Beyond the EU’s borders
How do the candidate countries – Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia – view the European Union? And what is the media coverage of Europe like in countries that are torn between hopes of swift accession to the EU, far-reaching reform efforts and political setbacks? The Erich Brost Institute for International Journalism is currently investigating these questions as part of a project funded by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) until the end of March 2027.
Together with partners from the Mohyla School of Journalism in Kyiv, the School of Journalism from Moldova in Chisinau, the Caucasus School of Media and the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs in Tbilisi, the EBI team led by project coordinator Prof. Susanne Fengler and research assistant Richard Brandt is developing a further module for the already established interactive e-learning platform ‘COPE’ (Covering Cohesion Policy in Europe). The online course currently comprises 14 modules on European reporting, with a particular focus on EU cohesion policy, and was jointly developed by journalism schools and universities in all 27 EU Member States and translated into all 24 official languages of the European Union. It is primarily aimed at journalism students across Europe, but is also available free of charge to journalists, media organisations, trainers and the interested public. The platform has already been expanded in the previous year to include a further module on the use of artificial intelligence in detecting and combating disinformation.
At the start of 2027, a further new module is set to follow, one that looks beyond the borders of the European Union. In terms of content, Module 16 begins with an introduction to the three EU candidate countries – Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia – to provide a better understanding of their history and culture as well as the social and political challenges they each face. The module then breaks down the sometimes protracted EU accession process, using these three countries as examples, through a range of infographics, exercises and easy-to-understand background information. In particular, it highlights the associated challenges for media coverage and national media systems. The module concludes with a case study from Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Georgia, which address various topics relating to Russia’s war of aggression and the fight against disinformation.
The project team recently completed the content development phase. The content is currently being integrated into the COPE platform and is expected to be fully available online by spring 2027 at the latest. The first pilot teaching sessions for the new module will take place this November in Ukraine (online), in December in Georgia and are expected to take place in February or March 2027 in the Republic of Moldova at the partner institutions and other universities.
21.10.2026