The Torch

2018

  

Press Freedom in 2018- A note from CPJ Advocacy

Dear friend of CPJ, There is no question that this year has been a tough one for press freedom. The number of jailed journalists topped 250 for the third year in a row, and the number of journalists targeted for murder in reprisal for their work nearly doubled, jumping from 18 in 2017 to 34…

Read More ›

People attend a symbolic funeral prayer for slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul, Turkey, on November 16, 2018. (Huseyin Aldemir/Reuters)

This year in press freedom: Murders of journalists nearly double in 2018

CPJ releases its annual report on journalists killed in 2018. Mexican journalists face deadly dangers when covering crime and politics. Lawsuits and economic crisis drive Venezuela’s journalists into exile. CPJ’s annual report found that between January 1 and December 14, 2018, 34 journalists were murdered in reprisal of their work, nearly double the number of…

Read More ›

Reuters journalist Kyaw Soe Oo is led handcuffed from a court in Yangon in September. He and colleague Wa Lone are serving seven-year prison sentences in Myanmar. (Reuters/Ann Wang)

251 journalists jailed worldwide; third worst year on record

On Thursday, the Committee to Protect Journalists released its annual prison census–a snapshot of the number of journalists behind bars as of December 1, 2018. For the third consecutive year, at least 251 journalists are behind bars for their work, as authoritarian regimes increasingly use imprisonment to silence dissent. Read their stories here. Global press…

Read More ›

Canada's Supreme Court has ruled Vice Media reporter Ben Makuch must hand over details of communication with a source. (VICE News)

Major setback for press freedom in Canada

Canada’s Supreme Court upholds a lower court ruling that Vice Media reporter Ben Makuch should hand over his communications with a source. CPJ joins eight other organizations in condemning the lack of justice in the murder of Maltese investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, one year after three arrests were made in connection with the case….

Read More ›

Maria Ressa, the founder of Rappler, arrives at the National Bureau of Investigation headquarters in Manila on January 22, 2018. Ressa says she believes the news website is being harassed because of its critical coverage of the president of the Philippines. (AFP/Noel Celis)

Seeking #JusticeForJamal because journalism matters

CPJ, RSF call on Philippines to end its persecution of Rappler and Maria Ressa, as prosecutors file five separate tax cases. Unknown gunmen assassinate prominent Syrian radio host Raed Fares and photographer Hamoud al-Jnaid. CPJ is awarded the 2018 Chatham House prize in London. Global press freedom updates Philippines piles on legal threats against critical…

Read More ›

CPJ Africa Program Coordinator Angela Quintal recounts her detention in Tanzania (screenshot, The Daily Maverick).

Five courageous journalists to be honored at CPJ’s 2018 International Press Freedom Awards

CPJ Africa Program Coordinator Angela Quintal recounts CPJ’s harrowing ordeal in Tanzania. CPJ will honor four exceptional journalists at the 2018 International Press Freedom Awards. In the wake of the Capital Gazette attack, local U.S. newsrooms reassess their security. Bangladesh court grants bail to jailed photojournalist Shahidul Alam. Global press freedom updates Yesterday I met…

Read More ›

Tanzanian immigration authorities detained CPJ Sub-Saharan Africa Representative Muthoki Mumo, left, and Africa Program Coordinator Angela Quintal in Dar es Salaam on November 7. (CPJ)

Two CPJ staff briefly detained in Tanzania

Angela Quintal, CPJ’s Africa program coordinator, and Muthoki Mumo, CPJ’s sub-Saharan Africa representative, were briefly detained in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on November 7 by immigration and security officials. Quintal and Mumo were reporting on the press freedom situation in Tanzania, which has deteriorated significantly in the past year. CPJ is grateful for the journalists,…

Read More ›

At least 324 journalists have been murdered in the past decade

CPJ releases its 2018 Impunity Index to coincide with the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists. How the Saudis may have spied on slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Video journalist killed in Maoist rebel attack in India. Global press freedom updates Nine sheep wearing ‘PRESS’ jackets were sent to the Moscow office…

Read More ›

In an October 9 file photo, protesters outside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul hold portraits of critical Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Saudi Arabia today said the journalist was killed during a fight in the consulate. (AFP/Ozan Kose)

Is there a path to justice in Khashoggi’s murder?

CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon explores “the path(s) to justice in Jamal Khashoggi’s murder.” CPJ published a new report that finds secondary screenings of journalists crossing U.S. borders can undermine press freedom. Efforts to find the mastermind in the murder of Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia are stalled. Journalist Raghav Bahl, center, is seen in…

Read More ›

Vietnamese blogger Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, known by her pen name "Mother Mushroom," (center, in white) with a group of supporters upon her arrival at the airport in Houston, Texas, on Thursday. (Danlambao News)

CPJ asks Turkey to seek UN inquiry on Khashoggi; Vietnamese blogger ‘Mother Mushroom’ released from prison; and more in The Torch

Vietnamese blogger and 2018 International Press Freedom Awardee Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, known by her pen name “Mother Mushroom,” was released from prison on Wednesday. And CPJ joined partner organizations at the United Nations Thursday in urging Turkey to ask U.N. Secretary General António Guterres to establish an investigation into the possible extrajudicial execution of…

Read More ›

2018