UN Secretary General responds to #FreeThePress campaign call to action
In a letter this week to the partners of the 2020 #FreeThePress campaign, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres emphasized that freedom of the press and the safety of journalists remains a key priority for him, stressing that, “No democracy can function without press freedom, which is the cornerstone of trust between people and their institutions,…
NY Times reporter Davey Alba on covering COVID-19 conspiracy theories, facing online harassment
Over the course of Davey Alba’s career as a tech reporter, her beat has transformed from covering the latest gadgets and phones to investigating the creeping influence and massive power wielded by tech companies over peoples’ everyday lives. As the coronavirus pandemic has spread across the globe, Alba, who covers tech and disinformation at The…
On third anniversary of his murder, Javier Valdez’s wife calls for justice in open letter
Today, on the third anniversary of the murder of her husband, Mexican reporter Javier Valdez Cárdenas, journalist Griselda Triana wrote an open letter calling for justice and describing the ordeal of her family in the wake of his killing. The letter was published in several Mexican news outlets and by the Committee to Protect Journalists.
First Draft’s Aimee Rinehart on fact-checking coronavirus misinformation
While digital communication enables the public to receive critical information about the COVID-19 pandemic in real time, the same tools are enabling an “infodemic” of misinformation that “can hamper an effective public health response and create confusion and distrust,” according to the United Nations.
YouTube censors independent Nicaraguan news outlets after copyright complaints from Ortega-owned media
Miguel Mora, director of the independent Nicaraguan news outlet 100% Noticias, oversaw its move online after its television broadcast license was revoked by the government in April 2018. He and his colleagues transferred their archives onto two YouTube accounts and used them to continue documenting the government’s repressive response to escalating protests in the months…
CPJ joins letter calling on Colombia to strengthen protections for journalists
The Committee to Protect Journalists on May 4 joined more than 100 civil society organizations in an open letter calling on Colombia’s National Protection Unit to adopt measures to ensure the safety of journalists and other human rights defenders under increased threat due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Halifax Examiner’s Tim Bousquet on covering a mass shooting in a pandemic
When news broke that a gunman had killed at least 22 people in Nova Scotia on April 18 and 19, the Halifax Examiner, a small independent local news website, began piecing together how the deadliest mass shooting in Canada’s history had occurred.
In Brazil, Rio’s community journalists face daily challenges informing favela residents about COVID-19
Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Gizele Martins and Raull Santiago—community journalists from Rio de Janeiro’s favelas—worked to bring accurate news and information to the local population and to give visibility to their struggles. Their organizations are among dozens of media groups founded by residents of Rio’s favelas and other marginalized areas aiming to challenge stereotypes,…
CPJ joins letters calling on US Senate to increase Magnitsky Act funding
The Committee to Protect Journalists recently joined 50 democracy, human rights, and anti-corruption organizations and experts in three letters urging U.S. Congressional leaders to retain and increase funding and capacity for the enforcement of the Global Magnitsky Act.
Q&A: U.S. photographers navigate a new reality under COVID-19
As newsrooms across the United States gradually shut their doors in March and sent many journalists into the safety of their homes, others have no choice but to remain outside. Photojournalists throughout the U.S. and around the world are continuing to visually document how the world is adjusting to this historic moment amid the COVID-19…