimes even with indications of foreign influence, in the run- up to all major national and EU elections, with much of this interference benefiting anti-EU, extreme right-wing and populist candidates and targeting specific minorities and vulnerable groups;
Amendment 264 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Points out that different forms of misinformation and disinformation, as well as other forms of information manipulation relating to, inter alia, the COVID-19 pandemic, continue to proliferate around the world and have potentially harmful consequences for public security, health and effective crisis management; recalls that all measures to combat disinformation, including those taken in the context of the COVID-19 emergency, need to be necessary, proportionate and subject to regular oversight, and may under no circumstances prevent journalists and media actors from carrying out their work or lead to content being unduly removed, or access blocked on the internet;
Amendment 269 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Welcomes the Commission’s initiative to present a European Democracy Action Plan that aims to counter disinformation and to adapt to evolving threats and manipulations, as well as to support free and independent media; emphasises in this respect that protecting free and independent mediadom of expression, including free and independent media and artistic freedom, fundamental rights content and democratic debate while combating hate speech and disinformation is a fundamental factor in terms of the defence of the rule of law and democracy in the EU; asks for the set-up of a digital and fundamental rights multi-stakeholders experts group encompassing independent medias, digital and human rights NGOs in order to assist the EU institutions and the Commission;
Amendment 275 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Reminds the Commission and the Member States as well as the private sector, in particular online platforms, and civil society as a whole of the need for joint action when it comes to the fight against disinformation, and acknowledges the positive impact; calls for regular impact assessments of the voluntary actions taken by service providers and platforms to counter disinformation as well as education policies promoting media and information literacy empowering citizens’ critical thinking; insists ofn the voluntary actions taken by service providers and platforms to counter disinformationMember States’ obligations to respect, protect and guarantee fundamental rights and requests to assess all options in hands to protect and realise the right to information and participation; warns against the risks of relying on algorithms and policies profiling users and sponsoring/blocking contents based on a subjective appreciation of what constitutes a political debate on what constitutes truth without counterweights and oversights; urges the Commission to step up efforts to increase EU funding for media literacy programmes;
Amendment 285 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 a (new)
Paragraph 18 a (new)
18a. Stresses that the business model of the advertising industry, based on micro- targeted advertising, and product of pervasive online tracking of individuals across sites and applications, is a major concern; recalls the urgent need to reform the business model behind dominant platforms;