Athens, 19 September 2022
European Media Freedom Act
Public statement of support by the Deputy Minister to the Prime Minister and Government Spokesman, Giannis Oikonomou:
«The Greek Government welcomes the European Media Freedom Act, the new set of rules approved by the European Commission to protect media pluralism and independence in the EU, which includes a new Proposal for a Regulation as well as an accompanying Recommendation to all the member states.
With the Commission's landmark initiative for the formation of a common European framework for the media, their key role in democratic societies is recognized, as well as their offer as guardians of the public good of information, as common safeguards are proposed at EU level, both for the strengthening of pluralism, transparency and independence of the media, as well as for the defence of the journalistic profession, transforming into practice political priorities and fixed positions of our country, which the government embraces and strongly defends during its representation in the various institutional bodies of the EU.
Moreover, the initiatives included in the new framework presented by the Commission are coordinated with many of the initiatives for independent, innovative and sustainable media that the Greek government has already launched, defending their role as pillars of democracy and guardians of the rule of law, in an open and transparent market that promotes pluralism and freedom of expression.
I remind you that the legislative initiatives and policies of the Government, regarding the protection of freedom of expression and pluralism, the protection of the journalistic profession, the support of press companies and the strengthening of the transparency and independence of mass media, I had the opportunity to present arguments in detail to the Vice-President of the Commission and Commissioner for Values and Transparency Vera Jourova during our discussion on the challenges to media freedom in Greece, last May in Brussels.
Already then, I had emphasized that our country is among the most active partners of the European Union, in terms of assisting the Commission's future initiatives, and the Vice-President welcomed our strong support.
Today, therefore, as these initiatives are a reality, we reiterate our support as, apart from everything else, the new strong institutional framework for the Freedom of the Media was missing from the legal toolkit of the European Union. This absence, on the one hand, deprived the member states of the implementation of uniform and largely common policies to deal with the contemporary challenges in the field of mass media, on the other hand, it permitted the cultivation of negative impressions, regarding the freedom of the press in member states, as these were created by various reports, drafted outside EU institutions, according unclear or even controversial methodology. The establishment of a single framework will henceforth be the safest and most objective criterion for the level of pluralism in each member state.
In conclusion, we express our readiness to actively participate in the relevant discussions that will take place in the meetings of the competent bodies of the European Union in the framework of the ordinary legislative procedure, where we will have the opportunity to support our positions in substance, ensuring the most effective possible support of our country’s interests and policies, as well as discuss with our partners how to find ways and best practices to implement the Commission's proposal in practice»
