European Commission’s proposed EU Democracy Shield initiative comes at a crucial time for media freedom and democracy in Europe. Commissioner McGrath’s commitment to integrating media-related challenges into the Democracy Shield through its four pillars – economic viability, journalist safety, the impact of AI, and media literacy – reflects the evolving issues public interest journalism faces.
As an organisation committed to the safety of journalists and media freedom, the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) has contributed to the discussions on the Shield through the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) joint submission, as well as civil society and media Joint Input.
Here, we reiterate what ECPMF believes this framework should prioritise to ensure media resilience and the protection of journalists.
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Economic Sustainability as an Essential Prerequisite to Media Resilience
The shift from traditional revenue models to very large online platforms (VLOPs) has severely undermined the sustainability of independent journalism. News publishers now face a 50-70% decline in advertising revenue while being forced to pay to promote their content to maintain readership and visibility. This forces media organisations to compete with platforms that profit from their content, creating a deeply uneven playing field. This is why ECPMF calls for mechanisms to rebalance power between news producers and platforms. This includes, but is not limited to, requiring platforms to provide fair compensation to media outlets for the journalistic content they use
At the same time, grants for media start-ups, local outlets, and investigative newsrooms are becoming increasingly volatile. Shifting donor priorities and funding cuts, across Europe and in the US, place public interest journalism at risk, opening space for disinformation to flourish. This is why establishment of long-term, core funding mechanisms is crucial to secure the future of public interest journalism in Europe. This funding should be based on transparent governance and media pluralism assessment criteria.
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Journalist Safety as a Core Commitment
The safety of journalists is prerequisite for media resilience. In 2024, Europe saw a disturbing rise in threats against media workers. Mapping Media Freedom (MapMF) documented 1,548 violations affecting over 2,500 individuals or media-related entities, which was a significant rise compared to 1,153 violations registered in the previous year.
The MFRR’s 2024 report highlights risks such as censorship, smear campaigns, and direct attacks. Journalists covering environmental issues, protests, or political corruption were frequently harassed, assaulted, or targeted with strategic lawsuits (SLAPPs). Meanwhile, online harassment, including death threats, hacking, and surveillance, continued to escalate.
In this context, ECPMF urges for reinforced support for journalist associations, unions, and self-regulatory bodies, which are essential in building a safer media environment on a national level. This should be coupled with efforts to boost national journalist safety programs, led by media stakeholders that offer training, legal aid, monitoring, and protective resources.
On a European level, Democracy Shield should strengthen the European Protection Mechanism to continue providing rapid, coordinated responses to threats and ensure consistent enforcement of EU recommendations and regulations.
To address online attacks, the Commission should enforce implementation of already existing acts and legislation, while strengthening the collaboration between tech platforms and law enforcement to combat digital attacks, particularly orchestrated hacking campaigns and online harassment.
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Responding to AI’s Impact on Journalism and Journalists’ Safety
Artificial intelligence presents a growing threat to journalistic sustainability and safety. Generative AI tools are largely trained on the journalists’ work without consent or compensation. At the same time, AI-generated content replaces original reporting and reduces traffic to trustworthy news sources. For these reasons, ECPMF reiterates calls for limiting Big Tech’s influence in decision-making processes, including in shaping AI regulation. AI regulation needs to ensure that human rights and authorship rights are prioritised.
However, this is not the only way AI influences public interest journalism, as it also introduces significant surveillance and disinformation risks. Spyware has been used to monitor journalists across Europe, with MapMF documenting 16 cases targeting 35 individuals or outlets since 2020. Besides this, deepfakes and synthetic media pose additional threats to media credibility and journalists’ security.
To address this, the EU Democracy Shield should ensure a full implementation of the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA), and enforce data protection laws to restrict the use of spyware and intrusive surveillance. The production and sale of spyware should be strictly regulated, with stern penalties for misuse.
To tackle the increasing use of AI tools across sectors, including in newsrooms, there needs to be effort to integrate AI education into journalism training and promote ethical, newsroom-friendly AI tools that help detect disinformation.
Though the effects of AI to journalism are still largely unknown, the Shield provides a unique opportunity to commit to raising awareness of the embedded weaknesses of AI models, such as their susceptibility to self-censorship, bias, and AI hallucinations; and educating the users, media, and governments on the risks AI poses.
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Strengthening Media and Digital Literacy for Better Resilience
Relying on the MapMF data, ECPMF calls for the Democracy Shield to comprehensively address spoofing, coordinated disinformation campaigns, and cyber deception, through strong media and digital literacy support. While the EU has addressed disinformation through various tools, gaps remain in legislation specifically targeting spoofing and cyber scams.
For these reasons, we call for enhanced cooperation between governments, ISPs, media, and press freedom groups to combat digital manipulation. This should be coupled with improved legislation and enforcement mechanisms to counter spoofing and deceptive online content. Strong enforcement of platform due diligence and accountability is necessary to prevent the creation of coordinated disinformation networks and spoofing campaigns.
Conclusion
The EU Democracy Shield represents a vital step forward in protecting democratic values, but its success depends on recognising the central role of free, resilient, and secure journalism. The ECPMF urges EU institutions and Member States to take bold, decisive actions to support independent media, protect journalists, and address the evolving technological threats they face. Without this, the very foundations of democracy in Europe remain at risk.
