Four years into Russia’s full-scale war, Ukrainian journalism is still reporting under fire. Our new long-read shares Ukrainian partners’ voices on what’s changed, what’s most fragile now, and why this year is about structural vulnerability, not survival: https://www.ecpmf.eu/four-years-of-war/

4 years into Russia’s full-scale invasion, journalism in Ukraine remains deadly. Our joint statement honours those killed and injured and warns: drone warfare is changing the risks. PRESS markings may no longer protect reporters. https://ow.ly/RA8M50YkQrt

📸 ECPMF is at #CaféKyiv in Berlin all day today! The event brings Ukrainian voices and European allies together when solidarity and action are needed most. Join our 20:00 panel on Frontline Journalism to talk about the realities, risks, and why it’s essential.

Join us for the panel today ⏳ How do regional media in #Ukraine operate under shelling, occupation, and disinformation? Today at 20:00 at Café Kyiv, we invite you to hear from journalists working under some of the most difficult conditions in Europe: https://cafekyiv.kas.de/en/

🥁 The European SLAPP Contest 2026 is back! ✨ Nominations are open now: tinyurl.com/4vj45ac5 Which legal bully or egregious gag lawsuit deserves to be named and shamed this year? 🎭 Help us identify 2025's biggest SLAPP bullies and see them crowned live on stage in Sofia, Bulgaria on 28 April.

The Prize for the Freedom and Future of the Media celebrates those who protect free and independent journalism. Nominations close on 28 February 2026: https://www.leipziger-medienstiftung.de/en/medienpreis-en/prize-for-the-freedom-and-future-of-the-media/ Award ceremony: 8 October 2026 in Leipzig.

Happening tomorrow ⏰ From occupied territories to news fatigue, Ukrainian regional journalists face extreme challenges. Join our panel on 23 February at Café Kyiv. Learn more: https://cafekyiv.kas.de/en/

Sustainable funding is essential for independent public media. We call on Kosovo’s parliament to ensure RTK receives the budget set out in law, in line with European media freedom standards: https://ow.ly/2Xfv50YhE7F

Saturday read ☕ Our new Monitoring Report 2025 is an extensive, data-driven look at press freedom across Europe. It documents 1,481 violations affecting 2,377 journalists and media entities. The numbers show why protecting journalism matters to everyone. https://www.ecpmf.eu/monitoring-report-2025/

✏️ Local media in #Ukraine are defending democracy every day. Hear directly from frontline journalists at Café Kyiv on 23 February: https://cafekyiv.kas.de/en/#Ukraine 20:00–20:45, Room KINO 3

Eight years after the murders of Ján Kuciak and Martina Kušnírová, MFRR partners renew our call for full justice. A new retrial of alleged mastermind Marian Kočner has been underway in Bratislava since Jan 2026. No impunity for attacks on journalists: https://ow.ly/JTnG50YiFAS

🚨 Every day, we monitor press freedom in Europe and log new alerts as they happen. Journalists continue to face threats, intimidation and attacks, often without any accountability. Our roundup brings together some of the cases recorded this week: www.mappingmediafreedom.org Here are a few of them.

Kuciak’s killing was meant to silence investigative reporting. It must not succeed. As Slovakia’s media faces mounting pressure and attacks intensify, we urge authorities to protect press freedom and ensure accountability for Ján and Martina: https://ow.ly/sGvk50YiFBY

Holding power to account is not a crime. Violence against journalists is.

⚡ The MFRR will return to Rome on 9–10 March 2026 for a follow-up mission on press freedom in #Italy. In 2025 alone, we recorded 118 violations, including attacks, legal harassment, spyware cases, and an attempted assassination of a journalist: https://ow.ly/mfoZ50YhYOy#Italy Reforms cannot wait.

If your 2025 investigation brought journalists together across borders and led to political, institutional, or societal change, take note. Managed by ECPMF, the #IJ4EU Impact Award 2026 opens for nominations on 26 February.

What does journalism look like on the frontlines of war? Join ECPMF and German Marshall Fund at Café Kyiv on 23 February for a panel with local Ukrainian media leaders. 📅 23.02, 20:00, Room KINO 3 https://cafekyiv.kas.de/en/

Press freedom across Europe remained under pressure in 2025. Our new Monitoring Report documents 1,481 violations affecting 2,377 journalists and media entities across 36 countries, highlighting key threats of impunity, SLAPPs and “foreign agent” laws: https://www.ecpmf.eu/monitoring-report-2025/

Europe’s press freedom challenges persisted in 2025. ⚡ The new MFRR Monitoring Report documents 1,481 violations affecting 2,377 journalists & media entities across 36 countries, with key threats ranging from impunity to SLAPPs & “foreign agent” laws. Read the report: www.mfrr.eu/monitoring-r...

This week, ECPMF is hosting Italian journalists in Leipzig for a week-long Erasmus exchange. The programme covers media freedom monitoring, anti-SLAPP work, digital security, and support for journalists in exile, alongside visits to local media. Welcome!

Our Flutura Kusari and Elena Rodina take the stage at the Voices Festival in Florence to discuss the spread of “foreign agent” laws across Europe and their impact on independent media: https://voicesfestival.eu/conference-event/are-you-a-foreign-agent/ Join us on 12 March, 11:30.

Follow the money, trace assets and analyse complex datasets. Next-IJ offers hands-on training with tools like Aleph and Datacros for journalists working across borders. Online training, 20 March 2026. Apply by 13 March: https://hub.next-ij.eu/news/training-march-2026

Transnational repression silences voices beyond borders. LDSF’s UN submission warns that gaps in Germany’s response leave exiled journalists at risk, and urges concrete steps: a national coordination office, multilingual reporting channels and digital safeguards. https://ow.ly/O6Ns50YcFlc

Saturday read ☕ What happens when local news disappears? People don’t stop consuming information, they turn to social media, influencers & gossip. A survey shows that in “news deserts”, more residents rely on non-journalistic sources than on newsrooms. https://ow.ly/1LK350Yeoon

After facing ongoing legal cases, Turkish journalist Abbas Vural questioned whether he could continue reporting. Today, he speaks of renewed determination and pride in staying on the path of journalism. https://www.ecpmf.eu/support/journalists-in-residence/jir-alumni/abbas-vural/

When fake followers and mass reports can shut down media accounts, platform flaws become a censorship tool. We urge Meta to introduce stronger safeguards and protect independent journalism in Serbia. https://ow.ly/TBHo50YenRQ

Since 2001, the Prize for the Freedom and Future of the Media has recognised courageous journalism worldwide. Know someone whose work stands for independent reporting and pluralism? Nominate by 28 February 2026: https://ow.ly/etFX50Y8Kac

Under legal attack for your reporting? ECPMF provides funded legal aid and expert backing. Apply below if you need support. https://www.ecpmf.eu/support/legal-support/

Germany’s legal guarantees for free expression ring hollow if exiled journalists remain exposed to transnational repression. In a new UN submission, LDSF urges Berlin to move from recognition to real protection, with coordination, reporting channels and digital safeguards. https://ow.ly/ukxo50YcFkM

Vor dem Hintergrund der Einschätzung von @reporter-ohne-grenzen.de erlaube ich mir einmal auf die von @ypm.bsky.social und mir veröffentlichte Studie zum Lokaljournalismus in Sachsen und Thüringen verweisen. Sie ist frei abrufbar unter: shorturl.at/6lqVH @ecpmf.bsky.social @ikg-bie.bsky.social

Tomorrow marks the opening of #IJ4EU fund ⏰ €1.6m is available to support cross-border investigative journalism across Europe, with grants of up to €50k and integrated legal and security support. Details: https://investigativejournalismforeu.net/ij4eu-revamped-2026-27/

Journalists in exile bring critical perspectives shaped by lived experience. In Germany, we help them to access training, legal advice, language support, and funding for equipment, making it possible to keep reporting and rebuild a professional path: www.ecpmf.eu/support/jour...

Abzas Media journalists were sentenced in trials condemned as politically motivated. Now their families warn of violence at the prison where they are held: https://ow.ly/y9xy50Y9NvN We stand in solidarity with Sevinj Vagifgizi, Elnara Gasimova, and Nargiz Absalamova and call for their protection.

A heads-up for investigative teams across Europe: #IJ4EU launches this week 🚀 €1.6m is on offer for cross-border investigations, with grants of up to €50k plus legal and security support. More info: https://investigativejournalismforeu.net/ij4eu-revamped-2026-27/

🌟 Public Interest Journalism Lab (PIJL), in cooperation with ECPMF, announces a new Open Call for applications from Ukrainian independent media and journalists in 2026. The deadline for applications is 10 February. https://ow.ly/1IVF50Y4bTt

Investigations that collaborate across countries and expose issues of shared European concern deserve visibility. The #IJ4EU Impact Award 2026 will soon open for nominations, celebrating cross-border journalism published in 2025 that made a measurable difference: https://ow.ly/qRNu50Y8Lgu

When attacks go unpunished, they return. Emilia Șercan explains how years of impunity enabled new defamatory attacks after her latest investigation. Full MFRR interview now online ⬇️ https://youtu.be/-gWnTvPPZiE

Saturday read ☕ “Something I will be most proud of when I’m 90”: Jeff Bezos used to talk about The Washington Post with real curiosity, and the things he said were interesting and specific. Over time, that changed. https://ow.ly/YJmi50Y9cC4

“I found myself hesitating about continuing my work as a journalist.” Turkish reporter Abbas Vural speaks about legal pressure, uncertainty, and how a period in Leipzig helped him regain the confidence to keep pursuing the truth. https://ow.ly/Mvja50Y9MTR

We are deeply concerned for imprisoned journalists Sevinj Vagifgizi, Elnara Gasimova, and Nargiz Absalamova. Their families fear for their safety after reports of violence at Lankaran prison in #Azerbaijan: https://ow.ly/na4U50Y9NkO#Azerbaijan Authorities must guarantee their protection.

🌟 Join us today at 18:00 for I Wanted Everyone to Know. The film explores investigative journalism, exile, and press freedom in Turkey, with a post-screening discussion featuring Metin Cihan and director Sercan M. Subasi: https://ow.ly/3cgu50Y8GXJ Free tickets can be booked directly at the cinema.

Nominations are open for the Prize for the Freedom and Future of the Media. The award honours journalists and media actors defending press freedom, often at great personal risk. Deadline: 28 February 2026: www.leipziger-medienstiftung.de

Happening tomorrow in Leipzig! If you are interested in investigative journalism, media freedom, or the realities of reporting under political pressure, join us for I Wanted Everyone to Know: https://www.passage-kinos.de/i-needed-everyone-to-know

⚡ Our award for cross-border investigative journalism is back! The #IJ4EU Impact Award 2026 will recognise investigations that crossed borders and delivered real public impact. Three winning teams will each receive €5,000. Nominations open 26 February: https://uncovered.ij4.eu/impact-award-2026/

Our full solidarity with journalists laid off at The Washington Post. International reporting is essential to understanding conflicts and global power dynamics. Cutting it weakens public insight and accountability when both matter most.

On 6 Feb at 18:00, we are screening I Wanted Everyone to Know, a documentary on investigative journalist Metin Cihan, forced into exile from Turkey for his work: https://www.passage-kinos.de/i-wanted-everyone-to-know Tickets are free and available directly from the cinema.

Applications are open for the Next-IJ cross-border investigative journalism training by Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD). A free, full-day online session on 20 March for mid-career European journalists working with complex data and investigations: https://ow.ly/VBwO50Y8GJX

🌟 Public Interest Journalism Lab (PIJL), in cooperation with ECPMF, announces a new Open Call for applications from Ukrainian independent media and journalists in 2026. The deadline for applications is 10 February. https://ow.ly/OLgE50Y4bT8

Was bedeutet es, investigative Recherchen unter politischem Druck zu veröffentlichen? I Wanted Everyone to Know erzählt die Geschichte von Metin Cihan, der zur Diskussion nach der Filmvorführung anwesend sein wird. Freier Eintritt am 6. Februar: https://www.passage-kinos.de/i-needed-everyone-to-know

Investigative journalist Emilia Șercan speaks to MFRR about the smear campaigns, harassment, and death threats she faced after exposing alleged plagiarism by Romania’s justice minister. Watch the interview 👇 https://youtu.be/-gWnTvPPZiE