2018
Positive steps in Ecuador under new president but press remains wary
Quito, July 12, 2018– President Lenín Moreno’s administration has dramatically diverged from that of his predecessor, Rafael Correa, including by pledging to scale back Ecuador’s restrictive media law, but the country’s press remains cautious as it waits for change, the Committee to Protect Journalists found in its report, “The U-turn: Moreno steers Ecuador away from…
Non-white journalists describe risks and repercussions of covering protests in the US
“I was just another in a sea of black faces on the other side of a police line,” said Christian Gooden, a St. Louis Post-Dispatch photographer who was hit by pepper spray while covering a protest on September 29, last year. Gooden said that he turned his head when police sprayed indiscriminately, then resumed photographing…
CPJ welcomes Lucy Westcott as 2018 James W. Foley Fellow
New York, July 11, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists is pleased to announce that Lucy Westcott has joined CPJ as the 2018 James W. Foley Fellow. During her fellowship, Westcott will focus on safety issues for women journalists in non-hostile environments.
Tajik journalist sentenced to 12 years after alleging official corruption
New York, July 11, 2018–A Tajik court today found independent journalist Khayrullo Mirsaidov guilty of embezzling and misusing state fund and false reporting to police and sentenced him to 12 years in a high-security prison, according to media reports and the journalist’s friends with whom CPJ spoke. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the ruling…
Chinese police arrest critical blogger Chen Jieren
Taipei, July 11, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Chinese authorities to immediately release Chen Jieren, an independent blogger who frequently published articles critical of the Communist Party officials on his blog, Jieren Guancha (Jieren Watch).
Houthis detain at least three more journalists in late June and early July
The Ansar Allah movement, commonly known as the Houthis, detained at least three current and former Yemeni journalists–Iyad al-Wasmani, Abdulsalam al-Doaiss, and Abed al-Jaradi–between June 27 and July 7, 2018, according to news reports and the Yemeni Journalists Syndicate.
Azerbaijani journalist detained, whereabouts unknown
New York, July 10, 2018–Azerbaijani authorities should immediately release independent journalist Afgan Sadygov, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Police first detained Sadygov, the founder and chief editor of now-defunct independent news website Azel, on July 6, according to his wife Sevinch Sadygova, who spoke to CPJ today. He was tried on July 7…
CPJ calls on Egyptian authorities to release journalists held on false news charges
Washington, D.C., July 10, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Egyptian authorities to drop the charges against a group of journalists held in pretrial detention for false news and release the journalists immediately.
With Zack Stoner’s killing, Chicago loses vital voice covering overlooked community
I weighed the possibility of being killed for writing this. Seriously. I know that shedding light on or speaking about particular persons and issues can increase the likelihood of being murdered, especially in Chicago. To some this may seem like hyperbole or another introduction to a hit-piece on the city’s violence, exaggerating statistics and depicting…