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PRESS RELEASE Brussels, 05 May 2006

9 May & Brussels EU Open Day this Saturday

Time to address EU communication and  EurActiv’s role: 
  Can you contribute ?
 React, meet, or apply

 Is Europe’s Day mainly an opportunity to celebrate ‘Saint Schuman’ and the EU’s 50 year history? As Commission initiatives on communication do not progress much, EurActiv offers to discuss the future role of independent journalists and other ‘multipliers’. While the policy portal EurActiv.com is usually balanced and neutral, it takes a stance on this occasion, given its baseline ‘efficacité et transparence des acteurs européens’. Based on its own media network in 11 languages, used by 300 000 policy professionals mainly outside Brussels, EurActiv recommends: radical decentralisation and more efficient policy debates.

Bringing debates to the national level, letting go of Brussels control: this is beyond what EU institutions can trigger… It also goes further than what some in the Brussels press corps might envisage, but it might trigger your own curiosity in talking to EurActiv.

Jacob Langvad, News Editor, said on EurActiv’s editorial strategy: “In February several Brussels correspondents criticised the Commission’s alleged wish to create an EU press agency. Some even suspected that EurActiv, in addition to Europe By Satellite, would play a role in this agency! No, we will continue as trusted and independent moderator. Unlike ‘Berlaymont watchers’, we try to cover a variety of policy positions - especially from civil society, industry and governments - and to put things into context. We are grateful that so many journalists use EurActiv themselves, in different languages. Our team also plans for even more interactivity and external contributions in the future”.

Willy De Backer, Editor-in-chief, explained EurActiv’s challenges and needs: “We are now established as one of the main independent sources of EU information, still with a ‘new game’ approach. Expectations are rising: from readers, from our 8 national media affiliates, and even from our own team! Therefore we need a few more people at the core, with strong EU policy and writing skills. If you wish to make a real difference to EU reporting, do not hesitate to contact us”.

Julian Oliver, Secretary General, addressed EurActiv’s funding and independence:  “Up front, let’s be transparent: funding from EU sources represented around 10% of our 2005 revenue, less than for some other specialised media, and always based on competitive tenders. Our sustainable revenue model is based essentially on advertisers and sponsors, which are public by definition, none of them more than 5% of total sales. Surveys show that readers trust us to be independent and fact-based.”

Christophe Leclercq, Publisher, offers EurActiv’s contribution to the EU communication strategy, inviting comments:
“EurActiv is not just a media business, it helps to create EU reporting of the XXIst century. 
We have the  CrossLingual™ network:  our media partners at national level, localising debates in their own languages and political context. Their comments on EU communication have strengthened our own thinking on the national focus. 
There is also Fondation EurActiv: an organisation to discuss editorial guidelines and ethics, involving some reputable stakeholders. This Fondation published a ‘Draft Yellow Paper on EU communication’. The final version comes out in a few weeks, so I would welcome personal reactions from journalists and others.” 

---- Practical steps: What you could do with EurActiv on EU communication -----------

- discuss with EurActiv team members informally on Saturday 6 May, at the European Parliament’s Open Day (stand on first floor, between rooms 1G2 and 1G3, next to ECAS: European Citizen Action Network) 

- react to Fondation EurActiv’s Draft Yellow Paper on EU communication: ‘The alternative plan D: Diversify, Decentralise, Disseminate, Decide’
www.euractiv.com/en/yellowpaper and policy section ‘opinion & governance’: www.euractiv.com/en/governance

- consult EurActiv’s job section:  our development requires a few more journalists and leaders: www.euractiv.com/en/jobs

- contact management informally with your own views or interest:

Jacob Langvad editor2@euractiv.com  02 / 788 36 79
Willy de Backer editor@euractiv.com 02 / 226 58 14
Julian Oliver (applications) secgen@euractiv.com 02 / 226 58 25 
Christophe Leclercq (Yellow Paper) publisher@euractiv.com 02 / 226 58 13

Note to the editor:

EurActiv.com is the independent portal on EU Affairs. With more than 1,5 million page views per month and over 277,000 unique visitors (CIM certified figures – November 05), the portal is an important working instrument for the majority of EU Actors (institutions, industry federations, NGO's, think tanks, the press and others) involved in defining or influencing EU policies.

EurActiv's CrossLingual network is sponsored by Total, Visa Europe, Total, ABIG (Turkey with Europe), Shell

General sponsors of EurActiv's portal are: CEFIC, Honeywell, Microsoft, Du Pont, ExxonMobil 

Section sponsors of EurActiv include: EDF, Gallup Europe, Kellen Europe, Nike, Pfizer and RAG.

EurActiv also has 60 “content partners” (NGOs & think tanks) as well as ca. 500 “contributors”, providing their policy positions for free publication, up to the editorial team. Input welcome: editor@euractiv.com.

Via the CrossLingual network of policy portals, EurActiv's content in three languages is available for syndication to “EU Actors”' websites and intranets. Eight Central and Eastern European partners also translate and localise EurActiv news for their national audiences. 

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