Brussels, 19 January 2024
Today, member states’ EU ambassadors endorsed the provisional agreement reached on 15 December 2023 between the Council and the European Parliament’s negotiators on a new law to establish a common framework for media services in the EU internal market and to safeguard media freedom, media pluralism and editorial independence in the EU.
The European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) will establish a common framework for media services in the EU’s internal market and introduce measures aimed at protecting journalists and media providers from political interference, while also making it easier for them to operate across the EU’s internal borders. The new rules will guarantee the right of citizens to access free and plural information and define the responsibility of Member States to provide the appropriate conditions and framework to protect it.
This is the first endorsement of a provisional agreement on culture and media under the Belgian Presidency, building on the efforts of the Spanish Presidency. Today is a landmark day for media freedom and pluralism in the EU. This new regulation will protect journalists and their sources and will allow citizens to make informed decisions on the basis of plural and independent information.
Benjamin Dalle, Flemish Minister for Brussels Affairs, Youth, Media and Poverty Reduction
Background and next steps
On 16 September 2022 the Commission published its proposal for a regulation establishing a common framework for media services in the internal market. The EMFA proposal set out new rules to protect media pluralism and independence in the EU. Negotiations with the European Parliament on the final shape of the law started on 19 October 2023 and were concluded with the provisional agreement reached on 15 December 2023.
The text of the agreement will now be finalised in all the official languages and formally adopted by both institutions by April 2024.
- Provisional agreement on the European Media Freedom act
- Council and Parliament strike deal on new rules to safeguard media freedom, media pluralism and editorial independence in the EU (press release, 15 December 2023)
- Media freedom in the EU (background information)
Source – EU Council