![]() ![]() The doctrine of “official secrecy” (“Amtsgeheimnis”) still in force under Art. The planned Freedom of Information Act must meet international standards and must be accompanied by the political will to implement it in practice. Call 3: Introduce a Freedom of Information Act in line with international standardsĪustria is one of the worst countries in the EU when it comes to freedom of information and transparency legislation. Hostility, attacks and defamation against journalists must be consistently condemned and pursued by every federal government and leaders of political parties. Policy makers should restrain from hostility (online, offline, verbal, physical) towards journalists. There are increasing attempts to intimidate journalists amid a political culture of editorial interference, for example through strategic threats of lawsuits or the use of anti-media rhetoric. We observe a change in the political climate, not only in Austria. Call 2: Refrain from intimidating journalists The funding must be sufficient to meet the programme mandate. The switch to state budget financing bears the risk of political influence – ORF could in the long term become a state media outlet instead of a public one. Under no circumstances should the ORF’s budget be covered by the Ministry of Finance of any government. The independent financing of ORF must be ensured, for example through a license fee charged to households. Members of the ORF Foundation Board must be able to be removed if they attack ORF journalists for political reasons. ![]() The Foundation Board should also take into account and reflect civil society. The Foundation Board must be staffed according to expertise and a majority of its members must be independent of political parties. Leading positions in the broadcaster must be filled according to professional and not political criteria. The close structural links between politics and the public broadcaster must be broken. Political influence on the ORF must be ended and prevented. We call for a reform of the ORF law to strengthen the ORF and make it sustainable for the future. A discussion with the Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) and the Freedom Party (FPÖ) did not take place.īased on the discussions and insights we address the following joint calls to the upcoming ÖVP-led government: Call 1: Secure the independence of the public service broadcaster (ORF) The European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), Reporters without Borders Austria, the International Press Institute (IPI) and the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) met well-known journalists from public, national and regional media, representatives of the ORF public broadcaster as well as the media policy spokespersons of several major parties. This concern prompted an international delegation of media freedom and journalist organisations to review the situation on the ground. In addition, restrictions on journalistic access to information related to the government’s work gives cause for concern about the situation of media freedom and the free flow of information in Austria. Harassment and threats against journalists, both online and offline, also reached a new level under Kurz’s government. According to a survey, nearly half of Austria’s journalists feel that media freedom is in a precarious state. In its first year under the government of Sebastian Kurz, Austria fell five places on the international press freedom ranking of Reporters Without Borders, to 16th place. Over the last two years, the policies of the previous government showed that the current media system can be influenced politically. IJ4EU (Investigative Journalism for Europe).COVID-19: How IPI members face the challenge. ![]() Countering Online Harassment of Journalists.Europe: Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR).Helsingin Sanomat Foundation Journalism Fellowship at IPI. ![]()
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