‘It is becoming unbearable:’ Journalists say they have become ‘scapegoats’ at anti-vaccine protests
Journalists covering demonstrations against COVID-19 countermeasures have been called “terrorists,” “pedophiles,” “murderers,” and “scumbags.” Protesters have harassed and assaulted members of the press, and told them that “the nooses are ready.” Threats like these have become increasingly familiar for reporters in Europe and the United States, where the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, a CPJ partner,…
Croatian journalist Danijel Majić assaulted, harassed in Austria
Danijel Majić, a Croatian journalist working for German daily Frankfurter Rundschau, said he was physically and verbally assaulted by a Croatian TV presenter and members of the crowd in the Austrian city of Bleiburg on May 18, 2019, according to Majić’s newspaper. A Croatian publication later published photographs of Majić alongside other journalists who covered…
Austrian news anchor Armin Wolf facing intimidation by far-right Freedom Party
Armin Wolf, a news anchor at Austrian public service broadcaster Österreicher Rundfunk (ORF), was threatened and was the subject of attempts at intimidation by several politicians from the far-right Freedom Party of Austria, a member of the country’s governing coalition, following his interview with Freedom Party General Secretary Harald Vilimsky, which aired on April 23,…
EU underscores support of free expression, but slights access to information
A new document on freedom of expression and opinion, adopted May 12 by the 28 foreign ministers of the European Union, presses nearly all the right buttons. Drawing its inspiration from international human rights norms as well as from the EU’s treaties and its charter of fundamental rights, the document reaffirms the role of freedom…