This policy brief discusses the need to protect the independence of Public Service Media within the current trends and technologies. It discusses the new form of tailoring content accordingly to audience needs by having in target the generation of Zillennials, known as Gen-Z. Kosovo is the case considered in this brief, because of its specifics of a country with the youngest population in Europe, with multiple social and political that challenge on country’s path to building a sustainable democracy. It discusses what role can the public broadcaster play in a small- sized and divided ethnicities environment, while providing a vibrant and pluralist media market.

This policy brief discusses the crisis of trustworthiness in fundamental principles and values, institutions and entities that also affects the media in Europe and the world. The reduced credibility is related to the economic, social and institutional crises which have caused a serious retreat in values such as human rights, independence, transparency and accountability, and a serious weakening of the obligation to support democracy over self-interest.

In this scenario media look for new and alternative economic models. In this transformation process, the key question is whether standardised processes, which introduce self-regulatory initiatives in the SME industry into the ecosystem, can play a decisive role. Can they really guarantee an improvement in their functioning, healthy competition, business success, public interest and public expectations? In the media, the fundamental standard is the Code of Conduct. Ethics should therefore govern any standardised governance system, both in its design and implementation.

This policy brief focuses on investigating the extents to which society fulfils the informational needs of young people and in which ways it faces the challenges of misinformation, suspicion, and manipulation on the one hand and critique, scepticism, and enquiry on the other. In this the role played by public service media is considered as invested of specific civic responsibilities towards democratic governance play in this process. Also, the importance of media education to young generations (16 to 25 years old) is highlighted.

The questions are important to tackle when considering the new rapidly developing technologies and digitalization which shape and change social institutions and behaviours, habits, and ways of connecting, learning, and seeking information. These changes have an impact on each European citizen’s life, particularly young generations. 

This policy briefs focuses on children informational rights, specifically related to the right to receiving truthful information, and the “cyberthreats” posed to this process, such as deepfakes (DF). Specifically, it focuses on deepfake videos and how they should be regulated and controlled within the European Union.

When considering the ongoing debate surrounding mis- and disinformation, the safeguard of children’s informational right appear to be of extreme relevance and considering the youth as suffering the consequences of the post-truth era, the right to receive factual information and its protection is highly important.