After publishing a two-fold study on the role of mediation among European press and media councils, the CDJ is proud to unveil the brand-new #PressCouncilsEU mediation database, developed in partnership with web agency Eachstapp.
Mediation, in the specific case of press and media councils, represents the process of seeking an alternative solution between both parties – the complainant on one hand and the media and/or journalist subject of the said complaint on the other hand – with the help of the Council, in general through its office or secretariat.
In parallel to an in-depth analysis on the matter, the interested reader will now be able to compare mediation processes between 37 European self-regulatory bodies (i.e., press or media councils, ethics committees within journalists’ associations, ombudsman offices and/or councils). For each organisation studied, the following items are specified: 1) the integration of mediation; 2) the type of mediator; 3) whether or not the complainant should contact the media first; 4) the mandatory aspect of mediation; 5) the strictly confidential aspect of mediation; 6) the publicity of mediation.
The new database also comprises three graphs detailing the statistics of 16 organisations which have provided their data on complaints and mediation cases for the period 2016-2023: 1) the mediation success rate by year (i.e., the number of complaints resolved through mediation out of the total number of complaint cases opened per year); 2) a complaint overview (for each year, the number of incoming complaints, the number of complaint cases opened and the number of cases resolved through mediation); 3) the evolution of the number of complaints resolved by mediation through the years (2016-2023). All councils which record such statistics are encouraged to submit them annually to ensure that the database remains relevant over time.
The main objective of this global research on amicable solutions, co-funded by the European Commission in the framework of “Media Councils in the Digital Age”, is to share a series of best practices which can serve as inspiration for councils which don’t resort (anymore) to mediation or are searching for improvements, or at least adaptations of their own procedure. This work is obviously useful for press and media councils themselves, but also for every citizen wanting to learn more about how this kind of mediation works at the European level. By raising awareness of this possibility, sometimes unknown of potential complainants, this – now threefold – CDJ research demonstrates the importance, the seriousness and the efficiency of such a process when handling complaints, in particular in terms of strengthening the dialogue between media/journalists and the public.