Bruce Lui, senior journalism lecturer at Hong Kong's Baptist University, said Phoenix operates with the full blessing of the Chinese government and represents the face of Beijing's "soft power." [...] "The traditional state media format is getting a little tired, so China is encouraging certain private-sector entrepreneurs to preach its message in more attractive packaging," he said.

A delegation of six press freedom organisations concluded a three-day mission to Croatia by calling on the country’s political leaders to guarantee the independence of the public broadcaster HRT as well as of the national electronic media regulator. Members of the delegation said the next Croatian government should act swiftly to reform the current law governing HRT, which does not provide sufficient safeguards against undue political influence over the broadcaster’s operations and output. 

China's media is increasingly broadcast around the world, yet the Asian country's state-controlled media is still regarded as lacking credibility compared to other international news organizations. [...] China expanded its media, Zhang adds, to improve its negative image propagated by the Western media.

World Press Freedom Day aims to raise awareness of press freedom. It falls this year on Tuesday, coinciding with the 250th anniversary of the world’s first freedom of information law and the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Windhoek Declaration of press freedom principles in Africa.

Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying has pledged to uphold press freedom, saying it is the government’s “constitutional responsibility” and an indispensable element that makes Hong Kong an international city. Leung was delivering a speech on Monday at the presentation ceremony of the Newspaper Society of Hong Kong’s annual news awards.

Proposed changes to Moldova's broadcast regulations are creating a free-speech conundrum. The amendments are primarily meant to counter propaganda from Kremlin-friendly Russian broadcast outlets, but they also could end up placing curbs on journalists' ability to cover the Moldovan government. 

The recent massacre at Charlie Hebdo magazine’s Paris office sent shockwaves through Europe and beyond, with freedom of opinion and the press defended in the West as a fundamental principle and pillar of democracy.