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European Broadcasting Union

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Areas of expertise & Fields of activity:	Economic and Social: Information Intellectual Property Media Minority Rights Sustainable Development
Geographic scope:	Regional Europe
Mission statement:	The EBU is a non-profit organization, established in 1950 under Swiss Law. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) is the world’s leading alliance of public service media (PSM). We have 117 member organizations in 56 countries and have an additional 34 Associates in Asia, Africa, Australasia and the Americas. Our Members operate over 2,000 television, radio and online channels and services, and offer a wealth of content across other platforms. Together they reach an audience of more than one billion people around the world, broadcasting in more than 160 languages. The EBU operates Eurovision and Euroradio services. "'Public service media is the bedrock of democratic societies. Our role is to champion its values and ensure our Members are able to continue to play a vital role in European culture, society and public discourse.'" Noel Curran DIRECTOR GENERAL As public service media, EBU Members share the same core values of: Universality Independence Excellence Diversity Accountability and Innovation. Our Members have pledged to uphold these standards with the aim of empowering societies and democracies across the globe. You can find a more detailed explanation in the signed declaration "Empowering Society: A declaration on the core values of public service media". The EBU helps its Members embody these public values through its services and initiatives and through the work it does with its partners in influencing media policy. We also work closely together with our Members when these core values are threatened. Public service media (PSM) is broadcasting made, financed and controlled by the public, for the public. Their output is designed to inform, educate and entertain all audiences. PSM broadcasters are often established by law but are non-partisan, independent and run for the benefit of society as a whole. Well-funded and strong public service media are the cornerstones of democratic societies and have been shown to correlate with higher degrees of press freedom and better control of corruption. With the proliferation of fake news and hate speech in the world today, an independent, trusted source of news and information has never been more important.
Year established:	1950
Year of registration:	1950
Organizational structure:	GOVERNING BODIES: General Assembly The General Assembly is the supreme governing body within the EBU and possesses all powers necessary for accomplishing the Union’s objective including the definition of the organization’s strategy and approval of its finances. It meets twice a year: the summer session is open for all Members and is hosted by an Active Member organization; the December session is limited to Active Members and is held in Geneva. Executive Board The Executive Board is responsible for ensuring the implementation of the EBU’s strategy and policies as put into action by the Management of the EBU. Its 11 members are senior representatives of EBU Active Member organizations and are elected by the General Assembly for a two-year tenure. The Executive Board meets around seven times a year. Since 1-1-2019 the Board is chaired by EBU President Tony Hall (BBC). MANAGEMENT: Since September 2017 the Director General is Noel Curran.
Number and type of members:	71 Members representing 117 organizations in 56 countries Membership is for broadcasting organizations whose countries are within the European Broadcasting Area, as defined by the International Telecommunication Union, or are members of the Council of Europe. Members guide the EBU's direction in a number of ways. They are entitled to vote at the EBU's General Assembly and in EBU elections. They are encouraged to participate in EBU Committees and Assemblies and nominate candidates for EBU bodies such as the Sports Committee, News Committee, Legal & Policy Committee, Television Committee, Radio Committee and Technical Committee. Members also enjoy all the benefits of EBU membership including participation in the Eurovision Song Contest, access to know-how, networking, training from the EBU Academy, and access to the News Exchange and Sports acquisitions if they contribute to these services. Full list is accessible to this link: https://www.ebu.ch/files/live/sites/ebu/files/About/EBU_Directory/EBU-Active-Members.pdf
Funding structure:	Membership fees or dues Product sales and business services

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