Our history
In October 1950, in the aftermath of the Second World War, 34 leading editors from 16 countries gathered at Columbia University in New York City. United in the conviction that a free media would contribute to a better and more peaceful world, they agreed to form a global organisation dedicated to promoting and protecting press freedom and improving the practices of journalism. The International Press Institute was born.
For over seven decades, IPI has been at the forefront of the battle for media freedom and independence, providing the organisation with unmatched experience to continue its mission today.
From fighting censorship in apartheid-era South Africa, to helping free journalists imprisoned under the Greek military junta to strengthening Myanmar鈥檚 media after years of authoritarianism, IPI鈥檚 pioneering history spans continents, generations and countless innovations in news production.
During this time, IPI鈥檚 commitment to dialogue has also produced historic gatherings of journalistic communities, such as the first post-war bilateral exchange between French and German journalists in 1950s; the first post-independence meeting of Anglophone and Francophone African journalists in the 1970s; and our Israeli-Palestinian dialogue forum in the 2000s.
1950s
34 editors from 15 countries gathered at Columbia University in 1950 to form a global organisation dedicated to the promotion and protection of press freedom and the improvement of the practices of journalism. They named it the International Press Institute. The original Secretariat was set up in 1951 in Z眉rich.
Highlights from IPI鈥檚 first decade:
- 鈥�The Flow of the News鈥�, the first global survey of press freedom (1953)
- Launch of the聽IPI Report聽(1952), a monthly survey of press freedom violations worldwide, in English, French, German and Japanese
- First bilateral post-war聽meeting of French and German editors听(1954)
- IPI Constitutional Conference and聽First General Assembly in Paris (1952)
- 厂别濒别肠迟别诲听Publications: News in Asia (1956); The Editor and the Publisher: A Many-Sided Relationship (1957) The Press in Authoritarian Countries (1959)
1960s
IPI鈥檚 global membership and impact continued to grow rapidly in the 1960s. We carried out projects in 32 countries, with a special focus on Africa and Asia. Radio and television journalists were welcomed as members for the first time.
Highlights:
- First post-war bilateral聽meetings between Turkish and Greek editors聽(1961) and聽Japanese and Korean editors听(1966)
- Global solidarity campaign with journalists living under oppression in聽Czechoslovakia听(1968)
- Launch of IPI鈥檚 pioneering,聽multi-year training programme for African journalists聽(1963), funded by a $300,000 grant from the Ford Foundation
- Arranging the historic first meeting between French President Charles de Gaulle and German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer听(1958)
- 贵颈谤蝉迟听General Assemblies in Asia聽(Tokyo 1960, New Delhi 1966) and聽Africa聽(Nairobi, 1969)
1970s
While continuing to defend press freedom worldwide in the 1970s, IPI was also at the forefront of discussions on the impact of new technology on the media. In 1976, IPI relocated its Secretariat from Z眉rich to London.
Highlights:
- Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1976聽in recognition of IPI鈥檚 鈥渨ork for understanding and peace among nations鈥�
- First post-independence聽meeting of French and English-speaking African editors听(1970)
- General Assembly in Athens聽(1979) follows end of Greek military junta
- 厂别肠耻谤颈苍驳听release of Filipino-Chinese journalists聽Quintin and Rizal Yuyitung 鈥� and birth of Ipi Yuyitung, Rizal鈥檚 daughter!
- 厂别濒别肠迟别诲听publications: Libel Law and the Press (1971), The Flow of the News: International Propaganda and Communications (1972), Indian Press and Democracy (1978)
1980s
As East-West relationships dominated global discussions, IPI pierced the Iron Curtain, helping to forge new hope for freedom in Eastern Europe.
Highlights:
- 滨笔滨鈥檚听first meeting in Eastern Europe, in Budapest, on the importance of 鈥済lasnost鈥� in East-West relations
- IPI members issued the聽Vienna Resolutions聽(1986) to challenge global threats to media freedom, including violations against the media in Chernobyl and South Africa and restrictions in the name of fighting terrorism
- 1989听General Assembly in Berlin, just months before the Berlin Wall came tumbling down
- IPI鈥檚 annual聽World Press Freedom Review聽firmly establishes itself as the indispensable review of press freedom worldwide
- First General Assembly in Latin America聽(Buenos Aires and Montevideo, 1987) celebrates the return of democracy and press freedom to Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil after years of dictatorship; first聽General Assembly in North Africa聽(Cairo, 1985)
1990s
The global democratic revolution became a central topic for IPI in the 1990s. In 1992, IPI relocated its headquarters from London to Vienna, aiming to support democratic transformations and the rise of a free and vibrant press in Eastern Europe. IPI鈥檚 work during the 1990s was instrumental in supporting the transition of former state media and state news agencies into public service institutions in Eastern Europe.
Highlights:
- Nelson Mandela and F.W. de Klerk聽address the 1994 IPI General Assembly in Cape Town just two months before South Africa鈥檚 first free elections
- Russia鈥檚 NTV becomes the first recipient of聽IPI鈥檚 Free Media Pioneer Award聽in 1997
- 贵颈谤蝉迟听General Assemblies in Eastern Europe聽(Budapest 1992 and Moscow 1998)
- Launch of聽IPI鈥檚 Death Watch聽to track the global killings of journalists
- Vienna Declaration on Public Broadcasting聽marks a new era for former state media in Eastern Europe
2000s
In 2000, IPI celebrated its 50th anniversary, having grown into a global organisation with members in over 120 countries.
Highlights:
- Honouring IPI鈥檚 first聽50 World Press Freedom Heroes聽at a special ceremony in Boston (2000)
- Founding of the聽South East Europe Media Organisation聽(SEEMO), an IPI affiliate, as region鈥檚 media seek to recover from more than a decade of conflict (2000)
- Press freedom missions聽to Bangladesh, Lebanon, Nepal, Russia, Serbia, Sri Lanka and South Korea, among numerous others
- IPI honoured with News and Documentary聽Emmy Award聽for its press freedom work (2006)
2010s
As IPI approaches its milestone 70th anniversary in 2020, we鈥檙e focused on continuing our proud tradition of fighting for media freedom and the free flow of news wherever they are threatened.
Highlights so far:
- 滨笔滨听黑料视频 in Myanmar聽(2015) supports country鈥檚 historic democratic opening
- Israeli-Palestinian Dialogue Forum聽(2011) contributes to peace by building bridges among journalists
- Press freedom missions聽to Ecuador, Ethiopia, Israel/Palestine, Jordan, Mexico, the Philippines, Spain, Turkey and Zambia, among many others
- IPI returns to South Africa to mark 20-year anniversary of historic 1994 Congress (2014)
- Process of聽digitising IPI鈥檚 extensive archive begins
IPI film: Meeting the moment for 70 years
Marking IPI鈥檚 70th anniversary, this short film聽鈥淢eeting the Moment鈥�聽shows the organization鈥檚 fight for press freedom and journalistic integrity
IPI Archive
In the seven decades since IPI was founded, we have produced an unparalleled collection of documents that reflect the evolution of the global media landscape. In particular, these documents offer a unique window on the historic movement to protect and strengthen press and media freedom worldwide.
Our collection spans censorship challenges in post-war Europe; the struggle for independence in Africa and its reflection in the quest to build a free press; efforts to control information during the Cold War; years of dictatorship and revolution in Latin America; and the abuse of media as propaganda during the Balkan wars, among countless other developments. More recently, it bears witness to the tragic trend of journalists鈥� becoming targets in conflict zones and to the global digital transformation. The archive also stands as a testament to all those risked their lives 鈥� and in some cases, paid with them 鈥� in the service of bringing news to the people.
These documents constitute the IPI Archive, which is currently housed at IPI鈥檚 Vienna headquarters and open to researchers and journalists. We are now in the early stages of fully digitising the archive so as to make this tremendous resource available to members of the public everywhere.
