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European University Institute - Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies

The Voices Festival expands its reach to Eastern Europe in 2025

The second edition of the European Festival of Journalism and Media Literacy will be hosted at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Zagreb on 28 February-1 March 2025. For the first time, the Voices Awards are open to entries from residents in EU candidate countries and potential candidates.

15 July 2024 | Award - Event

Image of a bus front maintenance display in which you can see "Voices Zagreb" written, since that is the city where the second edition of the Festival will be hosted.

Building on the positive experience in Florence that attracted more than 1300 attendees this year, the next edition of the festival travels to Croatia to lead conversations about how journalism is changing in the digital age and help people understand these changes.

Once again, this initiative is awarding ten grants of 1,000 euros each to outstanding young journalists and media literacy advocates to participate in the festival. A major highlight is that the Voices Awards have expanded eligibility to include residents of EU candidate and potential candidate countries, namely Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Türkiye, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. The deadline to apply is 15 October 2024.

"New technologies are dramatically reshaping opinion-making dynamics and the media landscape. After the success of the first edition led by the European University Institute in Florence, the next edition of Voices will continue to raise awareness about the current risks to ethical journalism, media pluralism, and European democracies," said Giovanni Melogli, the Project Coordinator.

Reflecting on the value of incorporating media literacy into the event, he added, "It is crucial for citizens to become more critical users of media and social media. Voices aims at working with citizens to better detect dubious information, expose false content and propaganda."

This goal will be pursued through different formats, with a line-up of free workshops, exhibitions, special screenings, interactive talks, and live music. Besides participatory debates, workshops will enable the active involvement of attendees and provide them with hands-on experiences and practical tools to engage with the topics discussed. Pre-registration is now open. Sign up here to guarantee a spot for the festival's main sessions.

Voices is the result of a collaboration among seven European partners, led by the Centre for Media Pluralism and Media Freedom at the European University Institute.

Last update: 15 July 2024

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