Redux
Every journey circles home
Today, Thursday, journalists will once again appear before the Parliamentary Committee on Internal Affairs represented by the Media Ethics Committee and the Union of Journalists to discuss the European Media Freedom Act, which aims to regulate media freedom across the EU. And as every time, we will state the obvious: no serious problem concerning freedom of expression and journalism can be addressed unless the long delayed discussion on the Press Law finally moves forward. We say it again, and we will keep saying it for as long as necessary.
In recent days, the issue of press cards in Cyprus has once again come under scrutiny. The Union of Cyprus Journalists has complained about the non recognition of its cards in accreditation procedures, including those related to Cyprus’ Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The Institute for Mass Media and the European Federation of Journalists support these objections, stressing that the requirement for state issued accreditation undermines press freedom and contradicts European practice.
The situation leaves journalists exposed and creates inequalities, at a time when there is broad agreement that the answer to the question of who defines a journalist cannot possibly be the state.
The elephant in the room is the 1989 Press Law, which is outdated and essentially inoperative, especially when one considers technological developments, the rise of online platforms and social media. It obstructs modernisation and prevents the resolution of serious structural problems. Until the profession itself is properly protected, the security of journalists and the credibility of the media will continue to suffer, while discussions about fake news, digital information and media quality remain empty rhetoric.
When substantive and thorough debate is constantly postponed, it may suggest that someone is acting in bad faith, evading responsibility or simply indifferent to the future of journalism. But when journalism is threatened, democracy itself is threatened. Without a Press Law that protects the role of journalists, no discussion about freedom or the quality of information can have real meaning. Yet today in Parliament there will again be expressions of surprise as to why the reform of the Press Law has still not been completed.