Censored

Editor’s note: In a deferred hearing on August 20, the court upheld Kazakh authorities’ accreditation denial and ban against seven RFE/RL journalists; the appeal of a further nine journalists remains under consideration. RFE/RL said it would appeal the verdict. New York, August 18, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists urges Kazakh authorities to reinstate accreditation for 16 journalists with U.S. government-funded…

Radio Azattyq director Torokul Doorov says it is “very difficult” for journalists not to become activists in the face of “unfairness and injustice” in Kazakhstan. “You just want to start screaming,” says Doorov, who joined the Kazakh arm of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in 2014, and the outlet grew to be one of Kazakhstan’s most influential…

In four years, the Taliban have annihilated Afghanistan’s independent media sector and supplanted it with their own propaganda empire and sophisticated digital bots that flood social media with pro-Taliban content. CPJ interviewed 10 Afghan journalists, inside and outside the country, who said that  independent media, which used to reach millions of people, have largely been…

CPJ joined 15 other media and human rights organizations in a joint letter demanding an end to the forced starvation and targeted killing of journalists in Gaza by Israel. The letter calls on governments, international organizations, the media, and civil society to ensure access for food and medical supplies; end to the blockade on foreign…

Kinshasa, August 5, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls for the reopening of the privately owned Radio Nsenda Muana in the city of Mwene-Ditu, in the central Democratic Republic of the Congo, and for authorities to cease arresting journalists. On July 29, Mwene-Ditu Mayor Gérard Tshibanda Kabue signed an order, reviewed by CPJ, indefinitely barring…

New York, July 22, 2025—Georgian authorities seized the financial accounts of independent news outlets Batumelebi and Netgazeti over tax arrears, days ahead of an expected verdict in the trial of the outlets’ director, Mzia Amaglobeli, who has been jailed since January on charges widely viewed as politically motivated. “The unwarranted seizure of Batumelebi and Netgazeti’s…

WASHINGTON, D.C., July 22, 2025—A  media company linked to Egyptian authorities suspended three prominent television programs after their hosts criticized the government and road safety failures, raising concerns about media control by state-aligned entities, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On July 16, United Media Services (UMS), a company owned and closely linked to Egypt’s General Intelligence Service, terminated its contract with…

Mexico City, July 22, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by a gag order placed on reporter-editor Jorge Luis González Valdez and the newspaper Tribuna by a court in the southeastern Mexican state of Campeche. CPJ calls on Gov. Layda Sansores to immediately cease any judicial harassment of the journalist and the publication over…

Berlin, July 18, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by a bill under consideration in the Russian State Duma that would introduce fines for accessing or searching for “extremist” online content, threatening to further restrict press freedom and access to information.  The bill, which passed its second reading on July 17, 2025, is the “most serious step in censorship and…

New Delhi, July 10, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls for greater transparency and due process in how Indian authorities handle social media restrictions, following reports of the temporary block of multiple international news organizations’ X accounts over the weekend. X accused the Indian government of censoring the press.  “This incident once again underscores the serious lack of transparency and…