Protecting freedom of expression and media freedom in times of pandemics - Newsroom 2020 | Information and digital literacy in education via the digital path | Scoop.it
Protecting freedom of expression and media freedom in times of a pandemic is of vital importance. In almost all European countries people have been living in confinement for almost two months, a situation which has profoundly impacted on our communities, economies, families and daily lives. We have, more than usually, been relying on the media for news and information to help us understand the COVID-19 crisis, ways to protect ourselves and our families and wider implications of the outbreak, as well as to evaluate the responses of our governments and the global community. The crisis intensified the need for people to be able to access reliable news that they can trust, a quest made challenging enough by the digital information overload, indiscriminate use of various communication tools and news sources and the accompanying phenomenon of information disorder. Journalists have responded with resolve to fulfil their enhanced responsibility of informing the public and mitigating health and other risks stemming from the virus.