Two radio journalists shot and killed during live broadcast in the Dominican Republic
New York, February 15, 2017 — Authorities in the Dominican Republic should establish a motive in the murder of radio journalists Luis Manuel Medina and Leónidas Martínez and prosecute all those responsible, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The two radio journalists were shot and killed yesterday during a Facebook Live broadcast at the…
Ethiopia’s state of emergency cuts lines of communication and puts bloggers at risk of arrest
On October 4, I heard that my friend Natnael Feleke had not returned home even though it was approaching midnight in Ethiopia. Family and friends were discussing where to search for the blogger, who had only been released 11 months earlier from the notorious Kilinto prison, where he was held for 16 months over his…
CPJ calls on Thailand to not censor news during royal transition
New York, October 14, 2016–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Thailand’s military government to lift a blanket censorship order on television news broadcasters imposed in the wake of King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s death yesterday.
Jordanian commentator Nahed Hattar shot to death in Jordan
Washington, September 25, 2016–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns today’s assassination of controversial Jordanian writer Nahed Hattar outside an Amman court, where he was facing charges of “insulting religion” in connection with a cartoon he shared on Facebook, according to news reports. Relatives at the scene apprehended his killer, the reports said.
Uganda blocks social media sites for presidential inauguration
Nairobi, May 12, 2016 – Ugandan authorities should immediately restore access to social media websites and refrain from censoring any websites in the future, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Regulators blocked access to Twitter and Facebook, and to the messaging service WhatsApp today, according to press reports.
Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of March 20
Istanbul court rules trial for journalists facing life sentences to be closed to public The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned an Istanbul court’s decision today to bar the public from the trial of Can Dündar and Erdem Gül, journalists for the daily newspaper Cumhuriyet. Representatives from CPJ and other free-speech groups attended the first…
In Turkey, two journalists accused of creating terrorist propaganda with social media posts
Istanbul, November 18, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the arrests of two reporters from pro-Kurdish news agencies on Friday. Idris Yılmaz, of Dicle News Agency, and Vildan Atmaca, of the women’s news agency JİNHA, were detained in the Erciş district of Van, a city in eastern Turkey, according to reports.
Privatizing censorship in fight against extremism is risk to press freedom
“We’re stepping up our efforts to discredit ISIL’s propaganda, especially online,” President Barack Obama told delegates at the Leaders’ Summit on Countering Violent Extremism last month. The social media counter-offensive comes amid U.N. reports of a 70 percent increase in what it terms “foreign terrorist fighters”–citizens of U.N. member states who have left to join…