MAY 3 2022
Freedom of the media: cover up this news which I cannot see
And yet another one. Luxembourg continues to lose places. Reporters Without Borders published its annual World Press Freedom index 2022 at the end of April. Luxembourg has dropped from 20th to 21st place. Press freedom in Luxembourg has been steadily declining since 2014, when it was still ranked fourth. However, while the country dropped three places between 2020 and 2021, Luxembourg's media landscape, which has achieved genuine freedom of expression according to RWB, has been redefined under the new press aid framework, with journalists who are credible to the public and a widely read press.
Freedom of information sacrificed on the altar of the pandemic
The Covid-19 pandemic has undermined press freedom in Luxembourg, with journalists often struggling to gather relevant information about the spread of the virus and its political management from public institutions. The pandemic is also said to have encouraged threats against journalists, with complaints or death threats, accused of spreading false information.
Journalists being informed at the same instant as the population, access to the scene and to sources of information hindered under the pretext of the health crisis... Investigating, informing, disseminating different opinions, commenting, debating, criticising, popularising. These are all freedoms of the journalist that are often violated.
Media relations: the impossible commitment to results
So what better time than World Press Freedom Day to remind people of the importance of journalists' independence?
Better days are ahead for a Luxembourg media environment conducive to freedom of expression, with a small revolution taking place thanks to the reform of the financial support to the press, and to media pluralism, both offline and online, and the steady and transparent source of funding it implies.
Apollo Strategists specialises in press relations from the very outset, and reminds us of the impossible commitment to results. The role of the press officer is to prepare, advise and offer authentic, structured information to encourage people to speak out, to provoke encounters and discussions. The journalist is free to choose the angle, with what he or she considers relevant for the article, or the date of publication.
Author: Jennifer Pierrard - Adapted into English by Lou Weis
