Notes

The Digital News Initiative As a Mechanism for an Unmatched Policy Against Bad Content Online
The Digital News Initiative (DNI) is a European organisation established by Google to support high quality journalism across the continent. It encompasses an "Innovation Fund", worth Euros 150m, which this year issued several grants to 461 different projects at different news organisations across Europe. As part of its ethos, the DNI strives for the integration of online as well as traditional media and therefore promotes a free press and the development of new media. In its first year, it already awarded twenty-two awards to twenty news organisations in twenty-four countries.

According to its latest annual report, the digital news initiative has achieved its overall strategy goal for the year. Through the growth of its teams and partnerships, the DNI has been successful in growing its reach, increasing the variety of its coverage, expanding its focus and diversifying its focus from purely European topics to international and global ones. Some of the major achievements made so far include:

This year saw yet another important development in the Digital News Initiative's approach to innovation and newsroom evolution. Earlier in January, the DNI published its second white paper, titled "Trends in European Journalism", which explained how publishers can use their newsgathering platforms to improve the quality of their content. In the paper, the organization urged publishers to consider investing in new equipment and software, and also to partner with other news organisations to co-ordinate resources. This is arguably a step forward in terms of the innovation of digital news journalism, as well as for the growth of European co-operation in the field.

The second white paper looked into the role of the public media and traditional media have to play in assisting investigative journalists in carrying out their work. The working group established to help in the implementation of the Digital News Initiative also called for increased openness and transparency in information sharing by members of the public and by organizations involved in the EU wider media policy area. They recommended setting up a regulatory forum, which would pool together knowledge and experience on media innovations. This is a step in the right direction towards greater innovation, as well as providing another example of the growing need for a regulatory body for the digital space.

The growing need for innovative digital journalism was highlighted in the 2021 edition of the Economic and Social Review magazine, which was released ahead of its official release date. Authors of the report, headed by Professor Kevin Cox, said that while the European Commission was leading initiatives to support the development of the press, they were limited in their ability to get their way. The report said that there was a need for a pan-European network of media regulators to pool together information, sharing the costs and the opportunities for innovation, which they hoped would lead to a stronger Europe.

The EMA had been successful in encouraging the development of Spanish-language media, particularly radio and television stations, and it will now be pushing for similar growth in German-language media, the report said. The move marks a significant advance in terms of media regulation in Europe, and it will strengthen rules for traditional publishers, who are now the majority owners of newspapers and magazines. The review added that while the EMA had a role to play in promoting and protecting the open-doors policy for the press, it should do so in a way that does not have negative consequences for small independent publishers. It also recommended that the government consider creating a national register for media ownership, which could provide a register for businesses in sectors like the finance industry, where ownership by large companies is already limited.

The EMA's advisory committee has proposed six suggestions for reforms to the Press Council, the board, which sets guidelines for editors and publishers. These include a definition of the term 'journalism' and making a statement that the current system of regulation is proportionate to its importance. The committee called for a statutory obligation for newspapers and magazines to demonstrate compliance by maintaining the Register of Periodical Publications. This could force publishers to choose either a registered trademark or a code of conduct.

Joining agency with other European online and traditional media groups, the Digital News Initiative hopes to create a more transparent and participatory model of press regulation in Europe, according to its Managing Director, Finbarr Flahive. "The idea here is to bring everybody together - from newspapers and magazines to bloggers and website owners - to develop the framework needed for a harmonious, free-flowing environment where all the stakeholders benefit from great press regulation and benefit from a strong platform that they can use to enhance their commercial potential," he said. But he cautioned against expecting the Digital News Initiative to alone pull the plug on the industry. "We need other players in the game. Competition can be good for the industry."
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