Under Pressure: How Free Are Europe's Media?

May 28, 2025

1h 12m

★ 0.0

Overview

How free and independent is the press in Europe? In recent years, multiple crises and the rise of authoritarianism have put pressure on journalists. We take a look at these countries, where aggression towards the media seems to be undermining the very idea of democracy.

Genres

Documentary

TV Movie

Production Companies

SWR

Under Pressure: How Free Are Europe's Media? Trailers

No Trailers found.

Cast

Self - International Press Institute

Scott Griffen

Moscow, Russia, December 2016. Edward Snowden, Larry Lessig and Birgitta Jónsdóttir meet for the first time in a secret place. Apparently, Russia is interfering in the US presidential elections while it mourns the death of its ambassador to Turkey. Snowden carefully chooses his interviews, so nobody really knows something about him. As the world prepares for Christmas, they gather to discuss the only issue that matters, their common struggle: how to save democracy.

6.1

Mandela

Oct 11, 1996

A documentary that chronicles the life of South African leader Nelson Mandela. Mandela is probably best known for his 27 years of imprisonment, and for bringing an end to apartheid. But this film also sheds light on the little-known early period of Mandela's life.

0.0

To Be Destroyed

Aug 11, 2024

A 30-minute documentary on book banning and censorship that follows author Dave Eggers as he investigates why a Rapid City, SD school board wanted to ban his book.

0.0

Blueberry Soup

Sep 29, 2013

Following a national crisis, the citizens of Iceland rallied together to collectively write the first ever crowdsourced constitution. A deeply touching account of an eclectic group of individuals reinventing democracy through the rewriting of the nation's constitution, proving that Iceland is not a broken country but instead an intricate web of concerns, ideas, and ultimately creative solutions.

6.5

Forbidden Films

Mar 6, 2014

Between 1933 and 1945 roughly 1200 films were made in Germany, of which 300 were banned by the Allied forces. Today, around 40 films, called "Vorbehaltsfilme", are locked away from the public with an uncertain future. Should they be re-released, destroyed, or continue to be neglected? Verbotene Filme takes a closer look at some of these forbidden films.

6.8

Video Nasties: Moral Panic, Censorship & Videotape

Aug 30, 2010

A documentary analyzing the furore which so-called "video nasties" caused in Britain during the 1980s.

8.0

États-Unis - La démocratie assiégée

Oct 22, 2024

No overview available.

0.0

Obaida

Apr 24, 2019

OBAIDA, a short film by Matthew Cassel, explores a Palestinian child’s experience of Israeli military arrest. Each year, some 700 Palestinian children undergo military detention in a system where ill-treatment is widespread and institutionalized. For these young detainees, few rights are guaranteed, even on paper. After release, the experience of detention continues to shape and mark former child prisoners’ path forward.

0.0

Los prohibidos

Nov 8, 2019

Documentary film that follows Silvana Castro, a woman who works at the National Congress Library in Argentina where the books that were forbidden during the military dictatorship are kept. After the exhibition of the books is suspended, she'll try to open it again.

8.0

The Maze

Sep 12, 2017

THE MAZE dissects the terror-attacks since Paris Bataclan in November 2015 and looks for common patterns. Why was intelligence failing? And why keep our governments pushing for more of the same? A road movie into surveillance reforms, power, money and cover-ups. A search for a way out of this maze - with a glimpse of hope on the horizon.

0.0

Town Destroyer

Oct 8, 2022

Controversy erupts over a New-Deal-era mural of the namesake of San Francisco’s George Washington High School. The thirteen-panel artwork "The Life of Washington" by Victor Arnautoff offers a view of the Founding Father both celebratory and critical, referencing his involvements in slavery and Native American genocide.

8.0

Once Upon a Time in Venezuela

Mar 13, 2020

Once upon a time, the Venezuelan village of Congo Mirador was prosperous, alive with fisherman and poets. Now it is decaying and disintegrating—a small but prophetic reflection of Venezuela itself.

6.2

Free Speech Fear Free

Jun 1, 2017

Can we really be fully human without Free Speech? Is free speech the oxygen of our society? Without it we crumble. Free Speech Fear Free get's to the core of what free speech really is, and the impact it has on our day to day lives. It compares the UK with Belarus and shows what life is really like without Free Speech. It tells chilling stories of a dictatorship that destroys people's standard of living.

8.0

Radio Silence

Apr 15, 2021

Mexico, March 2015. Carmen Aristegui, incorruptible journalist, has been fired from the radio station where she has worked for years. Supported by more than 18 million listeners, Carmen continues her fight. Her goal: raising awareness and fighting against misinformation. The film tells the story of this quest: difficult and dangerous, but essential to the health of democracy. A story in which resistance becomes a form of survival.

8.2

Ms. President

Oct 31, 2024

A time-lapse documentary about Zuzana Čaputová's tenure as President follows her political work, personal dilemmas and the difficult challenges facing Slovak society.

5.0

Acorn and the Firestorm

Apr 23, 2017

For 40 years, the community-organizing group ACORN advocated for America’s poorest communities, while its detractors accused it of promoting the worst of liberal policies. Riding high on the momentum of Barack Obama’s presidential victory in 2008, ACORN was at its political zenith when a hidden-camera video sparked a national scandal and brought it crashing down. The story involves voter fraud, a fake prostitute, and the rise of Breitbart.com.

8.3

Big House Blues

Aug 10, 1990

Ren and Stimpy, on the streets starving, are captured by the dog catcher. They end up in the pound and become frightened when one of the dogs tells them of the "big sleep".

10.0

Freedom for the Wolf

Jun 12, 2017

The Real Story of Fake Democracy. Filmed over three years in five countries, FREEDOM FOR THE WOLF is an epic investigation into the new regime of illiberal democracy. From the young students of Hong Kong, to a rapper in post-Arab Spring Tunisia and the viral comedians of Bollywood, we discover how people from every corner of the globe are fighting the same struggle. They are fighting against elected leaders who trample on human rights, minorities, and their political opponents.

0.0

Dogs of Democracy

Jul 24, 2017

Dogs of Democracy is an essay-style documentary about the stray dogs of Athens and the people who take care of them. Author and first-time filmmaker Mary Zournazi explores life on the streets through the eyes of the dogs and peoples' experience. Shot in location in Athens, the birthplace of democracy, the documentary is about how Greece has become the 'stray dogs of Europe', and how the dogs have become a symbol of hope for the people and for the anti- austerity movement. A universal story about love and loyalty and what we might learn from animals and peoples' timeless quest for democracy.

0.0

Uncensored Women

Dec 21, 2022

The story of a group of actresses who, in the Spain of the seventies, and in the midst of the democratic Transition, decided to appear nude in the films of that time of radical political change, defying the rigid and deeply rooted social rules.

Under Pressure: How Free Are Europe's Media?

Overview

Genres

Production Companies

Under Pressure: How Free Are Europe's Media? Trailers