MEDIADEM · European Media Policies Revisited: Valuing and Reclaiming Free and Independent Media in Contemporary Democratic Systems

Free and independent media are vital for the workings of democratic systems. Media structures which are free of interference from government, business or other social groups, and in which access of diverse views and opinions is effectively guaranteed, support democratic debate and sustain citizens’ active involvement in political and civic life.Given the strong interconnection between politics, business and the media, the creation and safeguarding of an environment supportive of media freedom and independence remain everywhere in Europe a continuous and open-ended process. In view of the important role the media play in providing information about the economy and political affairs, political and economic actors, but also socio-cultural elites regularly seek to exert an influence on domestic media policy-making.MEDIADEM seeks to understand and explain the factors that promote (or conversely hinder) the development of policies for free and independent media. The project will combine a country-based study in Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Turkey and the UK with a comparative analysis across media sectors and types of media services, and will investigate the complex array of policy approaches and regulatory and self-regulatory practices established to safeguard media freedom and independence. In order to verify whether regulatory measures actually advance a more democratic political order through the diversification of media outlets, sources and content, the project will place them in their proper socio-political, economic and cultural context, and will examine how state and non-state perceptions about the role the media should play in contemporary society influence the implementation of the norms enacted. External pressures stemming from the action of regional organisations, such as the Council of Europe and the EU, will also be investigated in detail. The central assumption of MEDIADEM is that economic, socio-political and cultural domestic peculiarities greatly affect how legal norms are interpreted and implemented, how they are perceived and received, and whether they are truly respected. Simultaneously, given the substantial changes brought by new technologies regarding the way citizens obtain information, the project will examine the opportunities and challenges posed by new media services for media freedom and independence.The project will make a significant contribution to media policy development by advancing knowledge on how media freedom and independence can be safeguarded in Europe. It will thus be of particular interest to state and European policy makers, civil society and the public at large.