Americas

  
CPJ
Carlos Lauría, left, and Mauri König meet Brazil's chief justice, Joaquim Barbosa, on Wednesday as part of a CPJ mission to Brazil. (Supreme Federal Tribunal)

Brazil officials back OAS human rights system

“Leave me in peace. Wallow in your garbage,” Brazilian Chief Justice Joaquim Barbosa said in a rage when a reporter with one of the leading national newspapers, O Estado de Sao Paulo, tried to ask him a question Tuesday at a meeting of the National Council of Justice in Brasilia, the capital. Stunned by Barbosa’s…

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Gunmen shoot at offices of two news outlets in Mexico

Gunmen shot at the offices of the daily El Diario de Juárez and the television station Channel 44 in Ciudad Juárez early in the morning of March 6, 2013, according to news reports. The attacks resulted in slight material damage to the buildings, but no injuries.

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For Iran and U.S., mutually restrictive visa policies

Istanbul-based McClatchy correspondent Roy Gutman has been honored for his reporting from Srebrenica to Baghdad. But he can’t get a visa for Iran. He blames the U.S. government, at least in part. 

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Venezuelan authorities must ensure safety of press

New York, March 6, 2013–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns Tuesday’s attack on Carmen Andrea Rengifo, a correspondent for the Colombian TV station RCN, by crowds who had gathered in Caracas to mourn the death of President Hugo Chávez. CPJ calls on authorities to investigate the assault immediately.

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News website editor shot to death in Mexico

Mexico City, March 5, 2013–Mexican authorities must identify the motive in the weekend murder of a news website editor in Chihuahua state and ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Authorities must explain conviction of Cuban writer

New York, February 28, 2013–Cuban writer and blogger Ángel Santiesteban Prats is expected to begin serving a five-year jail sentence today on assault and trespassing charges brought by his former wife, accusations he has insisted have been fabricated. 

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An image grab from a YouTube video uploaded on December 18 allegedly shows NBC employees, from left to right, Aziz Akyavas, Richard Engel, and John Kooistra in captivity in Syria. (AFP/YouTube)

Do news blackouts help journalists held captive?

At any given time over the past two years, as wars raged in Libya and then Syria, and as other conflicts ground on in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, a number of journalists have been held captive by a diverse array of forces, from militants and rebels to criminals and paramilitaries. And at any given…

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Unidentified gunman kills Peruvian photographer in Lima

Bogota, Colombia, February 25, 2013–Authorities in Peru should immediately determine the motive behind the murder of a journalist on Saturday and bring the perpetrators to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Local radio journalist shot dead in Brazil

New York, February 25, 2013–A local radio reporter who often denounced crime on his show was shot dead on Friday in northern Brazil, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the murder and calls on Brazilian authorities to conduct a thorough investigation and bring the perpetrators to justice.

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"The Central Park Five" co-directors David McMahon, Sarah Burns,and Ken Burns at the New York Film Critics Circle awards dinner in early January. (AP/Evan Agostini)

‘Central Park Five’ case reinforces reporter’s privilege

As the film “The Central Park Five” heads into the Film Independent Spirit Awards in Los Angeles on Saturday, where it is nominated for best documentary, its filmmakers can rest assured that at least one contest, the one that was taking place far from Hollywood in a New York City courtroom, is over. In a…

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