kosovo is facing renewed scrutiny over the direction of media freedom after an international delegation concluded that conditions have deteriorated since 2023, urging immediate political action by the government.
What happens when Kosovo’s media landscape shifts from pluralism to deterioration?
A coalition of media freedom organisations, visiting Pristina as part of the Council of Europe’s Platform for the Safety of Journalists, said a previously stable level of media freedom has been replaced by a period of deterioration over the past three years. The delegation described a mixed picture: Kosovo retains a pluralistic media landscape, low levels of physical violence against journalists, and broad legislative alignment with European and international standards. At the same time, the mission concluded that a number of media freedom standards have been undermined by the ruling Vetëvendosje party.
The delegation highlighted several developments as central to its assessment. One was the passing by parliament of a media law that was later rejected as unconstitutional, which would have increased political control over the Independent Media Commission (IMC). The mission also pointed to insufficient funding and political pressure on Radio Television of Kosovo (RTK). A third factor was a sustained increase in verbal targeting and denigration of journalists by ruling party politicians.
In the mission’s framing, these elements have weakened Kosovo’s positive trajectory for press freedom and media development and tarnished its standing as a regional frontrunner on media freedom in the European Union accession process.
What if political leadership refuses to acknowledge a hostile climate for journalists?
Ricardo Gutiérrez, Secretary General of the European Federation of Journalists, described the situation in Kosovo as “very bad” in relation to the media and said Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s approach to the media is worrying. Speaking at a conference connected to the Council of Europe Platform for the Safety of Journalists’ fact-finding mission, Gutiérrez said the delegation asked Kurti to condemn public statements against journalists and that the Prime Minister did not accept.
Gutiérrez said the most worrying conclusion from a nearly two-hour meeting with the Prime Minister and officials from his office was that Kurti did not recognize a hostile climate toward journalists and instead justified it. Gutiérrez also said Kurti justified attacks on journalists in the meeting by stating that if journalists are attacked, it may be because politicians are sometimes attacked too. In Gutiérrez’s assessment, this reflected a lack of political will to improve the situation.
From the delegation’s broader findings, a particularly alarming trend raised by a range of media stakeholders was the use of toxic narratives by Vetëvendosje officials, which falsely portrayed journalists who ask legitimate questions as Serbian “mercenaries” and “agents” paid by foreign powers. The delegation also noted that for Serbian and other non-majority media, pressures are aggravated by threats from foreign governments and a lack of access to public information in their languages.
What happens when legal and judicial responses improve but harassment accelerates?
On safety and accountability, the mission described signs of improvement. Media stakeholders expressed broad confidence in the recent response of prosecutors, and the delegation noted and welcomed improved treatment of cases by the courts. It singled out the recently adopted Strategy of Kosovo Judicial Council (KCJ) on Improvement of Access to Justice 2026–2028, which prioritises cases involving the safety of journalists, defamation, and SLAPPs aimed at journalists. The delegation said the strategy appears to already have had an impact, with several cases swiftly adjudicated, and said it was welcomed by the Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe.
The mission also stated that a spike in physical attacks on journalists in 2023 has dropped to previous levels and that recent cases of attacks on media workers resulted in convictions.
However, the delegation drew a stark contrast between the apparent stabilization in physical threats and the escalation of other forms of pressure. It cited cases documented by the Association of Journalists in Kosovo (AJK) involving denigration, discrediting, and online harassment against journalists—especially by political figures—saying these have dramatically increased in recent years and reached a peak in 2025. The mission stated that Vetëvendosje politicians are a leading source of these attacks.
James Wiseman, Deputy Director of the International Press Institute, recommended that the government initiate dialogue with journalists’ associations. He said he was concerned about the direction media freedom is taking in Kosovo and described a high level of mistrust and polarization between the government and the media community during the two-day visit.
