Brussels, 25/05/2012 (Agence Europe) - The role of newspapers in fashioning tolerant, democratic society is just as important in Europe today as at the time of Napoleon Bonaparte, who is famous for his comment that he was more scared of three newspapers than of a thousand bayonets. This was the message of EU Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou, in a speech on 25 May 2012 to the AGM of the European Newspaper Editors' Association (ENPA) in Nicosia (Cyprus).
In her speech, Vassiliou focused on three issues directly or indirectly connected with her work as European commissioner, namely media skills (also known as media education), VAT for online newspapers and culture in general, and copyright. She said that media skills, the ability of individuals to assess information and news, should be taught at school, but also outside the formal education system because it is important for all age groups and walks of life. Vassiliou said that in the digital age, media skills help boost ordinary people's sense of responsibility and emancipation in the digital age, the same way as learning to read and write did a century ago.
The European Commission has set up a group of media education experts and ENPA has written a report for them. The experts will be reporting back on their findings next year.
The commissioner said she wanted fair VAT rates for online culture. Printed newspapers are not charged VAT at the moment (some countries levy reduced-rate VAT on them), but VAT is charged on the online editions, sometimes at 25% or more. Vassiliou believes that zero or reduced rate VAT should be charged for both paper and online versions alike. She pointed out that online publication had made it ever more important to ensure proper application of copyright and intellectual property rights in general.
Vassiliou is working closely with Internal Markets Commissioner Michel Barnier on new initiatives like royalties and updating the intellectual property directive. (LC/trans.fl)