News from the Committee to Protect Journalists, September 2013
Press freedom award winners announced Four journalists–Janet Hinostroza (Teleamazonas, Ecuador), Bassem Youssef (Capital Broadcast Center, Egypt), Nedim Şener (Posta, Turkey), and Nguyen Van Hai (Dieu Cay, Vietnam)–will be honored with CPJ’s 2013 International Press Freedom Awards in recognition of their courageous reporting in the face of severe reprisal.Upon receiving the news, Hinostroza told CPJ: “It will…
Mission Journal: Why Turkey matters
Turkey is hardly a press freedom paradise, but what makes the country so exciting for journalists is the amount of news it generates on any given day. The domestic story is huge, with near-daily street protests, the booming economy beginning to sag, and the prospect of regional conflict looming with Syria. And Istanbul is a…
CPJ: Turkey Press Freedom Crisis Worsens Post-Gezi
Ankara, September 17, 2013–Heated anti-press rhetoric, the firing of leading journalists, threats to restrict online speech, and a series of physical and legal assaults further damaged the press freedom environment in Turkey in the months following the Gezi Park protests that began last May. In a letter to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the Committee…
CPJ calls on Erdogan to embrace press freedom
Dear Prime Minister Erdoğan, as an independent international press freedom advocacy organization, we are concerned about the continued press freedom crisis in Turkey. We believe the government’s failure to safeguard press freedom undermines the great strengths of your nation.
Journalists sentenced in alleged Ergenekon plot
Istanbul, August 7, 2013–A Turkish appellate court should overturn the convictions of numerous journalists who have been convicted in connection with Ergenekon, a broad anti-government conspiracy, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The journalists were convicted on flawed penal and anti-terror laws that conflate news coverage and commentary with terrorism.
Several journalists fired, forced to resign in Turkey
New York, July 25, 2013–The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by reports that numerous Turkish journalists, including the leading columnist Yavuz Baydar, have been fired or forced to resign from news outlets in apparent retaliation for their independent coverage of anti-government demonstrations that swept the country.
Turkish journalists detained, another beaten in Egypt
New York, July 9, 2013–Four Turkish journalists in Egypt were briefly taken into military custody today, following an assault on another Turk on Sunday, according to news reports. Separately, an Egyptian journalist was severely beaten by Muslim Brotherhood supporters last week.
Attacks in Egypt highlight risk of covering protests
From São Paulo to Istanbul to Cairo, coverage of street demonstrations has re-emerged as an exceptionally dangerous assignment for journalists. Since June 1, CPJ has documented more than 120 attacks on the press amid the civil unrest in Brazil, Turkey, and Egypt–the biggest surge of attacks in such circumstances since the uprisings that swept the Arab world…
Danger on Turkey’s streets: Reporting on the civil unrest
It all changed so swiftly. The demand and price of gas masks, protective eyewear, and helmets rocketed in Istanbul. Not only protestors, but journalists, too, contributed to the rush. Hardware store clerks were quick studies, explaining to journalists which masks offer you a better line of sight when taking pictures, and describing the problem of…
Turkish mayor harasses BBC journalist on Twitter
New York, June 24, 2013–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns a spurious and inflammatory Twitter campaign begun Sunday by Ankara Mayor Melih Gökçek against a local BBC reporter. Gökçek labeled BBC reporter Selin Girit as a traitor and a spy in apparent disagreement with the BBC’s coverage of anti-government protests that have swept the country.