Features & Analysis

The United Nations has called on Israel to open Gaza to international journalists, a vital step that CPJ sought from the Israelis earlier this week. Yesterday, the U.N.’s chief of communications and public information urged the Israeli government to “ensure immediate access for international media into Gaza.”

Today I spoke on the telephone with Ibrahim Barzak, an Associated Press correspondent in Gaza whose home was destroyed on December 30 in an Israeli strike. He now sleeps in his office and continues to file news stories. There is no downtime; with an Israeli ban on the entry of foreign journalists into the Gaza Strip, Ibrahim…

Masked gunman threw a grenade at Mexican TV broadcaster Televisa on Wednesday and shot up the building. We released an alert yesterday condemning the attack and calling for the federalization of laws for crimes against the press in Mexico.

Yesterday’s attack on Mexican TV network Televisa is making headlines in the world press today. The Washington Post has coverage of masked gunman threw a grenade at the TV station, allegedly in retaliation for reporting on drug trafficking. The article quotes CPJ’s Carlos Lauria, who said that the “attack in Monterrey is another example of how…

The stakes are high. Journalist-formed rock bands with names like “Suspicious Package” and “The Surge” will compete this Friday night, January 9, at the usually austere National Press Club in Washington. The question of which band will walk away as the “single undisputed champion” will be decided, according to the official Journopalooza Web site, in…

As part of their military campaign in Gaza, Israeli forces seem to be targeting Hamas-affiliated media outlets, a practice that is of concern to CPJ. The Hamas-run broadcaster Al-Aqsa television was bombed on December 28, and then on January 5, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) appear to have hit the newsweekly Al-Risala as well its…

The Associated Press has coverage today of CPJ’s tally of journalists killed for their work in 2008. The final number rests at 41, with 22 cases still unconfirmed. We released a video remembering those who died in the past year, as well as an in-depth report on those killed in 2008.

The news that BBC reporter Jonathan Head could face jail time in Thailand for alledgely insulting the Thai monarchy has recieved significant coverage over the holidays. Our alert on the incident from Wendesday has been cited in a number of outlets including The Associated Press, the UK-based Press Association, and the Irish Examiner. All three quoted CPJ’s…

With the death on Monday of Guinean President Lansana Conté, uncertainty hangs over what–or who–is to follow. Yet, as recently as last week, coverage of the poor health of the reclusive autocrat, who ruled this mineral-rich but poor West African nation since 1984, proved risky for the Guinean independent media.