European Centre for Press and Media Freedom

The European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) is a non-profit organisation that promotes, protects and defends the right to a free media and freedom of expression throughout Europe. It was founded in 2015 as a watchdog of the European Charter on Freedom of the Press. The main activities of the ECPMF are monitoring press and media freedom violations, advocacy and practical help for journalists, such as legal support and a "journalists-in-residence" programme.

History 
The ECPMF was founded in June 2015 as a non-profit European Cooperative Society (SCE). by representatives from 20 entities in the fields of journalism, publishing and media law in Europe. Among them are the European Federation of Journalists, South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO), Index on Censorship (Index), Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Transeuropa (OBCT), Media Legal Defence Initiative, Association of Journalists of Macedonia, Ossigeno per l'informazione (Ossigeno), Independent Journalism Center, and Media Foundation of Sparkasse Leipzig. The Centre is located in Leipzig, Saxony, Germany. The city was chosen to root the centre’s work in the tradition of the peaceful revolution of 1989, which fought for press freedom and to overthrow the GDR regime.   

The main initiator of the ECPMF was Hans-Ulrich Jörges, former member of the chief editorial office of the German magazine “stern”, who had taken part in conceptualising the European Charter on Freedom of the Press. A cross-party coalition at the European Parliament spearheaded by Martin Schulz (SPD), Alexander Graf Lambsdorff (FDP), and Elmar Brok (CDU) backed the initiative to form the centre.

Structure and finance 
The ECPMF co-operative had 39 members at the beginning of 2019. They constitute the General Meeting, which is the highest body of the organisation. According to the statute, this body is responsible for electing the members of the supervisory and executive boards. The Executive Board employs the Managing Director. Each member has one vote and must buy at least one share of the co-operative. All members have to obey the Code of Conduct.

The centre started within a pilot project, funded at 70% by the European Commission. The Media Foundation of Sparkasse Leipzig, the Chancellery of Saxony, the German Foreign Ministry, and City of Leipzig provided additional third-party funding for the centre. Some projects and activities like the Journalists-in-Residence programme receive funding from other donors, such as the National Endowment for Democracy, the German Foreign Office, the Open Society Foundations, and the German Ministry for Culture and Media.

The EPCMF’s budget is roughly 1 million euros per year. As the centre defines itself as a network and European hub for activities defending press and media freedom, it shares its budget with partner organisations.

The "Concept of the Enemy" reports on Germany 
Since 2015, the ECPMF has been examining politically motivated attacks on journalists in Germany. The phenomenon became virulent with the  rise of right-wing demonstrations and the denunciation of journalists as “Lügenpresse” (lying press). The reports investigate how such a "concept of the enemy" influences the willingness to commit violence, and document fact-checked cases of physical attacks against journalists. The reports were widely shared and quoted, also in the international press.

The European Charter on Freedom of the Press 
The European Charter on Freedom of the Press is regarded as the “birth certificate” of the ECPMF. The Charter was signed by 48 editors-in-chiefs and leading journalists from 19 European countries in 2009 in Hamburg. It is available in several European languages on its homepage.

See also 

 Media freedom

References 

Category:International organisations based in Germany
Category:Freedom of expression organizations
Category:Organizations established in 2015
Category:Journalism organizations in Europe