Reporter Bárbara Figueroa Rosa on covering Puerto Rico’s coronavirus outbreak
In the three years since Hurricane Maria hit the island, Puerto Rico has experienced a financial, political, and public health crisis, but reporter Bárbara Figueroa Rosa told CPJ that these events “have no comparison” to the impact the coronavirus pandemic could have on the U.S. territory.
For Russia’s Igor Rudnikov, coronavirus makes fight with Kaliningrad even tougher
Igor Rudnikov is the editor-in-chief of the independent Novye Kolyosa newspaper, based in the western Russian city of Kaliningrad. In 2017, agents from Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) arrested Rudnikov over his paper’s reporting, as CPJ documented at the time.
Reporter denied access to Florida governor’s briefing on COVID-19
Washington, D.C., March 30, 2020 — Florida Governor Ron DeSantis should allow reporters to safely cover his news briefings, and not penalize journalists who seek to follow public health guidance on social distancing, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
All journalists jailed globally must be freed amid COVID-19 pandemic
CPJ launches #FreeThePress campaign New York, March 30, 2020 –The Committee to Protect Journalists today launched the #FreeThePress campaign to call for the unconditional release of all jailed journalists to ensure their safety during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Philippines COVID-19 state of emergency includes prison time for spreading ‘false news’
Bangkok, March 27, 2020 — The Philippine Congress should repeal a recently enacted regulation that imposes criminal penalties for spreading ‘false news’ about the coronavirus pandemic, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Q&A: RAI journalist Stefania Battistini on covering Italy’s coronavirus outbreak
Stefania Battistini, an experienced reporter for Italian public broadcaster RAI, has covered terrorist attacks, earthquakes, and Syria’s civil war for the channel’s news program. Now, she is confronting the biggest challenge of her career: the coronavirus pandemic that is ravaging Lombardy, northern Italy, one of the hardest-hit regions in the world. Battistini, who is based…
Iraqi security forces seize journalist’s belongings for allegedly violating COVID-19 curfew
On March 24, 2020, Iraqi National Security Forces officers stopped Azad Shakur, a reporter for the Iraqi Kurdish broadcaster Gali Kurdistan, and seized his belongings for allegedly violating a lockdown imposed to restrict the spread of the COVID-19 virus, according to Shakur, who spoke to CPJ in a phone interview, and a report by the…
