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Press freedom in the news 12/10/08

The release of Iraqi journalist Adel Hussein, who had been jailed in Iraqi Kurdistan, is making news today. The Associated Press has coverage of his pardon from President Masoud Barzani, as does Canada’s CBC News. Both articles cite our coverage of the case and quote CPJ Deputy Director Robert Mahoney, who called on the authorities…

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Mexico’s special prosecutor urged to act

In response to a statement by the special prosecutor for crimes against the press Octavio Orellana Wiarco during a press conference in Mexico City yesterday in which he denied that Mexico is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists, we issued the following statement…

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Journalist jailed for sodomy article released

New York, December 9, 2008–The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes a presidential pardon for a journalist in Iraqi Kurdistan who had been sentenced to six months in prison, in direct violation of the region’s press law. 

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Press freedom in the news 12/09/08

There is even more coverage today of our annual census of imprisoned journalists, released last week, that lists 125 journalists in jail. The Czech service of RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty, the newspaper Malaysia Today, the AsiaOne Web site, G4TV online, all have stories focused on our finding that the majority of those jailed are online journalists. AllAfrica has coverage of the…

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China urged to release Liu Xiaobo

We released this statement after learning that formerly jailed journalist Liu Xiaobo was detained after signing a letter to the government today calling for greater freedoms ahead of the 60th anniversary Wednesday of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The letter was signed by 300 lawyers, writers, scholars, and artists…

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CPJ

Press freedom is a human right

I attended a potluck reception for my daughter’s first-grade class last week, and amid the banter about the economic meltdown and arranging play dates I spent a lot of time answering the inevitable questions about what I do for a living.

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Cardoso’s killer escapes again

New York, December 8, 2008–The convicted murderer of Mozambique’s foremost investigative journalist, Carlos Cardoso, escaped from his high-security cell in on Sunday morning, local journalists told CPJ. This is the third time the assassin Anibal dos Santos Jr., commonly referred to as Anibalzinho, has escaped prison in Mozambique’s capital, Maputo. 

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Why the Planet Needs a Free Press

By Joel SimonPublished in On Earth, Winter 2009Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev seems to have recast himself as Russia’s Al Gore. In October, at a conference in Venice organized by his World Political Forum, he implored the journalists present to do a better job of reporting on climate change. “We need people to know where…

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The debate begins in Mexico

Last month, veteran crime reporter Armando Rodríguez was gunned down in Ciudad Juárez on the Texas border, sparking another round of hand-wringing about the relentless violence that is suffocating critical journalism in Mexico. Rodríguez’s brutal murder sparked coverage in the U.S. media as well, including pieces in The Washington Post and NPR.

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Press freedom in the news 12/08/08

Our annual census of imprisoned journalists, which lists 125 journalists in jail, has gotten more coverage today and over the weekend. Geek has a story that focuses on our finding that the majority of those in prison are online journalists. The Web site ArsTechnica also examines this angle in its coverage, and Democracy Now! ran a similarly…

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