<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<rss version="2.0" xml:base="http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">
<channel>
 <title>The Freedom of Expression Project - Challenges and opportunities for freedom of expression in the networked environment</title>
 <link>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/frontpage</link>
 <description>  Welcome to the Freedom of Expression Project. 

 Networked digital communications are spreading across the globe, transforming millions of lives. 

 Through communications technologies, people across the world have new opportunities to exchange ideas, realise their human creativity and organise for social and political change. Yet within this environment there are some significant threats to rights and freedoms. And many people do not yet benefit from what it has to offer.

 
 This Project is a global collaboration to shape the networked communications environment as it continues to develop. It aims to build a communications environment that:  

 respects and promotes human rights
 gives all people and communities opportunities fully to realise their human potential.

It is directed by a global group of Project partners, organisations committed to working together to advance these aims. It is coordinated by Global Partners and Associates and funded by the Ford Foundation. 

Click on About the Project for information about the Project’s work and how it has developed.  All the Project’s research to date is available at Project Research. 

We are now developing and consulting on a set of rights-based principles to guide policy in the communications environment.  See the Current Work Section to find out more.

Visit the Resources section for useful links to other organisations, initiatives and research and policy news.

</description>
 <language>en</language>
<item>
 <title>Conference Report: International Media and Human Rights</title>
 <link>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/conference+report+international+media+and+human+rights</link>
 <description> &lt;h2&gt;Pre-conference of the National Conference for Media Reform, Minneapolis, 6-8 June 2008&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Convened by Consumers Union, 5 June 2008&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Report by Global Partners and Associates&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/conference+report+international+media+and+human+rights&quot;&gt;read more&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
 <comments>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/conference+report+international+media+and+human+rights#comment</comments>
 <enclosure url="http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/files/NCMR_preconf_June08.pdf" length="94113" type="application/pdf" />
 <pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 2008 16:48:15 +0100</pubDate>
 <dc:creator>Lisa Horner</dc:creator>
 <guid isPermaLink="false">249 at http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk</guid>
</item>
<item>
 <title>National Conference for Media Reform 2008</title>
 <link>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/national+conference+for+media+reform+2008</link>
 <description> &lt;h2&gt;Minneapolis, 6-8 June 2008&lt;/h2&gt;

&lt;p&gt;The &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.freepress.net/conference&quot;&gt;National Conference for Media Reform (NCMR),&lt;/a&gt; organised by Free Press, brought together US activists, media professionals and academics concerned with issues of media ownership, communications technology and democracy. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/national+conference+for+media+reform+2008&quot;&gt;read more&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
 <comments>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/national+conference+for+media+reform+2008#comment</comments>
 <enclosure url="http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/files/Estela_Guerrini_promotingrightsprogressivecommspolicy.ppt" length="148480" type="application/vnd.ms-powerpoint" />
 <pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 2008 16:36:43 +0100</pubDate>
 <dc:creator>Lisa Horner</dc:creator>
 <guid isPermaLink="false">248 at http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk</guid>
</item>
<item>
 <title>Freedom of Expression Project Briefing Note, June 2008</title>
 <link>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/freedom+of+expression+project+briefing+note+june+2008</link>
 <description> &lt;p&gt;Download a &lt;span class=&quot;caps&quot;&gt;PDF &lt;/span&gt;copy of our most recent briefing note by clicking on the &#039;Attachment&#039; link below.&lt;/p&gt; </description>
 <comments>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/freedom+of+expression+project+briefing+note+june+2008#comment</comments>
 <enclosure url="http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/files/FoE_Project_Summary_June_08.pdf" length="1257520" type="application/pdf" />
 <pubDate>Tue, 03 Jun 2008 19:35:52 +0100</pubDate>
 <dc:creator>Lisa Horner</dc:creator>
 <guid isPermaLink="false">247 at http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk</guid>
</item>
<item>
 <title>Situating communications policy in the human rights framework</title>
 <link>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/situating+communications+policy+in+the+human+rights+framework</link>
 <description> &lt;p&gt;This paper by Morris Lipson examines whether the &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/public+interest+principles+for+the+networked+communications+environment&quot;&gt;values that the Freedom of Expression Project believes should underlie communications policy making&lt;/a&gt; are rooted within the international &lt;a class=&quot;glossary-term&quot; href=&quot;/glossary#term22&quot;&gt;&lt;acronym title=&quot;Human Rights: Human rights are those entitlements the protection of which is regarded as a necessary condition for a fully realised human existence.  Their protection involves supporting the basic conditions of human existence, the ability of people to function in civil society and as political beings, and the defence of their cultural expression (including language).

Many countries have their own Bills of Rights, which are often the product of their own history and circumstances, both in content and manner of enforcement.  The agreed definitions of rights are found at the international level in the three documents that make up the International Bill of Rights:


the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and 
The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESC).

&quot;&gt;human rights&lt;/acronym&gt;&lt;/a&gt; framework.  Lipson highlights how the rights to free expression, culture and political participation underpin the proposed values and associated policy principles.  However, depending on their interpretation, tensions exist between some of the values.  Further work needs to be done to balance out these tensions so that that the values can have the maximum effect on policy making. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/situating+communications+policy+in+the+human+rights+framework&quot;&gt;read more&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
 <comments>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/situating+communications+policy+in+the+human+rights+framework#comment</comments>
 <category domain="http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resource+types/policy+papers">Policy Papers</category>
 <enclosure url="http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/files/Lipson_human_rights_communications_policy_values.pdf" length="75197" type="application/pdf" />
 <pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2008 10:56:14 +0100</pubDate>
 <dc:creator>Lisa Horner</dc:creator>
 <guid isPermaLink="false">228 at http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk</guid>
</item>
<item>
 <title>Mapping existing agreements and principles</title>
 <link>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/mapping+existing+agreements+and+principles</link>
 <description> &lt;p&gt;The &lt;a class=&quot;glossary-term&quot; href=&quot;/glossary#term20&quot;&gt;&lt;acronym title=&quot;Freedom of Expression: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the founding document of the modern human rights movement, speaks of “freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want” as its core aspirations.   

Freedom of speech is guaranteed under international law through numerous human rights instruments, notably under Article 19 of the UDHR. The term freedom of expression is preferred within international conceptions of human rights, as freedom of expression is not confined to verbal speech but is understood to protect any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used.  It therefore embraces cultural expression and the arts as much as political speech.  Importantly, the exchange of opinions, ideas and information should be capable of being a public act, not something confined to private discourse, because it is in this sense that it underpins democratic freedoms such as the right to form political parties, the right to share political ideas etc.

Freedom of expression is often regarded as a foundation right as its existence helps guarantee other rights and freedoms.  Without freedom of expression, it would be difficult to guarantee many of the rights in the UDHR; social justice would not be obtainable; and good governance seriously hindered.
&quot;&gt;Freedom of Expression&lt;/acronym&gt;&lt;/a&gt; Project is currently working with its international partners to develop a set of rights-based public interest principles to guide policy making in the networked communications environment.  A number of similar initiatives led by other groups have already been completed or are ongoing.  This paper by Kate Wilkinson maps these initiatives according to the mechansisms they use to implement and enforce standards and the scope of the issues they address.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/mapping+existing+agreements+and+principles&quot;&gt;read more&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
 <comments>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/mapping+existing+agreements+and+principles#comment</comments>
 <category domain="http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resource+types/policy+papers">Policy Papers</category>
 <enclosure url="http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/files/Wilkinson_mapping_initiatives_april_08.pdf" length="165218" type="application/pdf" />
 <pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2008 10:22:37 +0100</pubDate>
 <dc:creator>Lisa Horner</dc:creator>
 <guid isPermaLink="false">227 at http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk</guid>
</item>
<item>
 <title>Public interest principles for the networked communications environment</title>
 <link>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/public+interest+principles+for+the+networked+communications+environment</link>
 <description> &lt;p&gt;In 2008 we are working to define broad policy principles which, if adhered to by policy makers, business and users, could help build a communications environment that supports free expression and the public interest.  You can download the current draft of these principles at the bottom of the page, &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/principles+for+a+public+interest+communications+environment&quot;&gt;or you can read and comment online by clicking here&lt;/a&gt;  We want as many people as possible to feed into this process, so if you have any comments please get in touch. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/public+interest+principles+for+the+networked+communications+environment&quot;&gt;read more&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
 <comments>http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/resources/public+interest+principles+for+the+networked+communications+environment#comment</comments>
 <enclosure url="http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/files/FoE_principles_revised_draft_june3.pdf" length="1397712" type="application/pdf" />
 <pubDate>Tue, 18 Mar 2008 13:39:00 +0000</pubDate>
 <dc:creator>Lisa Horner</dc:creator>
 <guid isPermaLink="false">224 at http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk</guid>
</item>
</channel>
</rss>
