China

2014

  
Protesters carry a placard of jailed journalist Gao Yu at a demonstration in Hong Kong in July. (Reuters/Bobby Yip)

In China, mainstream media as well as dissidents under increasing pressure

In 2014, a record number of journalists imprisoned in China was documented by the Committee to Protect Journalists. The 44 in prison this year is an increase from 32 in 2013, and is the largest figure for China since CPJ began tracking imprisoned journalists in 1990. In recent years, the generally rising numbers for China…

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President Xi Jinping, pictured right, with Barack Obama at a Beijing press conference on November 12, where he was questioned about visa restrictions for the foreign press. (AFP/Mandel Ngan)

Amid US-China talks, tough words from Xi Jinping for foreign press

Chinese President Xi Jinping issued tough words on the visa woes of international media outlets today, arguing that journalists facing visa restrictions had brought trouble on themselves and signaling that there will be little respite for the international media in China.

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Activists rally outside parliament in support of students occupying the building to protest a trade pact with China in Taipei on March 21, 2014. (AFP/Mandy Cheng)

Taiwan journalists feel pressure as elections approach

Political tensions are rising in Taiwan ahead of local and municipal elections due at the end of November. The vote is expected to test the popularity of the ruling Kuomintang Party (KMT), which advocates greater integration with China and which earlier this year sparked protests when it tried to pass a new economic cooperation deal…

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Student leaders speak to the press at a pro-democracy protest outside the central government offices in Hong Kong on Thursday. (AFP/Alex Ogle)

Hong Kong’s media battlefield

Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protests are among the best covered in history. The city is saturated with print, broadcast, and social media, traveling across some of the best networks on earth. Its citizens are among the most connected in the world. And for all the media’s flaws, consumers expect them to deliver.

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Police officers face off with protesters blocking the entrance to Hong Kong's Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying offices on Thursday. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)

Journalist in Hong Kong? These tips will keep you safer and help you do your best job

We have been receiving reports of harassment and the use of force directed toward journalists covering the demonstrations in Hong Kong. Most of the incidents came over the weekend with the government’s ill-advised attempt to end the protests with police force. But with tensions building today, more clashes with police seem possible.

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Pro-democracy protesters hold umbrellas under heavy rain in a street near the government headquarters in Hong Kong late on Tuesday, September 30. (AP)

Amid Hong Kong protests, journalists battle misperceptions of press freedom

EDITOR’S NOTE: As pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong intensify ahead of China’s National Day on Wednesday, some reporters have been caught in the melee. But for Hong Kong’s journalists, there is more at stake than run-ins with the riot police.

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Conditions increasingly restrictive for foreign correspondents in China

When China hosted the summer Olympics in 2008 it promised greater press freedom, but six years later conditions for international journalists are increasingly more restrictive, as evidenced by a report released today by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China.

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Ever broader restrictions handed down for China’s reporters

Yet another set of rules restricting the work of journalists in China takes the concept of “overbroad” to new heights. According to guidelines made public Tuesday by the official state news agency Xinhua, the new rules cover various “information, materials, and news products that journalists may deal with during their work, including state secrets, commercial…

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Conditions for international reporters deteriorating in China

The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China released at the end of May its annual report on conditions for international journalists working in the country. As we have done in the past, we’re posting this year’s report as a PDF. The takeaway is that conditions have certainly not gotten better and many feel they have gotten…

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Ilham Tohti’s daughter fights for his freedom

At first glance, 19-year-old Jewher Ilham may seem like a typical college student. As she clutched her smart phone, the face of a cat imprinted on the cover peered through her fingers. She spoke in short sentences with little pause. Her thoughts pulled her in various directions as she spoke about her love for dance,…

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2014