Features & Analysis
2020
Crimean Tatar civic journalists risk persecution to cover their community in Russian-annexed Crimea
After Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, some Crimean Tatars–the indigenous population of the Crimean peninsula–had to flee for the Kyiv-controlled part of Ukraine. But most have chosen to remain. As the Russian-appointed new authorities established blanket censorship, squeezing out independent media outlets, a new phenomenon emerged–civic journalism. Members of the Crimean Tatar community–who had not…
CPJ reminds EU that ‘e-evidence’ rules should protect journalists
CPJ today prompted the European Parliament to safeguard press freedom and human rights in a proposed regulation known as the ‘e-evidence’ proposal, co-signing a letter with European Digital Rights and other digital and media organizations. CPJ has expressed concern about the lack of safeguards in the proposed Regulation on European Production and Preservation Orders, which…
In an era of global protest, France and Israel stand out for use of dangerous ammunition
With the world gripped in a historic wave of unrest, journalists in no fewer than 65 countries – about a third of the world – have been attacked covering protests since 2015, according to a report I authored for a U.N. agency that was published today. One thing that stood out during my research for the report Safety…
When police patrol protests in military gear, journalists face a hostile reporting environment
When St. Louis Post-Dispatch photographer David Carson was covering protests against police violence in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014, he said other reporters often asked him what it was like to get teargassed night after night. These days, he told CPJ, he rarely gets asked that question: “Now all of my journalist friends have been teargassed.” Tear gassings, rubber…
Australia’s journalist union on Facebook, Google, and who should pay for news
Facebook threatened to prevent Australian users and publishers from posting news on its platform last week, raising questions about who benefits when people share journalism on social media—and who has the power to stop them. The company was responding to drafts of a news media bargaining code and related legislation published on July 31 by…
Four press freedom trends to watch amid Belarus’s antigovernment protests
The images coming out of Belarus look like scenes from a blockbuster film: A president clinging to power striding out of a helicopter holding a Kalashnikov assault rifle, while his gun-toting teenage son and heir apparent walks alongside him in a helmet and military vest; the protesters calling for the president’s removal singing songs, playing music, and taking off their…
With colleagues sentenced to prison, Algerian journalists fear their new president’s attitude toward the press
Two weeks after the imprisonment of a high-profile Algerian journalist, a former reporter has been sentenced to prison for his online commentary, cementing fears that Algeria’s new president, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, is on track to match his predecessor’s record of enacting restrictive policies toward the press even as he has promised democratic reforms. On August 24,…
Belarusian photographer Tatsiana Tkachova quit her state-owned newspaper when it failed to cover violence against protesters
As anti-government protests continue to engulf Belarus after the August 9, 2020 election, there’s a revolt brewing inside some state media outlets, where journalists are striking and quitting over what they see as their employers’ failure to accurately cover the protest movement and the government’s harsh response. Thousands of people have been detained at the demonstrations including…
Outlawing TikTok may not impede journalists, but U.S. and India bans could set a risky precedent
“Allison, can Trump ban TikTok?” Dave Jorgenson, The Washington Post’s self-described “TikTok Guy” asks in an August 3 video on the app. His colleague Allison Michaels responds: “The answer is yes, but how he can do it is kind of complicated…” It would be a typical exchange between journalists, but for the surreal setup: Jorgenson is standing over a birdbath, asking…
‘We’re scared shitless out here’: Four reporters on covering the federal response to Portland protests
“This was civic combat, but without live fire.” That’s how freelance photographer John Rudoff described the situation in Portland, Oregon, the Pacific Northwest city where demonstrations in support of Black Lives Matter and against police brutality are now in their 13th week. Portland’s protests received global attention when they took a violent turn in July as…