Indian journalist Rana Ayyub tailed by officials, harassed after number leaked
New Delhi, November 8, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists is highly concerned after Indian investigative journalist Rana Ayyub’s personal number was leaked online and, separately, local intelligence personnel followed and repeatedly questioned her throughout a four-day reporting trip in the northeastern state of Manipur in early October, according to three people familiar with the situation…
CPJ urges Russia to drop charges against journalists accused of ‘illegal’ border crossing
Berlin, October 3, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Russian authorities to stop harassing international reporters after the Federal Security Service (FSB) filed criminal charges against three journalists on September 27 for allegedly crossing the Russian border illegally from Ukraine. The criminal cases have been initiated against Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) Europe correspondent Kathryn…
Haitian journalist threatened over article about Reuters reporters’ gifts to gang leader
Miami, September 30, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists is disturbed by threats made against journalist Widlore Mérancourt by Haitian gang leader Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier over his article about a Reuters journalist giving Cherizier gifts of balaclavas, alcohol, and cigarettes. “We are very concerned about the threats made against AyiboPost’s editor-in-chief Widlore Mérancourt by the Haitian…
Haitian rum manufacturer sues AyiboPost, editor-in-chief for criminal defamation
Miami, October 6, 2023—The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about the criminal defamation suit filed by the owner of the rum company Rhum Barbancourt against the independent news website AyiboPost and its editor-in-chief, Widlore Mérancourt, and calls on Haitian authorities to repeal the country’s punitive criminal defamation laws, the organization said Friday. On September…
At least 40 journalists targeted amid Brazil capital riot and aftermath
Rio de Janeiro, January 13, 2023 – Brazilian authorities must investigate all attacks on journalists covering the January 8 riots at the country’s capital and their aftermath, and adopt concrete measures to protect members of the press and reduce widespread hostility against the media, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On January 8, thousands…
Bolsonaro supporters attack, harass journalists while storming Brazil government buildings
Rio de Janeiro, January 9, 2023 – In response to attacks on members of the press by supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro who stormed the country’s Congress, Federal Supreme Court, and presidential offices Sunday, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement of condemnation: “During this critical time for Brazilian democracy, journalists…
Forensic tools open new front for using phone data to prosecute journalists
On April 13, police in Russia’s Khakassiya republic arrested Mikhail Afanasyev and seized his digital devices. Afanasyev, chief editor of the online magazine Novy Fokus, was detained based on an article about riot police in southern Siberia refusing to serve in Ukraine. He faces a possible 10-year prison sentence for spreading “false” information. It’s not surprising for…
CPJ calls for Twitter to restore accounts of suspended journalists, commit to media freedom
New York, December 16, 2022—Twitter should immediately reinstate the journalists whose accounts it suspended without notice and explicitly commit to practices that defend a free and independent media, Jodie Ginsberg, president of the Committee to Protect Journalists, said in a statement Friday. Responding to news reports that Twitter had suspended the accounts of at least…
Iran detains female photojournalist, four female documentary filmmakers
Washington, D.C., May 16, 2022 — Iranian authorities must stop imprisoning and harassing female journalists and should allow all members of the press to cover the news freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. Since May, Iranian authorities have arrested at least one female photojournalist and four female documentary filmmakers, according to news reports and two…
How China is stepping up harassment of foreign correspondents
When international journalists rushed to Zhengzhou city in Henan province to cover a deadly flood in July 2021, they were confronted by angry bystanders who accused them of “spreading rumors” and “smearing China.” Many also received harassing messages on social media and intimidating calls, according to the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China. This hostility spread after the Henan Communist Youth…