Index on Censorship’s Mapping Media Freedom project will come to an end in its current form on 31 January 2019.

Over the past four and a half years, Mapping Media Freedom has documented growing threats to journalists and journalism in the region — both in range and intensity. We have seen that low level threats to media freedom in Europe are a strong predictor of more serious threats further down the line, such as arrests, violence against journalists and legislative restrictions, making it vital such information is recorded and shared.

The project has grown immeasurably since it was first conceived in 2014 and we believe the time is right for Mapping Media Freedom to operate independently. We are currently working with partners in Europe, particularly the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), to grow the project into a standalone operation. If you would be interested in supporting this initiative, please contact Joy Hyvarinen at Index on Censorship or Andreas Lamm at ECPMF.

Index on Censorship will continue to monitor media freedom in certain countries and highlight the key trends identified by this work, including legal threats used to silence journalists, misuse of data protection and privacy laws, and the effects of a decline in local journalism.