Iran

A Worldwide Survey by the Committee to Protect Journalists Table of Contents Preface by Riz Khan International Institutions Fail to Defend Press Freedom by Joel Simon Exposing the Internet’s Shadowy Assailants by Danny O’Brien Journalists Killed Journalists in Prison Regional Analyses AFRICA: Governments Criminalize Investigative Reporting by Mohamed Keita AMERICAS: In Latin America, a Return…

by Riz Khan It’s a double-edged sword. Technology has made the life of journalists so much easier and yet so much more difficult. Even in the least-developed countries, where simple infrastructure such as paved road is a luxury, access to mobile phones, the portability of satellite broadcasting systems, the growth of delivery platforms, and the…

Exposing the Internet’s shadowy assailants by Danny O’Brien For the past decade, those who used the Internet to report the news might have assumed that the technological edge was in their favor. But online journalists now face more than just the standard risks to those working in dangerous conditions. They find themselves victims of new…

On the Runet, Old-School Repression Meets New By Nina Ognianova and Danny O’Brien Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has often talked about the importance of a free press and free Internet, telling reporters before his election that the Web “guarantees the independence of mass media.” He explicitly tied the two together in his first State of…

Suppression Under the Cover of National Security By Mohamed Abdel Dayem Relying on an extensive network of sources in the military, government, and Islamist groups, Yemeni freelance journalist Abdulelah Shaea had become a frequent and pointed critic of the administration’s counterterrorism efforts. By July, President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s government had enough, dispatching security agents to…

Top Developments • Two killed, but press fatalities don’t rise in proportion to overall dangers. • Kidnappings an ongoing hazard; two French journalists held captive. Key Statistic 13: Foreign journalists killed in Afghanistan since the 2001 U.S. invasion. Journalists faced numerous challenges from a multifaceted war, instances of government censorship, a culture of official corruption,…

Top Developments • European Court orders release of Eynulla Fatullayev; government still jails editor. • News sites report periodic blocking, typically when sensitive stories are posted. Key Statistic 4: Journalists interrogated by security agents after running a statement from the jailed Fatullayev The authoritarian government of President Ilham Aliyev relied on imprisonments and an atmosphere…

Top Developments • Cracking down on ethnic press, authorities jail Uighur, Tibetan journalists. • Talk of media reform and press rights generates no official changes. Key Statistic 34: Journalists imprisoned on December 1, tied with Iran for the highest figure in the world. Operating under the strictures of the central propaganda department, official Chinese media…

Top Developments • Government blocks satellite TV, news texting ahead of parliamentary vote. • Political maneuvering seen as critical editor sacked, another jailed. Key Statistic 12: Satellite television stations taken off the air one month before the election. Back in 2005, reporters exposed widespread ballot fraud and voter intimidation during the country’s first multi-party presidential…

Top Developments • New press court, politically motivated lawsuits raise alarm. • As instability festers, five journalists, three support workers are killed. Key Statistic $1 billion Damages sought by the Kurdistan Democratic Party from a newspaper that detailed alleged political corruption. Instability festered throughout the year as political parties wrangled to form a new government…