In the early morning of June 23, 2019, a small improvised bomb exploded at the home of Brazilian radio reporter Francisco José Jorge de Sousa in Ipu, Ceará state, the journalist told CPJ via phone. No one was injured in the explosion, de Sousa said.
São Paulo, June 20, 2019 — Authorities in the Brazilian town of Maricá, in Rio de Janeiro state, must thoroughly investigate the killing of journalist Romário Barros and determine whether the attack was tied to his journalism, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
São Paulo, June 18, 2019–The founder, editor, and other members of the The Intercept Brasil staff said they have received threats on email and social media following their publication of politically sensitive stories this month.
First as a candidate and now in his first months as president, Jair Bolsonaro has made his disdain for the media crystal clear. Ministers, supporters, and his family members have followed his lead by no longer offering interviews, attacking and blocking critical reporters on social media, and calling them out as “fake news.”