Contact point for those affected by SLAPPs starts work in Germany
SLAPPs are on the rise throughout Europe and pose a threat to independent journalism in particular, but also to all other critical journalistic activities. Several members of the German No-SLAPP alliance have joined forces to tackle this problem at a national level in Germany. Last week, the cooperation partners of the project, which is now funded by the Federal Commissioner for Culture and the Media, met in person for the first time in Berlin.
SLAPP - Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation This play on words describes a form of abuse of the law that seeks to suppress criticism: Critical public actors are repeatedly slapped in the face by means of legal action. SLAPPs aim to intimidate critical voices and have a deterrent effect on civil society discourse and the critical public. They are usually initiated by companies, resource-rich individuals or political actors. The law is abused by using it as a deterrent tool.
It is often less about the actual assertion of legitimate claims and more about the imposition of as many legal threats as possible. SLAPPs are usually untenable in court. Comprehensive lawyers' letters, disproportionate claims for damages and more, however, often cause smaller actors in particular to withdraw before any legal dispute - and generally impair any work in the interest of a critical public. At European level, a directive against SLAPPs was recently adopted, and the Council of Europe has published a recommendation to member states on the comprehensive implementation of protective mechanisms against SLAPPs.
In the interests of an informed public and the free formation of opinion, it is unacceptable for critical publishers to be prevented from doing their work and for independent reporting to be restricted. Also in Germany, there are still no adequate answers to this problem. Against this backdrop, several members of the German No SLAPP Alliance have joined forces as project partners in a national network to protect journalistic work. They are now launching the first German NO SLAPP contact point for the protection of journalistic work in Germany.
After several online meetings, representatives of the individual organizations met last Thursday, April 11, for an initial exchange in Berlin to finalize the central elements of the contact point. Bettina Hesse (ver.di / dju), Hannah Vos (FragDenStaat), Elmar Wigand (aktion ./. arbeitsunrecht), Ilja Braun (Reporters Without Borders), Christoph Brill (DJV) and contact point coordinator Philipp Wissing (on behalf of Blueprint For Free Speech) worked on questions regarding the joint web presence, various aspects of the contact point, a handbook for further NO SLAPP projects, as well as the planning of several information and training events for journalists and other journalists who are confronted with legal proceedings and legal intimidation attempts.
The target group of the project are journalists, regardless of whether they work for publishing houses, newspapers or other media organizations or as freelancers, as well as bloggers who report on citizens' initiatives, works council and trade union work or environmental activism. Further information will follow in May, when the NO SLAPP contact point will be officially available and represented at the first events. Interested parties are welcome to make a note of the reception of the German No SLAPP Alliance on May 16 in Berlin.