Murders of journalists more than double worldwide
Retaliatory killings of journalists worldwide rose significantly in 2020 from the previous year, but deaths covering war dropped sharply. A CPJ special report by Jennifer Dunham December 22, 2020 NEW YORK The number of journalists murdered in retaliation for their work more than doubled in 2020, as criminal gangs and militant groups targeted reporters working…
Photojournalist Rahmatullah Nikzad shot and killed in Afghanistan
New York, December 21, 2020 – Afghan authorities must thoroughly investigate the killing of journalist Rahmatullah Nikzad and do everything in their power to ensure that members of the press can work safely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. This evening, in the central Afghan city of Ghazni, unidentified gunmen shot Nikzad, a freelance…
Journalist Truong Chau Huu Danh arrested in Vietnam
Bangkok, December 21, 2020 – Vietnamese authorities should immediately release journalist Truong Chau Huu Danh and drop any pending charges against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On December 17, police in the southern city of Can Tho arrested Danh, a former state media reporter who co-founded and contributes to Bao Sach (Clean Newspaper),…
Chinese filmmaker and photographer Du Bin detained by police
Taipei, December 18, 2020 — Chinese authorities should immediately release journalist Du Bin and refrain from harassing and detaining members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On the morning of December 16, police in Beijing arrested Du for allegedly “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” a criminal offense, according to news reports….
Journalists in India face attacks, legal action, and threats
In September and October 2020, lists circulating online allegedly identifying journalists as “anti-Hindu” or as “Indian agents” named dozens of local members of the press, police opened investigations into at least two reporters and one media executive, and authorities attacked at least one journalist during the course of his reporting, according to news reports and…
Hong Kong police charge 2 reporters with obstruction over coverage of May protests
In November 2020, Hong Kong police criminally charged two journalists over their coverage of protests the previous May, according to news reports. On November 3, police charged student journalist Nelson Tang with “obstructing police” and “resisting arrest,” according to news reports and a statement from the Hong Kong Baptist University Students’ Union Editorial Board, a…
Record number of journalists jailed worldwide
Editor’s note: In 2019, CPJ published a new database of attacks on the press. Numbers for each subsequent prison census are liable to adjust yearly as CPJ learns of arrests, releases, or deaths in prison. For the most recent data, see cpj.org/data/imprisoned/. The number of journalists jailed globally because of their work hit a new high in 2020…
Journalists jailed for social media “terrorism” highlight content moderation challenges
A journalist in China uploaded a video to YouTube criticizing the Chinese government’s response to the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan. Another, in Vietnam, left a state-owned newspaper but continued posting stories they wouldn’t let her cover on Facebook. In Egypt, a freelance photographer streamed an anti-government protest from his balcony on Facebook Live. In Iran,…
Bangladesh High Court directs authorities to “block” journalist’s social media channels
The Bangladesh High Court directed authorities to “block” journalist Kanak Sarwar’s social media pages, including YouTube and Facebook, on December 8, 2020 after he interviewed a politician in Bangladesh on YouTube, according to Sarwar and local news reports. It was not clear if the authorities had contacted YouTube or Facebook regarding Sarwar’s accounts, which he…
Philippine police arrest journalist Lady Ann Salem for alleged weapons possession
Bangkok, December 14, 2020 – Philippine authorities should immediately release journalist Lady Ann Salem without charge, and open an investigation into police officers’ alleged planting of weapons during her arrest, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. At about 9 a.m. on December 10, police arrested Salem, an editor at the Manila Today English-language news website and…