Ljubljana, 3 June - Human Rights Press Point, operated by the Peace Institute for the time of the Slovenian EU Presidency in cooperation with the Slovene Association of Journalists and the Slovenian Union of Journalists, invites you to attend a roundtable on the state of media freedom in the European Union. The event will take place in Cankarjev Dom in Ljubljana (Štihova Hall) on Monday, 9 June 2008 at 6 p.m., on the eve of the Summit EU-USA.

Please note that the round table discussion will be held in Slovenian and French language with simultaneous translation. 

The round table will host journalists and media experts from France, Italy and Slovenia, including:  

Pierre Daum, journalist for Libération and Le Monde Diplomatique,

Stojan Spetič, journalist for RAI Trieste,

Tanja Lesničar Pučko, journalist and commentator for Dnevnik, and

Sandra Bašić Hrvatin, professor at the Faculty of Social Sciences, fellow researcher at the Peace Institute. 

The round table will be chaired by Mirko Štular, editor-in-chief of Val 202. 
 

Approaching the end of the Slovenian Presidency of the EU and before France takes it over we want to raise attention to the state of media freedom in the EU Member States, and discuss the role and policy of the European Union in that field. Is the European Union really a place of respect for media freedom and of high democratic standards? How much is media freedom and democracy in the EU Member States endangered by media ownership concentration and its political instrumentalisation, by political control of public service broadcasting, news agencies and press subsidies, and by worsening conditions for autonomous work of journalists and editors? Are there political leaders in the EU Member States, for instance in France, Slovenia and Italy, whose politics and actions endanger media freedom? Which instruments are available for authorities on the level of the European Union to act in such cases? What we can expect from authorities of the European Union in cases when they are led by the same political elites which are in some cases in their own countries evidently involved in measures and actions which endanger media freedom? Does the European Union in the case of request for respect of media freedom use double standards when insist on respect of such standards in the case of candidate countries and “third countries”, but keep silent and powerless in cases of violation of media freedom in the member states? Taking into account valuable experience and knowledge of the guest speakers and their diverse insight into political and media developments we expect an interesting and fruitful discussion.