A seminar titled «Freedom of the Media and Message,» held in Riga with support from the Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics under the Media School programme, brought together about 40 representatives from independent Russian media in exile and major EU media outlets, as well as analysts, diplomats, and academics, to discuss the most pressing issues facing media today. Through a variety of formats, participants focused on topics such as media freedom, media and politics, disinformation, ethics in times of war, investigative journalism, the challenges of working in exile, and fundamental questions surrounding declining democracies and rising populism.
Core themes, such as justice, the rule of law, and standing up for the values of freedom, dignity, human rights, and solidarity across borders, were highlights of this meeting, as they are in other School gatherings.
As part of the seminar, participants watched and discussed the movie by Chechen film director Zulay Magazieva, The Cannibals — Voices from 1944, which tells the story of the deportation of the Chechens and addresses the historical trauma that has never been acknowledged, as well as the dangers and consequences of the lingering imperial past.