The Torch is a weekly newsletter from the Committee to Protect Journalists that brings you the latest press freedom and journalist safety news from around the world. Subscribe here.
As China prepares to host the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, Chinese authorities continue to imprison journalists without consequence and crack down on the independent press in Hong Kong.
Last month, Hong Kong authorities filed new charges against media entrepreneur and CPJ 2021 Gwen Ifill Press Freedom Awardee Jimmy Lai, along with six former staff at Lai’s media company Next Digital and his newspaper, Apple Daily. The following day, police raided the nonprofit newsroom Stand News and arrested six people affiliated with the outlet on suspicion of sedition, leading the site to announce that it would cease operations immediately.
Learn more about some of the journalists under threat in China and Hong Kong in this month’s One Free Press list.
- Somaliland authorities arrest three journalists for critical reporting
- Turkish court issues suspended prison terms to four journalists and one media worker over reporting on leaked emails
- Algerian journalist Merzoug Touati sentenced to one year in prison
- Islamabad High Court to indict three Pakistani journalists for criminal contempt
- Yemeni journalist Hala Fuad Badhawi detained in Hadramout
- Vietnam sentences journalist Le Trong Hung to 5 years in prison
- Mexican journalist Marcela Turati spoke to CPJ about the chilling implications of Mexico’s probe into her reporting
- Ruling party supporters raid Zambia’s Mpika FM Radio, halt show featuring opposition
- CPJ examines how social media regulation could affect the press globally
Spotlight
One year ago today, journalists covering the U.S. Capitol faced one of the most challenging reporting experiences of their lives, when pro-Trump protests erupted, leading to a mob breaking into the Capitol building and forcing journalists, lawmakers, and staff to shelter in place for hours. Journalists covering the riot faced dire threats. Today, virulent anti-media sentiment persists in the U.S.
CPJ spoke with several journalists last year, and many noted that while the day was difficult, they were there to tell a story. “This is a truly terrible and historic moment in American history,” Audrey Fahlberg, a reporter at The Dispatch, told CPJ. “There was a huge adrenaline rush that I experienced and there was a moment that I thought to myself, ‘This is what I’m meant to do.’”
CPJ has welcomed the Justice Department’s steps in prosecuting these attacks. However, the U.S. House Committee investigating the riot has subpoenaed a photojournalist’s confidential source material, a move condemned by CPJ and other press freedom organizations.
Journalists looking for information on covering civil disorder can find resources on our website.
- In 2021, Myanmar journalists risked lives to tell world of coup — Andrew Nachemson, Al-Jazeera
- Nigeria’s Deadly Tug of War Over Free Expression — Ohimai Amaize, Slate
Editor’s note: The spelling of Ohimai Amaize’s name has been corrected in the final bullet point.
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