On Monday, September 23rd, 2024, Stars4Media Day: Shaping the Future of Media gathered over 100 participants, including media professionals, policymakers, and innovators, at the Résidence Palace in Brussels. Organised by Europe MédiaLab, the event centred on the evolving challenges facing the European media landscape, from combating disinformation to Eastern Europe integration.
Věra Jourová Commission Vice-President for Values & Transparency kicked off the day, emphasising the EU’s commitment to safeguarding democracy. She highlighted a change in the next Commission: “Some of you in this room called for a Commissioner for Democracy to continue my work. Well, you would have two! The new College presented by President von der Leyen includes one Executive Vice-President and one Commissioner responsible for democracy. “
Following Jourová, the EU Parliament First Vice-President, Sabine Verheyen, reflected on the major role of media, calling for their freedom and independence in society: “There is no democracy without free and independent media. They remain the main sources of information about European affairs, representing key multipliers and relays of factual, credible and reliable data about the EU in general, and the Parliament in particular.”
Concluding the keynote segment, Christophe Leclercq, chairing Europe MédiaLab, said: “To avoid the death of newsrooms, there are two ways to share the costs: consolidate or cooperate. What’s missing is cross-border collaboration skills and reporters in Brussels. This is why our think-do-tank developed the Stars4Media programmes, helping 130 media, and now the Maison du MédiaLab, helping Eastern Europe.” He also stressed the need for a comprehensive media strategy that goes beyond legislation. This would include a simple overview of the impact on media of recent policies: a point supported by VP Jourova.
The next panel, moderated by Lyndsey Jones (Strategist and Coach, WAN-IFRA), examined the need for an industrial policy for the media sector. Panellists Paolo Cesarini (EDMO/EUI), Méona Hintermann (Reporters d’Espoirs), Nikola Minchev (MEP, Renew Europe) and Juri Laas (Spokesperson for the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola). It discussed embedding support into the EU, the evolution of newsrooms in Europe, ensuring their survival amidst economic pressures and AI.
The second panel, moderated by David Mekkaoui (Europe MédiaLab Managing Director), shifted the focus towards Eastern Europe, with speakers such as H.E. Vsevolod Chentsov (Ambassador of Ukraine to the EU), Maria Leonova (The Tellers), Nicolae Mocanu (TVR Moldova) and Ricardo Guttiérez (EFJ Secretary General) . This session explored the unique challenges Eastern European media face in covering EU and NATO affairs from Brussels. Journalists need protection of their independent role, security, and the knowledge that their employers will thrive. Both panels underscored the importance of cross-border cooperation.
Briefings conducted by Cătălina Dumbrăveanu were held, focusing on the learning from Stars4Media projects. These sessions provided participants with deep insights into both the co-funded EU project and, particularly, on the learnings of our partners. These sessions were dedicated to Stars4Media NEWS participants, where they discussed the results of their programmes.
David Mekkaoui then took the stage to deliver an inspiring pitch about the vision behind the Maison du MédiaLab, an initiative aimed at fostering journalistic innovation and collaboration, particularly for correspondents from Eastern Europe. The initiative seeks to support journalists from Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, and Armenia, by providing them with a base in Brussels. This would enable them to report more effectively on EU and NATO affairs, thereby helping to bridge the democratic information gap between Eastern and Western Europe.
The conference then transitioned to a marketplace networking lunch where key media associations and professionals such as EDMO/EUI, The Tellers Agency, TVR Moldova, EFJ as well as representatives from the Stars4Media community had the opportunity to showcase their objectives and engage in fruitful discussions with the rest of participants.
On behalf of the Europe MédiaLab team, as well as the Stars4Media News partners and participants, we would like to thank all the guests who contributed to the event through their attendance and discussions.
Since we want to double our efforts for a healthy media sector, we would like to tell you more about Europe MédiaLab next project and as well as in future opportunities within our community. Please fill the following questionnaire and let us know more about it.
Watch the event highlight here: