Veidlapa Nr. M-3 (8)
Study Course Description
Modern Public Communication Environment: Regulation and Self-Regulation
Course Code
SZF_324
Branch of Science
Law; Other Sub-Branches of Law
ECTS
3.00
Target Audience
Communication Science; Information and Communication Science; Law; Political Science
LQF
Level 7
Study Type And Form
Full-Time
Study Course Implementer
Course Supervisor
Anda Rožukalne
Structure Unit Manager
Ieva Puzo
Structural Unit
Faculty of Social Sciences
Contacts
SZF, Kuldigas Street 9C, szf@rsu.lv
About Study Course
Objective
By discussing current theoretical approaches to understanding media environment actors and analyzing research data, provide a critical perspective and in-depth understanding, improving competencies regarding the activities of participants in the contemporary public communication environment, its goals, functions, regulation in Latvia and the EU, self-regulation, and impact on society in the context of democratic development.
Preliminary Knowledge
Knowledge of legal theories.
Learning Outcomes
Knowledge
1.On the regulation and self-regulation of the activities of public communication participants in EU and Latvia
Individual work and tests
Media politics and media regulation of EU and Latvia • Editorial independence • Latvian media pluralism • Mediaownership transparency and accountability
2.On EU and Latvian media policy and regulatory issues
Individual work and tests
EU Media Freedom Act • Latvian media pluralism • Editorial independence
3.ON Transfomation of Media REgulation in EU
Individual work and tests
Latvian media pluralism
4.On principles of freedom of expression and pluralism in media regulation
Individual work and tests
Latvian media pluralism
Skills
1.Analyse media regulation and self-regulation laws
Individual work and tests
EU Media Freedom Act • Journalism ethics.
2.Analysis of media regulation legal acts.
Individual work and tests
Mediaownership transparency and accountability • Editorial independence
Competences
1.Will be able to use the results of the course to address problems related to media regulation and self-regulation in professional activities: at individual and institutional level
Individual work and tests
EU Media Freedom Act • Journalism ethics.
2.Evaluate the activities of media regulation and self-regulation institutions
Individual work and tests
Mediaownership transparency and accountability • EU Media Freedom Act
Assessment
Individual work
|
Title
|
% from total grade
|
Grade
|
|---|---|---|
|
1.
Media politics and media regulation of EU and Latvia |
20.00% from total grade
|
10 points
|
|
To learn and analyze media policy and media regulation documents. |
||
|
2.
Editorial independence |
20.00% from total grade
|
10 points
|
|
Case analysis. |
||
Examination
|
Title
|
% from total grade
|
Grade
|
|---|---|---|
|
1.
Mediaownership transparency and accountability |
20.00% from total grade
|
10 points
|
|
Analysis of data and cases. |
||
|
2.
Latvian media pluralism |
20.00% from total grade
|
10 points
|
|
Analysis of documents and research projects on media pluralism. |
||
|
3.
EU Media Freedom Act |
10.00% from total grade
|
10 points
|
|
Analysis of Media Freedom Act. |
||
|
4.
Journalism ethics. |
10.00% from total grade
|
10 points
|
|
Analysis of structure of media self-regulations and codes of media/journalism ethics. |
||
Study Course Theme Plan
FULL-TIME
Part 1
-
Lecture
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
Lecture 1. The modern public communication environment: communication arenas, main regulatory problems, processes, trajectories of change.
Description
An analysis of literature and studies. |
-
Class/Seminar
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
Seminar 1. Latvian and EU media policy and media regulation. Discussion.
Description
An analysis of documents. |
-
Lecture
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
2. lekcija. Žurnālistika un plašsaziņas mediji demokrātiskā sabiedrībā: definīcijas, galvenie koncepti (neatkarība, redakcionālā politika, neitralitāte, objektivitāte, profesionālās lomas, profesionālās procedūras u.c.), žurnālistikas profesionālās kultūras.
Description
An analysis of documents. |
-
Class/Seminar
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
Seminar 1. Editorial independence, separation of editorial and advertising (paid) content. Case analysis of regulation and practice.
Description
A case analysis. |
-
Lecture
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
3rd lecture. Media accountability: regulation and self-regulation. LV and EU examples.: EC Eiromedia Ownership monitor study.
Description
An analysis of documents and data. |
-
Class/Seminar
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
Seminar 3. Media registration, transparency of owners, market responsibility. Case analysis and discussion.
Description
An analysis of documents and data. |
-
Lecture
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
Lecture 4. Media pluralism and diversity. Issues and data. EU Media Pluralism Monitor.
Description
An analysis of data and studies. |
-
Class/Seminar
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
Seminar 4. Media pluralism in Latvia. Problems of regulation and practice. Discussion.
Description
An analysis of documents and data. |
-
Lecture
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
Lecture 5. Development of media regulation in Latvia and the EU.
Description
Ana analysis of academic literature. |
-
Class/Seminar
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
Seminar 5. EU Media Freedom Act, law implementation in Latvia. Discussion.
Description
An analysis of documents and data. |
-
Lecture
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
Lecture 6. Current problems of media and journalism self-regulation.
Description
Case analysis. |
-
Class/Seminar
|
Modality
|
Location
|
Contact hours
|
|---|---|---|
|
On site
|
Study room
|
2
|
Topics
|
Seminar 6. Media and journalism codes of ethics, institutions that ensure their observance. Analysis of the reports of the Latvian Media Ethics Council, identifying issues of regulation and self-regulation in the discussion.
Description
Case analysis. |
Total ECTS (Creditpoints):
3.00
Contact hours:
24 Academic Hours
Final Examination:
Exam (Oral)
Bibliography
Required Reading
1.
Feintuck, M., & Varney, M. (2006). Media Regulation, Public Interest and the Law. Edinburgh University Press. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3366/j.ctt1r1zdc
2.
Lunt, P., & Livingstone, S. (2012). Media regulation: Governance and the interests of citizens and consumers. SAGE Publications Ltd, https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446250884
3.
Peruško, Z. (Ed.). (2024). European Media Systems for Deliberative Communication: Risks and Opportunities (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003476597
4.
Katsirea, I. (2025). Digital Media Regulation within the European Union. A Framework for a New Media Order: by Judit Bayer, Baden-Baden, Nomos, 2024, 383 pp., €94, 978-3-7560-1617-4. Journal of Media Law, 17(1), 192–196. https://doi.org/10.1080/17577632.2025.2509890
5.
Kira, B., & Townend, J. (2025). Defining the boundaries of journalism and news publishers: implications of the Online Safety Act 2023 for the public interest and media freedom. Journal of Media Law, 17(1), 38–67. https://doi.org/10.1080/17577632.2025.2491806
6.
Gerbrandt, R. L. (2025). Threatening & protecting press publishers and journalism in the UK’s regulation of social media platforms. Journal of Media Law, 17(1), 68–102. https://doi.org/10.1080/17577632.2024.2445897
7.
Schmidt, H. (2024). The online safety act 2023. Journal of Media Law, 16(2), 202–210. https://doi.org/10.1080/17577632.2025.2459440
8.
Judson, E., Kira, B., & Howard, J. W. (2024). The Bypass Strategy: platforms, the Online Safety Act and future of online speech. Journal of Media Law, 16(2), 336–357. https://doi.org/10.1080/17577632.2024.2361524
9.
Farrand, B. (2024). How do we understand online harms? The impact of conceptual divides on regulatory divergence between the Online Safety Act and Digital Services Act. Journal of Media Law, 16(2), 240–262. https://doi.org/10.1080/17577632.2024.2357463
10.
Law, S. (2024). Effective enforcement of the Online Safety Act and Digital Services Act: unpacking the compliance and enforcement regimes of the UK and EU’s online safety legislation. Journal of Media Law, 16(2), 263–300. https://doi.org/10.1080/17577632.2025.2459441
11.
van Drunen, M. Z., & Fechner, D. (2023). Safeguarding Editorial Independence in an Automated Media System: The Relationship Between Law and Journalistic Perspectives. Digital Journalism, 11(9), 1723–1750. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2022.2108868
12.
Ananny, Mike, Networked Press Freedom: Creating Infrastructures for a Public Right to Hear (Cambridge, MA, 2018; online edn, MIT Press Scholarship Online, 19 Sept. 2019), https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/9780262037747.001.0001
13.
Arena, A., K. Bania, E. Brogi, M. D. Cole, G. Fontaine, S. Hans, P. Kamina, et al. 2016. Media Ownership: Market Realities and Regulatory Responses (IRIS Special). Council of Europe. https://rm.coe.int/media-ownership-market-realities-and-regulatory-responses/168078996c
14.
CoE. 2011. Recommendation of the Committee of Ministers to Member States on a New Notion of Media (CM/Rec(2011)7). Council of Europe. https://search.coe.int/cm/Pages/result_details.aspx?ObjectID=09000016805cc2c0(open in a new window)
15.
CoE. 2012. Recommendation of the Committee of Ministers to Member States on Public Service Media Governance (CM/Rec(2012)1). Council of Europe. https://search.coe.int/cm/Pages/result_details.aspx?ObjectID=09000016805cb4b4(open in a new window)
16.
CoE. 2019. Declaration by the Committee of Ministers on the Financial Sustainability of Quality Journalism in the Digital Age (Decl(13/02/2019)2). Council of Europe. https://search.coe.int/cm/pages/result_details.aspx?objectid=090000168092dd4d(open in a new window)
17.
European Commission. 2020a. Europe’s Media in the Digital Decade: An Action Plan to Support Recovery and Transformation (COM(2020) 784 Final). European Commission. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52020DC0784(open in a new window)
18.
European Commission. 2020b. On the European Democracy Action Plan (COM(2020) 790 Final). https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM%3A2020%3A790%3AFIN&qid=1607079662423
19.
European Parliament. 2018. Resolution on Media Pluralism and Media Freedom in the European Union (2017/2209(INI)). https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-8-2018-0204_EN.html(open in a new window)
20.
Hamada, B., S. Hughes, T. Hanitzsch, J. Hollings, C. Lauerer, J. Arroyave, V. Rupar, and S. Splendore. 2019. “6. Editorial Autonomy: Journalists’ Perceptions of Their Freedom.” In Worlds of Journalism, 133–160. New York: Columbia University Press. 10.7312/hani18642-007/html.
21.
Klimkiewicz, B. 2021. Community and minority media: The third sector in European policies and Media Pluralism Monitor. In Research Handbook on EU Media Law and Policy, edited by P. L. Parcu and E. Brogi. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing. https://www.elgaronline.com/view/edcoll/9781786439321/9781786439321.00028.xml
22.
Oster, J. 2015. Media Freedom as a Fundamental Right. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. http://ebooks.cambridge.org/ref/id/CBO9781316162736(open in a new window).
23.
Parcu, P. L., and E. Brogi. 2021. Research Handbook on EU Media Law and Policy. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing.
24.
2. Rožukalne, A., Strode, I. (2025). Between the expected and the experienced: assessing the public’s perception of journalism ethics and objectivity in Latvia. Frontiers in Communication, 10.https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2025.1521816
25.
3. Berglez, P., Eberwein, T., Krakovsky, C., Jansová, I., Miteva, N., Nord, L., Ots, M., Rapado, I., Raycheva, L., Rožukalne, A., Skulte, I., & Císařová, L. W. (2025). European media systems in dynamic transition: Comparative results from five countries. European Journal of Communication, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/02673231251334521
26.
4. Rožukalne, A, Balčytienė, A & Harro-Loit, H 2024, 'Towards Responsible Media: Understanding the Baltic Countries’ Traits Through the Lens of Transparency and Accountability Analysis', Comunicacao e Sociedade, vol. 46, e024028. https://doi.org/10.17231/COMSOC.46(2024).5693
27.
5. Rožukalne, Anda, Aija Kažoka, and Linda Siliņa. 2024. “Are Journalists Traitors of the State, Really?” - Self-Censorship Development during the Russian–Ukrainian War: The Case of LatvianPSM. SocialSciences13: 350. https://doi.org/10.3390/ socsci13070350
28.
Andersone, I., Meļņika, M. & Rožukalne, A. (2022). Elektronisko mediju (e-mediju) tiesības, U. Ķinis (red.) , Informācijas sabiedrības tiesību pamati. Rīga: Rīgas Stradiņa Universitāte, 509 – 615.
29.
Vārda un izteiksmes brīvība hibrīdkara apstākļos
Additional Reading
1.
Podger, A. (2019). Fake News: Could Self-Regulation of Media Help to Protect the Public? The Experience of the Australian Press Council. Public Integrity, 21(1), 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1080/10999922.2018.1549341
2.
Gerbrandt, R. L. (2023). Media freedom and journalist safety in the UK Online Safety Act. Journal of Media Law, 15(2), 179–212. https://doi.org/10.1080/17577632.2024.2307678
3.
Kohl, U. (2024). Toxic recommender algorithms: immunities, liabilities and the regulated self-regulation of the Digital Services Act and the Online Safety Act. Journal of Media Law, 16(2), 301–335. https://doi.org/10.1080/17577632.2024.2408912
4.
Coe, P. (2023). Tackling online false information in the United Kingdom: The Online Safety Act 2023 and its disconnection from free speech law and theory*. Journal of Media Law, 15(2), 213–242. https://doi.org/10.1080/17577632.2024.2316360
5.
Baker, C. E. 2006. Media Concentration and Democracy: Why Ownership Matters. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
6.
Bell, E. 2018. “The Dependent Press. How Silicon Valley Threatens Independent Journalism.” In Digital Dominance. The Power of Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple, edited by M. Moore and D. Tambini, 241–261. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
7.
Bennett, J., & Strange, N., eds. 2015. Media Independence: Working with Freedom or Working for Free? London: Routledge.
8.
Bodó, B. 2019. “Selling News to Audiences – A Qualitative Inquiry into the Emerging Logics of Algorithmic News Personalization in European Quality News Media.” Digital Journalism 7 (8): 1054–1075.
9.
Christians, C. G., T. L. Glasser, D. McQuail, K. Nordenstreng, and R. A. White. 2009. Normative Theories of the Media: Journalism in Democratic Societies. Champaign, IL: University of Illinois Press. https://experts.illinois.edu/en/publications/normative-theories-of-the-media-journalism-in-democratic-societie
10.
Karppinen, K., & Moe, H. (2016). What We Talk About When Talk About “Media Independence.” Javnost - The Public, 23(2), 105–119. https://doi.org/10.1080/13183222.2016.1162986
11.
Ward, S. J. A. (2005). Journalism Ethics from the Public’s Point of View. Journalism Studies, 6(3), 315–330. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616700500131901