The European media is under pressure from politicians and big business, but a fightback is brewing

Usually, the Perugia International Journalism Festival is where the small family (or clan, the unkind might say) of journalism gathers each year to share its achievements, failures, insider tips, and hopes for the future. Despite mild weather and a record number of events (a FOMO's nightmare), this year's edition at times felt like group therapy. The mood was often downright gloomy. Explanations were not hard to find: the recent sudden withdrawal of US financial support for (surprisingly numerous) media outlets in parts of the world where press freedom is in jeopardy; the ongoing crisis of journalism's business model; and a wave of repression against journalists worldwide.

Over countless espressos and aperitivi, attendees agreed that journalism and the media are going through yet another tough time, and that this could be fatal for many. Their impression was confirmed a few days later by the 2025 report from Reporters Without Borders and its World Press Freedom Index.

“While physical attacks on journalists are the most visible aspect of press freedom violations, more insidious economic pressures are also a major obstacle”, notes the Paris-based NGO. With regard to Europe, “independent media [...] are facing an unprecedented economic crisis, exacerbated by the sudden halt in US aid and the strengthening of Russian propaganda”, it observes. “The Trump administration's budget cuts – including the suspension of funding for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) – have undermined an already vulnerable business, particularly in countries facing authoritarian regimes, corruption or war.”

This “economic suffocation” is especially hard-hitting for independent media outlets in the former Soviet bloc – Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia, Belarus, Russia, and Azerbaijan – whether they are based there or in exile. Some of the outlets depended on this aid for more than two-thirds of their income, and so found themselves high and dry overnight.

Although it ranks among the best places in the world for media organisations and journalists, Europe is not immune to the global trend of declining press freedom due to economic and political pressures. This fact is apparent from the 2025 report by the Civil Liberties Union for Europe. Among other trends, this study spotlights media concentration in Croatia, France, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden; a lack of ownership transparency in Croatia, Czechia, Hungary, Italy, Malta and the Netherlands; and a decline in trust in the media in Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Greece, Hungary, Malta, Slovakia and Spain. The report mentions the specific problem of judicial gagging orders, often used against journalists as a lever of intimidation. It finds that these “remain a problem” in Belgium, Germany, Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Slovakia, and Slovenia.

Press freedom can also be squeezed by governments by means of the economic model for news that prevails in some countries. Peter Erdelyi, from the Center for Sustainable Media, cites Hungary as an example and describes a system that he believes is applicable to many other post-communist countries. For many media outlets there, advertising is their only source of income, and the state remains one of the main advertisers. Media outlets with editorial lines that align with those of the government are therefore awarded with lavish business, while those that criticize the government find themselves struggling to stay afloat financially.

A complaint has been filed at EU level on this issue, alleging illegal government aid to certain publications and thus a competitive distortion. Given the paramount importance of free competition to the European Commission, the argument is not a trivial one. The stakes for press freedom are high: “If authorities (and subsequently the courts) find [the practice] legal, it provides an interference blueprint for similar regimes”, writes Peter Erdelyi. Conversely, if the Hungarian state is condemned, it could spell the end of Fidesz's media empire, as reported by HVG.

A second type of financial pressure is exerted indirectly on the independent press through so-called “foreign agent” laws. In The Guardian, Antonio Zappulla warns about this ruse, which is spreading to countries worldwide. Georgia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Venezuela, Turkey, and Paraguay are just a few recent examples. Foreign-agent laws typically require media outlets and NGOs that receive 20% or more of their funding from foreign sources to declare this fact in lurid terms. In Georgia, for instance, they must announce that they are “acting in the interests of a foreign agent” at the top of every publication. It can be a major turn-off to potential readers.

Zappulla writes: “As disinformation campaigns and electoral interference become more prevalent, many democracies are also considering this type of legislation – Italy and the UK, to name two.” The danger lies not so much in the laws themselves or in what they claim to combat as in the ambiguity of their wording. Intentionally vague definitions make it possible to hamper the work of any journalist, activist or independent media outlet. Due to the social stigma attached to the “foreign agent” label, the laws may drive independent information providers into exile, which itself can deter home-bound readers.

In addition to the near-term censorship that all this entails, “the impact on future generations of budding journalists from these countries is also devastating, limiting their aspirations and ability to develop skills in an industry that is vilified, leaving a void in which there is no counter to state propaganda.”

Another common phenomenon is repeated personal attacks against specific journalists, and the related self-censorship practiced out of fear of reprisals. A report by Marta Frigerio and Gianluca Liva for the Observatory on Defamatory Discourse Against the Media, reveals, for instance, that in Italy an informal network of far-right-affiliated social-media accounts orchestrated campaigns of harassment against journalists who focused on the climate issue.

The report shows that freelancers are particularly vulnerable to these types of attacks and silencing. In this regard, Frigerio and Liva describe their ambition: “There are two key goals at the heart of this work. First, to begin building a support network for freelance journalists who often face these threats alone, so they know there are organizations ready to stand by them. Second, to spark public debate and raise awareness about the growing wave of online hate, because silence only enables it to spread and grow.”

Awareness-raising remains a valuable tool in the face of these mounting challenges. As Coda media's Natalia Antelava observed on her return from Perugia: “It’s clear that objectivity was always a luxury, available only to a privileged few. For many who have long worked under threat – neutrality was never an option. Now, as the ground shifts beneath all of us, their experience and strategies for survival have become essential lessons for the entire field.”

She points to the value of preserving protected spaces. In an increasingly turbulent world it is crucial that we keep some islands of freedom of expression, however isolated they are. Such spaces may guarantee the survival of a free press. Once the storm has passed, they will be able to regenerate and seed a newly flourishing international media landscape.