ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on how The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has delimited and discusses journalism. It discusses how the digitalisation challenges the boundaries of journalism. The chapter explains more thoroughly how journalism enjoys a particular protection in European human rights law. The ECtHR has delivered a number of judgements where the question has been if a non-governmental organisation can be considered equal to the traditional press and therefore be given the same, enhanced protection that professional journalists enjoy. As a reciprocal obligation incurred by such privileges, journalists have to live up to certain special responsibilities. This means that they have to act in keeping with the ethical principles of journalism. A functional understanding of journalism and journalists is in line with the statements of the Commitee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. The survey of cases has shown that the ECtHR bases its judgements on a functional understanding of journalism.
