Sara Rafsky/CPJ Americas Research Associate

Sara Rafsky, former research associate in CPJ's Americas program, is a freelance journalist and M.S. candidate in Comparative Media Studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She was previously researcher on Central America at Amnesty International in Mexico City.

CPJ
Protesters gather outside the Cabot Awards on Thursday. (CPJ/Sara Rafsky)

Correa supporters protest as Cabot winners celebrated

The Maria Moors Cabot Prizes, administered by Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in recognition of journalistic contributions to Inter-American understanding, are the oldest international prizes in journalism. But Josh Friedman, director of the prizes, said this year marked the first time he remembered arriving at the awards ceremony to be greeted by protesters screaming…

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Journalists view the stage for the coming Republican National Convention. (Reuters/Scott Audette)

Resources, tips for journalists covering conventions

With up to 15,000 journalists expected in Tampa, Fla., for next week’s Republican National Convention, some reporters and photographers will undoubtedly encounter problems concerning access to news events and coverage of related protests. Several journalism organizations have compiled resource materials and tips for journalists headed to the GOP gathering, which starts August 27, and the…

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Zeta reporter Sergio Haro in the film 'Reportero.' (Courtesy Quiet Pictures)

Film ‘Reportero’ features tenacious Mexican magazine

A week before Sunday’s crucial presidential elections in Mexico, CPJ participated on a panel with filmmaker Bernardo Ruíz and Mexican journalist Sergio Haro about the perilous conditions for journalists in that country, where CPJ research shows 48 journalists have been murdered or disappeared since outgoing President Felipe Calderón took office in December 2006.

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Demonstrators burn signs with images of Haitian President Michel Martelly during a protest in Port-au-Prince on February 7, 2012. (AP/Ramon Espinosa)

Was letter to Haiti website just part of Martelly’s theatrics?

As a former entertainer better known as “Sweet Micky,” it is perhaps unsurprising that Haitian President Michel Martelly has been theatrical at times in his dealings with the press. At one media event in October, the President answered a critical question posed by a journalist by telling him, “I curse your mother,” according to press…

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Several journalists have been arrested for not having proper accreditation at Occupy Oakland protests like this one. (Reuters/Stephen Lam)

Accreditation disputes at center of US arrests

The issue of press accreditation continues to reverberate. In November, when the Occupy movement came into conflict with law enforcement across the country and at least 20 journalists covering the events were arrested, CPJ reported that disputes over press accreditation were at the center of many of those arrests. Last week, credentials played a role…

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The president's defamation case could severely damage free expression in Ecuador. (Reuters/Guillermo Granja)

In Ecuador, defamation case could set dangerous precedent

A controversial 2011 defamation verdict against the leading Ecuadoran daily El Universo, which became a symbol of vastly deteriorating press conditions under President Rafael Correa, appears headed to a final determination. The nation’s highest court is due to hear the newspaper’s appeal, although the hearing date itself is still subject to intense debate. The ramifications…

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Newsprint manufacturer Papel Prensa is the recent focus of an ongoing battle between two dailies and Argentina's government. (AP/Natacha Pisarenko)

Both sides cry ‘press freedom!’ in Argentine newsprint battle

Argentine Secretary of Commerce Guillermo Moreno made headlines in August 2010 when, at a meeting with the directors of newsprint manufacturer Papel Prensa, he whipped out a pair of boxing gloves, told the women present to clear out of the way, and after dimming the lights, challenged the men to a fight. Moreno’s invitation to…

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KGO cameraman Randy Davis was assaulted during an Occupy Oakland protest like this one. (AP)

At Occupy protests, U.S. journalists arrested, assaulted

As the Occupy movement has spread beyond Wall Street, at least seven U.S. journalists have been detained and one television crew attacked by U.S. law enforcement officers during turbulent encounters between police and protesters. Occupy demonstrators have attacked journalists in two other instances, including an assault this week in Oakland, Calif., that left a cameraman with…

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Appeal against Risen keeps source protection in focus

A reporter’s right to protect confidential sources, a topic of debate both in the U.S. and internationally, will undergo another round of legal scrutiny after federal prosecutors formally appealed a decision shielding journalist James Risen’s sources in a CIA leak case.

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