The 11th edition of the EPP Group in the European Committee of the Regions' Winter University for local and regional media is taking place at a time when the media industry is undergoing a period of self-reflection. Despite enjoying higher levels of trust, local and regional media have been hit particularly hard by the pressure for digital transformation and the decline in revenue from copy sales and advertising. Moreover, there is pressure at all levels to fight fake news through better media literacy at all levels and highly trusted local media journalism.

During the past two days we have managed to gather a deep insight into the work of local and regional journalists

explained President of the EPP Group in the Committee of the Regions, Michael Schneider, in the conclusions of the 5th anniversary edition of the EPP/CoR Summer University for local and regional media.

"Radio broadcasting reaches a massive audience throughout all regions and cities in Europe. In fact, between 60 and 85% of the EU population on average listens to radio for at least 2 or 3 hours per day" began Michel Lebrun, 1st Vice-President of the EPP Group in the Committee of the Regions, in his introductory speech for the 2011 Winter University for local and regional media. "You also fulfil a key role in the media landscape, particularly as a source of local content, and encourage innovation, creativity and diversity of content."

75 local and regional television journalists came from all over Europe to attend the EPP Group in the Committee of the Region's 7th Summer University for local and regional media on 5-7 June 2012.

In just over 6 months, 500 million European citizens will go to the polls to vote for their representative in the European Parliament. This makes the question “why is Europe important for my region’, more relevant than ever.