2016
Bolivian president’s criminal defamation suit threatens press freedom
New York, August 4, 2016 – Bolivian President Evo Morales should immediately drop a criminal defamation suit against a journalist that could have a chilling effect on press freedom in the country, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Bolivian criminal court justice René Delgado announced yesterday that he would hear a case Morales filed…
Philippine leader blows hot and cold on press freedom
Newly installed Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has sent mixed messages on his commitment to upholding press freedom and combating impunity in media murders, a mix of hope and fear that has broadly defined the first months of his leadership. Uncertainty about Duterte’s stance on the media’s watchdog role comes against the backdrop of a “war…
IOC offers some protection but press at Rio Games should be wary of security risks
When the Rio Olympics open on Friday, the thousands of journalists covering it will have the added security of knowing a formal mechanism has been put in place to let them report any press freedom violations that take place during the Games. The creation of the reporting mechanism follows years of advocacy with the International…
Video: Protecting journalism (not just journalists) takes tech that’s safe for everyone
On July 23, I gave a presentation as part of the HOPE XI hacker conference at the Hotel Pennsylvania in New York City. My talk, entitled “Won’t Somebody Please Think of the Journalists?” described the challenges of protecting journalists in a world where journalism is no longer conducted only by professionals. I exhorted the technologists…
CPJ welcomes IOC’s press freedom complaints mechanism
New York, August 3, 2016 — The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the creation of a press freedom complaints mechanism by the International Olympic Committee that will enable journalists covering the organization and staging of the Olympic Games to report a violation of their press freedom. Thousands of journalists are converging on Rio de Janeiro…
Omani journalist jailed over article on judiciary
New York, August 2, 2016 – An Omani journalist has been jailed for nearly a week under investigation of multiple charges after the daily newspaper Azamn published an article questioning the independence of the judiciary, according to his outlet and human rights groups.
Photographer arrested while covering a protest in Libya
Washington, August 2, 2016–Libyan authorities should immediately charge or release photographer and cameraman Saliem Alshebl, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Alshebl, who works for the Libya satellite channel, which is allied with the National Accord government, was arrested July 29 while covering an anti-government protest at Tripoli’s Martyrs’ Square, according to his employer…
CPJ Newsletter: ECOSOC accepts our application, we announce IPFA winners, and more!
August edition Pentagon updates Law of War Manual to recognize journalists’ role in covering conflict Frank Smyth, CPJ’s security consultant, was stunned when he read the newly released Law of War Manual from the U.S. Department of Defense in June 2015. The manual included language that allowed journalists to be categorized as “unprivileged belligerents,” which…
Egyptian photojournalist sentenced in absentia to 15 years in prison
A Cairo criminal court on July 18, 2016, sentenced Egyptian freelance photojournalist Belal Darder Mohamed to 15 years in prison in absentia on charges of participating in an unlicensed protest and membership in a terrorist organization, according to press reports. The charges were in connection with his work documenting a December 2014 protest by students…
Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of July 31
Court indicts 12 media workers on terrorism charges An Istanbul court last night indicted 12 journalists on charges of being a member of a terrorist organization — the Hizmet movement, which the Turkish government classes as a terrorist group and alleges orchestrated a failed military coup on July 15 – Turkey’s official Anatolia news agency…