
Press Freedom Conference 2020
Agenda
January 22, 2020
8.30 Registration
9.00 Opening
Bartosz Węglarczyk, Editor-in-Chief Onet.pl, Poland
Valdo Lehari jr., Vice-President, European Newspaper Publishers’ Association
9.10 Keynote Press Freedom – why does it matter?
Lech Wałęsa, former President of Poland, Nobel Peace Prize Winner
THE CHALLENGE
The freedom of the pluralist press is one of the basic pillars of a truly democratic society. Journalists were entrusted with a very responsible role in shaping public opinion by providing it with objective information. Free journalism is not risk free. The opposite is true: it is the subject of constant challenges which take different forms. How are verbal attacks of politicians on media freedom influencing the journalistic work? Let’s see examples from all over CEE.
9.25 Keynote „European Report on Verbal Attacks on Journalists”
Meera Selva, Director Fellowship Programme, Reuters Institute
9.50 Examples Verbal attacks and impact on journalistic work
Peter Bárdy, Editor-in-Chief, Aktuality.sk, Slovakia
Christian Davies, Foreign Correspondent, the Guardian, United Kingom
Andrew Gray Europe Editor, Politico, Belgium
Srdan Kosovic, Editor-in-Chief, Vijesti, Montenegro
Marko Stjepanovic, Editor-in-Chief Blic.rs, Serbia
10.20 Coffee
10.35 Power speech
Jerzy Owsiak, The Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, Poland
11.00 Interview It all starts with words… How words lead to actions and how this influences the way of reporting
Deniz Yücel, Correspondent, Die Welt, Germany
Kamil Turecki, Onet.pl, Poland
11.20 Power talk If you are not with me, then you are my enemy. Is objective reporting still possible in a polarized debate
Magdalena Adamowicz, Member of the European Parliament, Poland
Alen Galovic, Editor-in-Chief, 24sata.hr, Croatia
Katarzyna Kozłowska Editor-in-Chief, Fakt, Poland
Peter Petö, Editor-in-Chief, 24.hu, Hungary
11.45 Keynote
B. Bix Aliu, Deputy Chief of Mission, U.S. Embassy in Poland
II. SOLUTIONS
How to get rid of hate speech? How to address the challenges of today’s information ecosystem? How to ensure that reliable information reaches European citizens? We have to concentrate on finding a solution to the problem of hate speech, misinformation and propaganda. There are different ways to challenge the status quo – let’s have a look at the regulatory perspective, see how technology can help, how community can engage and most of all what the role of media is today. Let’s look for solutions.
12.00 SOLUTION 1: PEOPLE ENGAGEMENT
The involvement of society in combating unfair forms of communication is perhaps the most valuable asset of civil society. In Europe, we already have citizens’ initiatives to combat hate speech and fake news. The experience gained in this way can be invaluable in the development of further projects. Let’s start with people.
Mina Dennert, Founder, #iamhere network, Sweden
12.30 Lunch
13.20 SOLUTION 2: TECHNOLOGY
Technology can be a threat, but also a strong ally. How to use technology for greater good? What possibilities do we have in combating hate speech with tech solutions? Let’s see how start-ups address the challenge of attacks on journalists and society.
Guy Berger, Director, Freedom of Expression and Media Development, UNESCO
Paul Giannasi, OBE, Police Hate Crime Policy Lead, National Police Chiefs’ Council, United Kingdom
14.05 SOLUTION 3: LEGAL
Any social initiative or involvement of technology in the fight against hate speech or fake news will be fruitless without a solid legal basis. The first pieces of legislation to combat these phenomena are already in place in Europe. What could be the implications? Let’s see how Europe is dealing with the regulatory envirnoment.
Galina Arapova, Director, Mass Media Defence Centre / Vice-Chair ARTICLE 19, Russia
Prof. Dr. Franz Hofmann, Chair of Private Law, Intellectual Property Law and Technology Law, Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany
Robert Kroplewski, Minister’s Representative for Information Society Affairs, Ministry of Digital Affairs, Poland
Zied Ounissi, Communication and Press Relations Advisor, DILCRAH (the inter-ministerial delegation to fight against racism, anti-Semitism and anti-LGBT hatred), Government of France, France
James Shotter, Central Europe Correspondent, The Financial Times
15.05 Coffee
15.25 SOLUTION 4: INDEPENDENT JOURNALISM
Quality journalism, journalism based on verified facts, journalism that co-creates the reality of functioning democratic systems requires a huge effort. A necessary condition for making such an effort is to have a solid financial background. As a result of increasing changes in the way journalistic content is consumed, the traditional sources of financing for the press are on the verge of being exhausted. We will focus on sources of media funding and how to ensure quality information reaches European citizens.
Panel discussion: Safeguarding independent journalism – in search for solutions
Aleksandra Karasińska, Editor-in-Chief Newsweek.pl/Forbes.pl, Poland
Stephan Scherzer, CEO, Association of German Magazine Publishers, Germany
Zoltan Varga, CEO, Central Médiacsoport, Hungary
Hans-Jorg Vehlewald, Chief Political Reporter, Bild, Germany
16.20 Closing remarks
Bogusław Chrabota, President of the Chamber of Press Publishers, Poland