Across Asia, press freedom conditions varied radically in 2003, from authoritarian regimes with strictly regulated state-controlled media in North Korea and Laos, to democratic nations with outspoken and diverse journalism in India and Taiwan. Members of the media throughout the region struggled against excessive government interference, outdated press laws, violent attacks, and imprisonment for their…
While integration into NATO and the European Union has had a positive effect on press freedom conditions in most of Central Europe and the Baltic states, the situation for journalists in Russia and the former Soviet republics has worsened steadily, with governments relying on authoritarian tactics to silence the media. Even reformist governments in the…
War and political violence drew hundreds of journalists to the Middle East in 2003 for what proved to be a series of relentlessly dangerous assignments. The U.S.-led war in Iraq was one of the most heavily covered conflicts in modern history–and one of the deadliest for journalists. Thirteen reporters died from hostile acts, both during…
New York, March 11, 2004–The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) today released its annual survey, Attacks on the Press in 2003, during a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Copies of the book are available through The Brookings Institution Press [click here to order the print edition]. The entire text of…
Albania’s contentious political environment and economic underdevelopment continued to make the country a relatively chaotic and difficult place for the independent press in 2003. Journalists faced government pressure, criminal libel lawsuits, arbitrary dismissal by politicized owners, and limited access to basic government information, particularly when investigating official corruption and organized crime. Furthermore, low professional standards,…
With Algerians preparing for the April 2004 presidential election , the government of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who has always had a contentious relationship with the media, took steps to restrict press freedom. Since 1990, when the first private newspapers were allowed in Algeria, the media and the government have engaged in a tug-of-war. In 2003,…
Since the death of Jonas Savimbi, leader of the rebel National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), brought an end to Angola’s civil war in 2002, the ruling Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) has become somewhat more tolerant of the independent press. Journalists say the climate has improved, but problems…
While the economy began to recover in 2003 after the worst socioeconomic crisis in the country’s history and the political situation regained stability under a new president, the Argentine press continued to struggle with significant budgetary difficulties. Argentina’s economic collapse not only caused about a dozen media outlets to fold, it has also meant that…
In 2003, presidential and parliamentary elections dominated Armenia’s political scene. Though President Robert Kocharian managed to retain power, tens of thousands of demonstrators angered by widespread electoral fraud took to the streets in protest before the March runoff, calling for his resignation.