Romania becomes new front line in battle with ‘fake news’

Even as Romania heads the presidency of Council of the European Union, observers in Europe worry about a crackdown on the nation’s independent voices in the media and a rise in ‘fake news’.

In Romania, it is feared that media-owning oligarchs and politicians will join forces to silence critics and independent voices in the run-up to the national elections.

Journalists in Bucharest are hoping that the country’s current high-profile status as president of the Council of the European Union will draw attention to their struggles.

The European Commission spends much of its time combating ‘fake news’ coming out of Russia, but journalists in Romania feel that the EU should be doing more to support honest journalism at home.

Al Jazeera’s Laurence Lee reports from Bucharest.