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Weaponising the law: Threats to media freedom in Kenya

Lawrence Mute, Andrew Songa

Thomson Reuters Foundation (2026), 55 pp.

"This report presents a comprehensive analysis of the legal threats to media freedom in Kenya today. For the purposes of this report, weaponisation of the law is defined as the deliberate use or misuse of legal provisions and processes to intimidate, silence, or economically weaken media actors. Des ... pite robust constitutional safeguards for freedom of expression and of the media, as well as a vibrant media sector, Kenya continues to experience setbacks in the realisation of these rights, alongside improvements in some areas. This report follows the global Weaponizing the Law: Attacks on Media Freedom report, published in 2023, by providing a country-specific analysis of the Kenyan context. Informed by an initial desktop review of relevant laws, regulations and court decisions, the research included an industry survey and focus group discussions, which identified six primary categories of legal threats: the abuse of court processes; regressive and disabling legislation; weak implementation of media laws; technology-facilitated harms; impunity and safety of journalists; the sustainability of the media industry. This report presents these threats thematically rather than in order of severity, reflecting the fact that they do not occur in isolation, but intersect with broader patterns of political influence, intimidation, and pressure from certain private actors. Together, they undermine independent journalism and weaken the long-term sustainability of the media sector. Our survey found that 42% of media actors in Kenya have faced legal threats in response to their work, including litigation, arrest, and the shutting down of online platforms. A summary of these key threats is outlined below. Moreover, 65% of media professionals who responded to our survey highlighted legal protections as their top support need to ensure the sustainability of journalism in Kenya. Throughout the research and across the six categories of threats documented in this report, three cross-cutting themes have emerged: 1. Legal tools are increasingly used to punish, deter, or delegitimise critical journalism. 2. Institutional weaknesses, such as inconsistent implementation and limited enforcement, undermine the effectiveness of legal protections already on the books. 3. Rapid technological change is outpacing the law, leaving journalists exposed to new risks ranging from AI-driven market disruptions to technology-facilitated gender-based violence. These issues are not unique to the Kenyan context; the solutions will lie in collaborative action that harnesses the expertise of a breadth of stakeholders across the media freedom ecosystem within the country and region." (Executive summary) more

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Potenciar la palabra: El FOMECA como política pública de fomento a los medios comunitarios en Argentina (2013-2023)

Diego Martín Jaimes

Quito: CIESPAL, 2da ed. (2026), 344 pp.

"Este libro da cuenta: • de las posibilidades reales de una comunidad organizada y estratégica: el Foro Argentino de Radios Comunitarias, su relación con otras organizaciones populares, su capacidad de articular con espacios universitarios, el espliegue nacional popular y latinoamericano de sus ... activistas y la clara convicción de incidir en las políticas públicas. Prueba de esto, es el trabajo que esa red de medios populares ha desarrollado en torno de la sanción de la Ley de Servicios de Comunicación Audiovisual 26522 sancionada en el año 2009 durante el gobierno presidido por la Dra. Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. Esta ley se constituyó en un marco para el desarrollo del sector de los medios populares, alternativos y comunitarios, incluyó a las universidades públicas, la escuela pública, los pueblos originarios, y promovió la creación de nuevos contenidos y empleo en la industria audiovisual argentina, entre otras cualidades en materia de políticas de comunicación; • del impacto que en los medios comunitarios y en el mismo Esatado, tiene una fuerte participación de estos en la co creación de políticas públicas, tengase en cuenta que FARCO ha sido unos de los actores fundamentales en la elaboración de la Ley 26522 de Servicios de Comunicación Audiovisual, en la articulación con sindicatos y organizaciones populares, partidos políticos y en la articulación con las universidades nacionales en materia de estrategias políticas y de formación; • de la importancia de fortalecer las políticas del denominado Fondo de Fomento Concursable -FOMECA- y al mismo tiempo ser destinatarias sus emisoras populares distribuidas en todo el territorio argentino. De su incidencia real cuando las administraciones gubernamentales priorizan la comunicación con enfoque de derechos y cuando no. Es más, diría, que este trabajo investigativo deja claro cuáles son las que favorecen al sector social de la comunicación y cuáles no; • da cuenta de una epistemología del hacer y gestionar, de administrar y de proceder estratégicamente, por sobre todo explica criterios y posibilidades para producir políticas de comunicación absolutamente posibles cuando hay decisión política real. Tiene a su vez la virtud, de destacar con perspectiva crítica y rigurosa aquello que está descuidado en su implementación, y que transformado las proyecciones podrán ser favorables." (Prólogo, páginas 18-19) more

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The Architecture of Media Capture: Typologies, Global Patterns, and the Tech Threat

Marius Dragomir

Tallinn; London: Media Journalism Research Center (MJRC) (2026), 29 pp.

"Media capture, the systematic subordination of news media to the political and commercial interests of ruling elites, has become one of the defining governance crises of the 21st century. Where the 20th century’s threats to press freedom were primarily those of outright censorship and state-contr ... more

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Regulating New Media in Africa: Politics, Law and Governance

Vincent Obia, Sulayman Bah, Yemisi Akinbobola, Oliver Carter (eds.)

Intellect (2026), 242 pp.

"A collection of research on digital media regulatory interventions across Africa, an area that has largely been overlooked in the literature. It considers a range of perspectives from scholars within and outside Africa on the subject, providing a compendium on digital media regulation on the contin ... more

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Communication and democracy in Brazil and Germany: Media accountability, public service media, internet access and right to information

Danilo Rothberg, Susanne Fengler, Fernando Oliveira Paulino, Rogério Christofoletti (eds.)

São Paulo: Cultura Acadêmica (2025), 304 pp.

"The expertise brought by three important Brazilian public universities (Unesp, UnB, and UFSC), combined with the knowledge accumulated through research investment by the Technische Universität Dortmund, was taken here as a unique and rich source of knowledge capable of avoiding the pitfalls and ov ... more

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Paris Declaration on Multilateral Action for Information Integrity and Independent Media

Paris: High-Level International Conference on Information Integrity and Independent Media; International Fund for Public Interest Media (IFPIM), October 29 (2025)

"On the occasion of the High-Level International Conference on Information Integrity and Independent Media, we, the undersigned governments, commit to fortifying multilateral action in support of information integrity and independent media. In times of increased polarization, violations of the right ... more

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Recomendaciones para fortalecer el ecosistema audiovisual chileno: Foco en la ficción televisiva sobre la historia reciente

Mónika Contreras Saiz, Holle Meding, Hannah Müssemann, Stefan Rinke, Lorena Antezana Barrios, Claudia Lagos Lira, Ricardo Ramírez

Berlin: Freie Universität Berlin; GUMELAB (2025), 29 pp.

"En las últimas dos décadas, la televisión chilena ha experimentado un notable crecimiento en la producción de series de ficción que abordan episodios traumáticos de la historia reciente, especialmente la dictadura militar (1973–1990). Estas obras —que denominamos series de la memoria— n ... o solo recrean hechos históricos con alto impacto social, sino que también movilizan recuerdos personales, afectan la percepción del pasado y contribuyen a la construcción de la memoria colectiva. Estas recomendaciones surgen de la colaboración entre el proyecto GUMELAB de la Freie Universität Berlin y la Facultad de Comunicación e Imagen de la Universidad de Chile, y se enmarcan en el convenio de cooperación establecido entre esta última y el Consejo Nacional de Televisión. Nuestras investigaciones identificaron problemas clave en el ecosistema audiovisual chileno y, en específico, en la producción de ficciones audiovisuales que abordan el pasado del país: fragmentación institucional y financiera: fondos concursables aislados sin diagnóstico sistémico; barreras de entrada y descoordinación: trámites desiguales que penalizan a productoras emergentes; inestabilidad y escasa sensibilización: rotación de autoridades y visión genérica de “industrias creativas”; financiamiento insuficiente y poco mixto: énfasis en proyectos puntuales y falta de apoyos directos o gravámenes sostenibles; déficit de archivo y acceso: ausencia de política pública para conservar y facilitar el uso del patrimonio televisivo; métricas limitadas para las series históricas e internacionalización débil: rating único, sin integrar VoD, redes sociales, uso educativo ni circulación global. Con base en estos hallazgos, se proponen recomendaciones organizadas por plazos de implementación: corto plazo: diagnóstico integral de financiamiento, instrumentos y normativas, mesas técnicas interinstitucionales y sensibilización de autoridades sobre los tiempos y dinámicas del sector audiovisual; mediano plazo: desarrollo de métricas multidimensionales, ampliación de la circulación (retransmisiones, transmedia y diálogo digital), y fortalecimiento de la formación docente y profesional en el uso crítico de series históricas; largo plazo: estrategia coordinada de circulación nacional e internacional, política nacional de archivo televisivo, diversificación de financiamiento mixto y líneas especiales para series históricas en TV abierta." (Resumen ejectuivo, página 5) more

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Contesting Copyright: A History of Intellectual Property in East Central Europe and the Balkans
Deep Insights

Augusta Dimou

New York: Central European University Press (2025), xxi, 481 pp.

"The creative sector, including the cultural industry, is key for today’s economy. Copyright has the capacity to x the roles and tasks of the actors involved and determine the direction of cash ows within this sector. The study of the evolution of copyright helps understand and adjust the regulati ... more

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Media Capture Monitoring Report: Overview. The European Media Freedom Act: The solution to Capture or Just Fine Print?

Zsuzsa Detreköi, Marius Dragomir

Vienna: International Press Institute (IPI); Media Journalism Research Center (MJRC) (2025), 30 pp.

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Recomendaciones estratégicas para fortalecer la ficción televisiva sobre la historia reciente de Colombia

Mónika Contreras Saiz, Hannah Müssemann, Holle Meding, Stefan Rinke, Edward Goyeneche-Gómez, Carlos A. Gutiérrez González, Enrique Uribe-Jongbloed

Berlin: Freie Universität Berlin; GUMELAB (2025), 28 pp.

"En las últimas dos décadas, la televisión colombiana ha incrementado significativamente la producción de telenovelas y series de ficción que abordan episodios traumáticos de la historia reciente del país, en particular relacionados con el conflicto armado y el narcotráfico. Estas obras —q ... more

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Deprived Media Market, Lw Ethical Standards, Need for Effective Legislation. The Future of the Media in North Macedonia – Facts and Trends

Vesna Nikodinoska, Tamara Chausidis

Sarajevo; Skopje; Ljubljana: Mediacentar; Macedonian Institute for Media; Peace Institute; South East European Network for Professionalization of Media (SEENPM) (2025), 41 pp.

"The following conclusions can be drawn from the data analysis: • The socio-economic status of journalists should be continuously advanced via improvement of working conditions in newsrooms and greater acknowledgement of labour rights on the part of media owners and the state. • Rapid technologi ... cal and information changes impose the need for adapting the ethical and professional standards to the new digital environment, as well as creating specific guidelines for the media and journalists in terms of the use of artificial intelligence. • The interest of young people in studies in journalism, communications, and media is drastically decreasing due to the weak link between studies with the labour market, the poor economic situation in media, and the inherent risks to this profession. It is necessary to modernize the study programmes and curricula which should be in line with the newly emerging environment, as well as making it possible to interlink with the media industry. • Disinformation and non-compliance with ethical standards are often evident in online media, thus there is already a wide discussion in the media community about the legal definition of the status and functioning of the online media. • Ownership transparency in broadcast media is at a high level, which is not the case in internet media, as the latter are outside the legal scope. The legal solution for pluralism in media ownership does not correspond to the new digital environment, therefore changes are needed that will enable development of the media market and industry consolidation. • Funds from the state budget for paid political advertising during elections and public interest campaigns have increased in recent years and represent a significant source of funding for many media outlets. The above increases media dependence on state funds, as well as the possibility of corruption and media clientelism. • Professional media organizations and the civil sector support the idea of establishing a fund for the development of media pluralism, to serve as an independent mechanism for developing projects and contents of public interest. Such approach will encourage diversity, quality, and independence in the media industry. • In the media landscape, there are not enough media and/or programmes that represent ethnic groups, marginalized groups, and persons with disabilities, while non-profit media is one of the most underdeveloped segments therein. Trust in institutions, including in the media, is very low, due to the high level of systemic corruption, disinformation, non-transparency, and weak effectiveness of institutions. • Media literacy is included in formal education as a systemic approach to teaching, but awareness of its importance should be promoted more among all age groups and segments of society. • Transparent and efficient policies, comprehensive analyses, and overarching strategies are needed to cover all segments of the media market, including the digital sphere. The limited media market adversely affects the economic situation of the media, resulting in a lack of evident development of pluralism, diversity, and independence of the media in the audiovisual media sphere." (Executive summary, pages 4-5) more

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Media Bias, Legislative Challenges, and the Fight for Freedom. The Future of the Media in Serbia – Facts and Trends

Valentina Sigeti, Teodora Koledin

Sarajevo; Novi Sad; Ljubljana: Mediacentar; Novi Sad School of Journalism; Peace Institute; South East European Network for Professionalization of Media (SEENPM) (2025), 50 pp.

"Alongside the rise of new technologies and the evolving global conditions in the media industry, journalism and media in Serbia will face numerous challenges, particularly in the areas of basic media freedom and journalist protection, based on the findings of this research: • There is no reliable ... data on the number of journalists in Serbia, or how many of them are women or members of marginalized groups. • Media ownership in Serbia is highly concentrated, particularly in the television broadcasting sector, which affects media reporting. Channels with national frequencies often align their narratives with the government’s or ruling party’s agenda. • The state and ruling party demonstrate tendencies to control the media. This is evident in the newly updated law that allows business companies engaged in electronic communications, such as the state-owned Telekom, to own media outlets. Additionally, findings indicate that some media owners at the local level are connected to the ruling party. • Media financing is often misused to encourage biased reporting. Public calls for funding are corrupted by GONGO media organizations, which prioritize funding pro-government outlets; state advertising is not regulated by law, and the media community was left out of the discussion on new advertising laws; despite receiving the majority of its budget from citizens’ subscriptions, the national public broadcaster RTS is still perceived as one of the most progovernment outlets in the country; foreign donors, including the EU, US and UK, provide significant financial support for media projects in Serbia, but there is no transparent data on the total amount of money donated. • National minorities are represented through media outlets funded by National Councils of National Minorities. However, journalists from some of these media outlets work under political pressures and engage in self-censorship. National minorities living in the northern province of Serbia, Vojvodina, are also served by the provincial public broadcaster RTV. RTS does not provide content in the languages of the Bosnian, Vlach and Bulgarian communities in Serbia’s eastern and western regions. Romani and Albanian communities are represented on RTS, but the amount of content is minimal. • Television is the most commonly used source of news and information, with citizens watching up to eight hours of television daily. The most-watched TV news programmes are central-informative political shows on channels with national frequencies, which are widely considered pro-government. • Only 30% of Serbian citizens trust the media. Social media is the least trusted media type, while television is the most trusted." (Executive summary) more

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M20 Johannesburg Declaration: Media Summit urges global prioritisation of information integrity for the public good

M20 Media Integrity; South African National Editors' Forum (SANEF); Media Monitoring Africa (MMA) (2025), 11 pp.

"Our call on media and civil society – as well as other stakeholders such as independent information regulatory bodies and business entities, to act on: Information integrity -- Artificial Intelligence -- Media viability -- Safety -- Women and media -- Children, young people (teenagers) and margin ... more

National safety mechanisms for journalists: Combatting impunity and strengthening national structures for the prevention, protection and prosecution of crimes committed against journalists, media workers and social media producers

Daniel Brini

Paris: UNESCO (2025), 18 pp.

"Twenty-nine (29) countries are implementing fifty-six (56) national mechanisms for the safety of journalists, media workers and social media producers. Over two thirds of operational national mechanisms implement measures in at least two of the safety areas – prevention, protection or prosecutio ... more

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End Term evaluation of the Media Council of Tanzania (MCT) programme support 2018-2024. Final report

Greg Moran, Marko Gideon

Sundbyberg: Swedish International Development Agency (Sida) (2025), x, 59, 28 pp.

"The Media Council of Tanzania (MCT) was established in 1995 as a self-regulatory body to oversee and promote media ethics and resolve complaints over media practice. MCT’s activities have since expanded to include training and advocacy on laws, policies, and protecting key rights for the media. S ... more

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Freedom of Expression and the Law in Russia: Asymmetrical Information

Mariya Riekkinen, Mariya Riekkinen

Oxford: Routledge (2025), 170 pp.

"This book discusses how Russia’s legal system restricts freedom of expression. As the author analyses legal amendments restricting the free flow of information since 2012, she draws upon Akerlof’s framework of “Asymmetrical information” and Luhmann’s “System Theory” to show how these ... more

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El derecho a la no desinformación: Un nuevo derecho en Bolivia

Erick R. Torrico Villanueva

La Paz: Universidad Mayor de San Andrés (UMSA); Instituto de Investigación, Posgrado e Interacción Social en Comunicación (IpiCOM) (2025), 148 pp.

"Asumiendo a la democracia como un sistema fundado en la vigencia de derechos y leyes, este libro aborda el tema de la desinformación desde la perspectiva de los derechos humanos y, dentro de ella, de los que competen a la información y la comunicación, para bosquejar una estrategia inédita de e ... more

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Decolonising Epistemologies, Pluralising Justice: Insights from the Field of Indigenous Studies

Jessika Eichler, Philippe Boucher, Max Virupaksha Katner, Freddy Sebastián Medina Sepulveda, Lorena Albornoz

Stuttgart: Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen (ifa); Deutsche Stiftung Friedensforschung (2025), 66 pp.

"This paper pursues an ambitious agenda in that it seeks to decolonise Indigenous relations with (the) State(s), departing from the very sources and forms of knowledge, commonly established logics and structures in the academic world, and by introducing the reader to Indigenous forms of knowledge an ... more

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Changing Media Landscape, Same Persistent Problems. The Future of the Media in Albania – Facts and Trends

Ilda Londo

Sarajevo; Tirana; Ljubljana: Mediacentar; Albanian Media Institute; Peace Institute; South East European Network for Professionalization of Media (SEENPM) (2025), 33 pp.

"Analysis of media in Albania and mapping of main trends through credible, regular, and complete data is a problematic endeavour. However, the data available show that it is safe to say that challenges for professional journalism remain formidable in Albania. Full formality of the media market has n ... more

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Safeguarding Media Freedom in the Age of Big Tech Platforms and AI: Policy Manual

Anya Schiffrin, Bojana Kostic, Iva Nenadic, Julia Haas, Natali Helberger, Natali, Max van Drunen

Vienna: OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (2025), 147 pp.

"With this Policy Manual, we provide guidance for building an information space free from oligopolistic control, resilient to manipulation, and supportive of independent, pluralistic media. This Policy Manual proposes both structural reforms and targeted mitigation measures – focusing on media vis ... more

Contesting Copyright: A History of Intellectual Property in East Central Europe and the Balkans Deep Insights

Contesting Copyright: A History of Intellectual Property in East Central Europe and the Balkans
Deep Insights