The European Federation of Journalists consists of approximately 70 media
organizations from European Union countries. Mogens Blicher Bjerregård, the
director of the European Federation of Journalists, published the following
guidelines called “Guidelines for countering online hate speech,” as the activities
of the media and its influence are closely related to the online world.
<Guidelines for Countering Online Hate Speech>
1. Self-regulation. Never leave it to the state to make judgments on
media ethics as it will lead to censorship, but take responsibility in
the media not to promote hate speech.
2. Stay away from censoring, but support and develop pluralism in
media, as it will reduce propaganda media to one out of a range of
media, and that will reduce the extent of hate speech.
3. Develop mechanisms of early warnings of hate speech online and
share information and best practices.
4. Never let victims of hate speech alone, but identify dedicated
colleagues to whom victims always can report safely about abuses
and threats, they have received online.
5. Never accept hate speech; report it every time. We should tackle
online abuse by prompt actions. A threat online should be addressed
exactly as we address threats offline – by an immediate response
and report to the authorities.
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