June 7, 2009, Oslo - More than 500 journalists, writers, activists and artists from over 103 countries converged in Oslo, Norway June 1 – 6, 2009 for the Global Forum on Freedom of Expression (GFFE). Through network meetings, including the general meeting of the International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX), seminars, trainings and festival events, participants wholeheartedly delved into global free expression issues. As an IFEX member, the South East European Network for Professionalization of Media was represented at the general meeting by director Sándor Orbán. At the Forum Orbán also participated in a panel titled ‘Assimilation, Interculturalism and the Media’ >>

June 1, 2009, Reykjavík - The need to prepare the public for the challenges of the new forms of media and social communication tools was the overarching topic of the 7th Ministerial Conference of the Council of Europe on the media, organized in Reykjavík, Iceland, on 28-29 May. The participants - representatives of the ministries responsible for media and new communication services, media developers, practitioners of the media, representatives of the media industry, freedom of expression activists and academics - discussed the new notion of media in the context of the technological development and globalization. They analyzed the impact of new media on the freedom of expression and information and explored the opportunity of new regulations. They also acknowledged the place of the community media in increasing the social participation to the public debate. >>

May 6, 2009, Paris – “Fundamental rights, freedoms and relevant standards should be respected by all parties involved in the production and distribution of media content”, stated Brankica Petkovic (Peace Institute, Slovenia) when expressing the position of SEENPM at an NGOs Forum held on 5 May 2009 in Paris. She added that more emphasis should be put on the request to member countries regarding the effective implementation of CoE standards on freedom of expression and information. The Forum of over thirty non-governmental organizations commented on the documents (Political Declaration, Resolutions and Action Plan) to be adopted at the CoE Conference of Ministers on 28-29 May 2009 in Reykjavik and provided suggestions for alternative provisions. >>

March 13, 2009, Tirana – The coverage of the situation of Kosovo in the Albanian print media has been predominantly fair and neutral, at the same time media outlets have been relying more on news agencies than their own sources. This was one of the conclusions of the roundtable discussion and book launch hosted by the Albanian Media Institute (AMI) in Tirana on the 13th of March 19, 2009. At the event Remzi Lani, foreing policy and media analyst and Ilda Londo media researcher of AMI presented the Albanian edition of the publication “Kosovo and the Media”. The book published by the South East European Network for Professionaliazation of Media (SEENPM) examines the media coverage of Kosovo during the independence period in 2008 in 11 South Eastern and Central European. The roundtable was organized in cooperation with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS) Media Program SEE. >>

March 7, 2009, Tirana – UNESCO  launched a two-year project to increase media accountability in South-East European countries. The main objectives of the project are to develop self-regulation tools and mechanisms, and to increase the awareness of self-regulation among media professionals and organizations in the region. The kick-off event, organized in collaboration with the Albanian Media Institute, took place from 6 to 7 March 2009 in Tirana, Albania. The conference gathered 27 participants from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Turkey. The project, which is supported by the European Commission, is planned for two years. During that period a large number of roundtables, seminars and international meetings will take place. The local roundtable events will be coordinated by the South East European Network for Professioanlization of Media. >>

February 12, 2009, Strasbourg - Ethnic and race-based discrimination is the target of a new campaign by the Council of Europe in its 47 member states. The ‘Speak Out Against Discrimination’ campaign flows from the Council of Europe’s White Paper on intercultural dialogue, published in May 2008. As part of the campaign the Council of Europe is developing an educational toolkit for newsrooms and journalism schools with the involvement of universities, news organizations and NGOs including SEENPM.   >>

January 15, 2009, Sarajevo - The following guidelines are the result of two courses organised by the Media Centar Sarajevo in 2006 and 2008. The courses involved face-to-face sessions in Sarajevo either side of months of distance learning course work. The participants were selected by the project’s sponsor, SEENPM, the South Eastern European Network for the Professionalization of the Media, and represented 12 countries in the region. The aim of the guidelines is to provide journalists in the region with the tools to navigate the complex ethical issues involved in delivering responsible, robust, accurate, fair, balanced, impartial and objective journalism in the region in order to inform the public debate so that the audience can make educated choices. >>

December 15, 2008, Pristina - The overall situation in the media in Kosovo is unsatisfactory, and editorial independence is also questionable due to the financial obstacles that media outlets encounter. This is one of the conclusions that came out of the regional roundtable “Media Landscape in and around Kosovo”, held in Pristina on December 15, 2008. The event was organized by the South East European Network for Professionalization of Media in cooperation with the Kosovo Media Institute (KMI). The roundtable was sponsored by Media Program SEE of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation. >>