Volume 15, Issue 2 Freedom of the media Andrei Richter, Comenius UniversityKrisztina Rozgonyi, Austrian Academy of SciencesJoan Barata Mir, Universidade Católica PortuguesaMonroe E. Price, University of Pennsylvania PUBLISHED ON: 18 Jun 2026 DOI: 10.14763/2026.2.2103 Freedom of the media must evolve beyond institutional protection to safeguard citizens’ epistemic agency in digital societies where platforms and AI systems shape what we know and how we participate in democracy. KEYWORDS: Freedom of the media, Media freedom, Epistemic power, Digital governance, Democratic participation