Brussels, 29 November 2021 (MIA) – 16 EU and Western Balkan news agencies will take part in the European Newsroom project, co-financed by the European Commission and set to launch in 2022, MIA reports from Brussels. The European Commission broke the news on Monday, announcing it would support the development of a “European Newsroom” bringing together 16 news agencies. The EC will allocate EUR 1.76 million for the project, aiming to “enrich debate on European topics.” EU Commissioner for Values and Transparency Věra Jourová and EU Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton underlined that this project will make media stronger. “Europe’s linguistic diversity means that media companies have long followed their own development paths in their national context, with their own models. Therefore, the potential of this diversity of models has long been untapped. It is time that Europe’s diversity, one of our greatest assets, pays off,” Jourová told the European News Media Forum on Monday afternoon. The project will allow the 16 participating agencies to share knowledge and information and produce content in 15 languages. Negotiations over the location of the Brussels-based office are still underway, an EC spokesperson said on Monday. Aside from North Macedonia’s MIA, the following agencies will also take part in the project: France’s AFP, Germany’s dpa, Italy’s ANSA, Romania’s Agerpres, Austria’s APA, Albania’s ATA, Belgium’s Belga, Bulgaria’s BTA, Spain’s Europa Press, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s FENA, Croatia’s HINA, Slovenia’s STA, Serbia’s Tanjug and Slovakia’s TASR. “We are organising Europe’s information space and increasing citizens’ access to quality information. This first-ever pan-European newsroom – which we announce today – will allow journalists to report jointly on EU affairs and promote a spirit of collaboration back at home,” said Commissioner Breton. MIA’s director Dragan Antonovski praised this European initiative. “This is another international project for MIA, which will hopefully prove to be a success for all. MIA has been an active participant in this project since its very beginning. It will undoubtedly ensure quicker access to information regarding EU affairs and their verification, as we’re living in an era of fake news, as well as two-way production from and towards Brussels,” Antonovski stressed. Ricardo Gutiérrez, General Secretary of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), told MIA that ensuring the journalistic and editorial independence of all agencies taking part in the project is crucial. “The Commission must the guarantee absolute independence of this European newsroom. It must be free to research all topics of public interest in Europe, without fear of consequence,” Gutiérrez said. He also talked about the media sector crisis and labor rights. “Faced with crisis, a lot of media companies across Europe suddenly decided to reduce coverage of European issues, which is sad, considering the impact of European policies on everyday life. This project aims to encourage media to review their policy ad we call on the Commission to give the advantage to projects that ensure dignified working conditions for reporters and promote ethical and responsible journalism,” Gutiérrez noted. Supporting media companies is important for the European Federation of Journalists, but support for journalists who work in the best interest of the public is much more important.