MFRR Monitoring Report 2025: 1,481 press freedom violations across 36 European countries

Based on verified cases recorded in the Mapping Media Freedom database, the report provides a comprehensive overview of the main threats facing journalists in the 27 EU Member States and nine candidate countries.

Persistent harassment and rising digital threats

The findings show that verbal attacks, harassment, and smear campaigns remained the most common forms of violation. At the same time, digital threats continued to increase. Alarmingly, government actors and public officials were more frequently identified as perpetrators. In several countries, the data reveals systemic issues that undermine journalists’ safety and independence.

Key themes and country analysis

The Monitoring Report is structured in four parts:

• An overview of key trends and statistics across Europe
• An analysis of impunity for crimes against journalists
• The spread of foreign agent laws
• The continued use of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs)

The report also includes in-depth country analyses of Belgium, France, Italy, Hungary, and Spain, as well as candidate countries including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Türkiye, Georgia, Serbia, and Ukraine.

A joint effort to protect press freedom

The report was compiled by the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), and the International Press Institute (IPI) as part of the MFRR project.

The MFRR monitors, tracks, and responds to violations of press and media freedom across EU Member States and candidate countries, providing practical and legal support as well as public advocacy for journalists and media workers under threat. The consortium is led by ECPMF and includes EFJ, IPI, ARTICLE 19 Europe, FPU, and OBC Transeuropa (OBCT). The project is co-funded by the European Commission.

Read the full report below.