Ahead of elections, Russian media are duly warned
Russia’s leading independent media head into Sunday’s elections–in which Vladimir Putin is expected to be handed his third presidential term–burdened by a series of warnings. Over the past few months, beginning with the parliamentary elections held December 4, Kremlin allies have taken several steps designed to put news outlets on alert for uncensored coverage of…
Iran’s opposition: Gagged by years of intimidation
With parliamentary elections scheduled for March 2, the Iranian government is restricting journalists and media outlets in their political coverage. In this BBC World News article, CPJ’s Mohamed Abdel Dayem, Middle East and North Africa Program Coordinator, speaks on the state of Iranian press freedom prior to the elections. Click here for the full story
Protests not newsworthy to Kremlin-controlled media
Following Sunday’s elections to the Russian Duma, news reports abound of the wave of opposition protests that have hit Russia’s current and historic capitals, Moscow and St. Petersburg. In demonstrations unprecedented in the past decade, thousands of protesters have taken to the streets chanting “Russia without Putin!” and calling for the vote to be annulled,…
In pre-election violence, arsonists target DRC TV station
New York, September 6, 2011–Unidentified armed men today torched the studios of a private television station that aired programs favorable to Democratic Republic of Congo opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi, local journalists and news reports said. At around 2 a.m., a dozen men threw tear gas into the studios of Radio Lisanga Télévision (RLTV), based in…
In Ivory Coast, pro-Ouattara forces harass journalists
New York, May 24, 2011–The new government of freshly sworn-in Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara must launch a serious investigation into alleged harassment of journalists, including the killing of a reporter, by the republican forces of the Ivory Coast (the French acronym is FRCI), the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The FRCI backed Ouattara…
Peru candidates pledge to respect press freedom–will they?
Keiko Fujimori and Ollanta Humala, the two candidates for the June 5 presidential runoff in Peru, barely raised freedom of expression issues during the political campaign. So Friday’s event organized by the regional press group Instituto Prensa y Sociedad (IPYS) in Lima provided a great opportunity to measure their commitment on press freedom, especially important…
Ahead of election, cyber-attacks cripple online media
Bangkok, April 19, 2011–The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned by cyber-attacks against three news and commentary sites that preceded Saturday’s important election in Malaysia’s Sarawak state, on the island of Borneo. The country’s main news portal Malaysiakini, Sarawak Report, and the Malay and English versions of the opposition Harakahdaily website all reported similar attacks.…
After attack, Kazakhstan publisher goes missing
New York, April 1, 2011–The Committee to Protect Journalists called on Kazakh authorities today to immediately investigate the whereabouts of Daniyar Moldashev, director of ADP Ltd, publisher of the independent Almaty newspaper Respublika.Colleagues said Thursday that Moldashev had disappeared, days after being assaulted and shortly before the country’s presidential election.”We are gravely concerned about the…