Meet Mediazona, the punk rock-founded Russian news outlet whose editor was jailed for a tweet
Of the more than 100 Russian journalists who have been arrested or fined covering rallies in support of jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny, Mediazona chief editor Sergey Smirnov has become a symbol of the absurd lengths to which Russian authorities are willing to go to quash coverage of the events. On January 20, Smirnov retweeted another person’s tweet saying…
Irrawaddy editor Aung Zaw speaks to fears of a post-coup media crackdown in Myanmar
On February 1, Myanmar military overthrew the country’s democratically elected government and imposed a year of emergency rule until new elections are held and democracy restored. News reports have shown the coup has been met with spirited and widespread anti-military street protests, reportage the now-ruling military has tried to blackout through heavy handed measures including…
Al-Jazeera’s Ghada Oueiss on hacking, harassment, and Jamal Khashoggi
In a mid-2020 Washington Post opinion piece, Lebanese Al-Jazeera broadcast journalist Ghada Oueiss described hackers stealing private photos and videos from her phone and posting them online. The leak resulted in a sharp escalation of online attacks, Oueiss told CPJ in a January 2021 call. Since the brutal murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi…
South African journalist Sam Sole on landmark court victory: “2008 surveillance was the tip of the iceberg”
South Africa’s highest court, the Constitutional Court, handed down a landmark judgment on February 4 that not only protects journalists and their sources from surveillance abuse, but also upheld a lower court’s ruling that the insidious practice of the bulk interception of ordinary citizens’ data and communication is illegal. The ruling, documented by CPJ, was…
Indian finance authorities raid Newsclick office, homes of editors and managers
New Delhi, February 10, 2021 — Indian authorities must immediately stop occupying the offices of the news website Newsclick and cease harassing its editors and managers, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Since yesterday morning, officers with the Indian Finance Ministry’s Enforcement Directorate have raided Newsclick’s New Delhi office, as well as the homes…
Journalists Alvarez Destiné and Méus Jeanril shot as police and armed forces disperse protest in Haiti
Miami, February 9, 2021 — Haitian authorities should thoroughly investigate the shootings of journalists Alvarez Destiné and Méus Jeanril, identify those responsible, and hold them to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Yesterday afternoon, in the Champs-des-Mars area of Port-au-Prince, the capital, unidentified attackers shot Destiné and Jeanril while they were covering protests calling for…
Uzbek blogger Otabek Sattoriy detained, charged with extortion
New York, February 8, 2021 – Uzbek authorities should immediately release journalist Otabek Sattoriy, drop all charges against him, and allow him to work freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On January 30, in the southern city of Termez, a group of plain-clothed police officers detained Sattoriy, a blogger who covers alleged local…
Journalist Adel al-Hasani held by Yemen’s Southern Transitional Council since September
New York, February 8, 2021 – Yemen’s breakaway Southern Transitional Council should release journalist Adel al-Hasani immediately and stop arbitrarily detaining and harassing members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On September 17, 2020, at a checkpoint between the southern cities of Aden and Abyan, security forces with the Southern Transitional…
Iran arrests journalist Reza Taleshian Jelodarzadeh
Washington, D.C., February 5, 2021—Iranian authorities must release journalist Reza Taleshian Jelodarzadeh and stop arresting members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On January 20, Jelodarzadeh, editor-in-chief of the Tehran-based Nour-e Azadi magazine, wrote on his Instagram account that he had been arrested by Iranian authorities and was being transferred to Greater Tehran Prison. He also…
Access to social media, TV restricted in Myanmar as democracy is upended
Myanmar’s military seized power from the elected government February 1, obstructing news stations, temporarily shuttering phone and internet access, and later restricting access to social media platforms. “Social media and communication platforms are crucial for journalists to report the news as democracy is upended,” said Shawn Crispin, CPJ’s senior Southeast Asia representative, urging officials to…