The European Commission adopted the European Media Freedom Act on Friday, a new set of rules aimed at protecting the pluralism and independence of the press in the EU, according to the website of the EC Delegation in Romania.

The proposed regulation includes, among other things, safeguards against political interference in editorial decisions and against surveillance.

It emphasizes the independence and stable financing of public media services, as well as transparency of media ownership and public distribution of advertising.

It also defines measures to protect editorial independence and disclosure of conflicts of interest.

Finally, the law will address the issue of concentration in the media sector and create a new independent European Media Services Committee, which will be made up of representatives of national media authorities.

The commission also adopted an additional recommendation to encourage internal safeguards to ensure editorial independence.

Next steps

The Commission’s proposal for a regulation must be discussed by the European Parliament and the Member States as part of the normal legislative procedure. Once adopted, it will be directly applicable throughout the European Union.

The Commission will encourage discussions, in particular within the framework of the European News Media Forum, on the voluntary practices of media companies related to the accompanying recommendation.