Journalist Dayanna Monroy covers the COVID-19 pandemic in Ecuador. (Courtesy of Dayanna Monroy)
Journalist Dayanna Monroy covers the COVID-19 pandemic in Ecuador. (Courtesy of Dayanna Monroy)
The Torch

Trump’s attacks on the press a threat to truth

The Torch is a weekly newsletter from the Committee to Protect Journalists that brings you the latest press freedom and journalist safety news from around the world. Subscribe here.

Ecuadorian journalist Dayanna Monroy spoke to CPJ about covering the COVID-19 crisis in Guayaquil, the epicenter of Ecuador’s COVID-19 outbreak. Monroy – who visits the area’s hotspots nearly every day – discussed the challenges of reporting on COVID-19 in a country that lacks accurate official information about the virus.

CPJ also spoke with a journalist in Taiwan about dealing with misinformation in the country amid the outbreak, and with a lawyer in India about a recent Supreme Court directive making it compulsory for news outlets to carry the government’s official version of any pandemic news.

In the U.S., a student journalist in Florida spoke to CPJ about leading a student newspaper during the pandemic, and reporters in Seattle described covering COVID-19 as “relearning how to do their jobs.”

Journalism in the time of coronavirus

  • A new Puerto Rico law threatens jail time for spreading “false information” about COVID-19
  • The Indian Supreme Court last week ordered journalist Gautam Navlakha to surrender himself to the Session Court for arrest, which he fears due to health risks for prisoners during the pandemic
  • Two journalists arrested in Jordan over coronavirus coverage
  • Bolivia enacts decree criminalizing “disinformation” on COVID-19 outbreak
  • Security forces recently harassed and attacked at least four journalists in Liberia for reporting on COVID-19
  • Chechen leader threatens journalist Elena Milashina over COVID-19 reporting
  • CPJ calls on the UN and the European External Action Service to press for the release of imprisoned journalists amid COVID-19
  • Chinese journalist Li Zehua missing in Wuhan since late February

Spotlight

Trump speaking during the daily briefing on the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, at the White House. Trump has called journalists “very dishonest” for their reporting on the health crisis. (AFP/Mandel Ngan)
Trump speaking during the daily briefing on the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, at the White House. Trump has called journalists “very dishonest” for their reporting on the health crisis. (AFP/Mandel Ngan)

Yesterday, CPJ released a new report on press freedom under the Trump administration. The report, “The Trump Administration and the Media,” examines how the White House has stepped-up prosecutions of news sources, interfered in the financial independence of some media owners, and harassed journalists, particularly at U.S. borders. Beyond the domestic impact, it also looks at how the administration’s approach has emboldened authoritarian leaders to silence the press in their own countries.

Trump’s efforts to threaten and delegitimize the press have continued during the pandemic, as he pushed out his 2,000th tweet critical of the press last week, and the White House issued a statement attacking U.S. Congress-funded outlet Voice of America (VOA).

What we are reading

Beyond the pandemic

  • After detaining them for nearly five years, the Houthis sentenced four journalists to death in Sanaa, Yemen, on Saturday. CPJ called on the Houthis to reverse the sentence and release them and all journalists in their custody
  • Gunman attacks Brazilian radio journalist Vamberto Teixeira in his home
  • Tanzanian court convicts 2019 CPJ International Press Freedom Awardee Maxence Melo of obstructing investigation, levies fine
  • Chinese authorities detain documentary filmmaker Chen Jiaping on subversion charges
  • Egypt blocks Darb news website

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