Judge orders censorship in Brazilian corruption case
On July 31, 2009, Judge Dácio Vieira of the Federal District Court in Brasilia banned the Brazilian daily O Estado de S. Paulo and its Web site Estadão from publishing reports on an corruption scandal involving the family of former Brazilian President José Sarney, according to local news reports.
Cameroon shutters radio station over talk program
New York, August 19, 2009–The Committee to Protect Journalists CPJ calls on Cameroonian authorities to reopen a private radio station shut down on Monday over a popular talk show.About 20 paramilitary police summarily sealed the studios of Sky One Radio, based in the capital, Yaoundé, the station’s president, Joseph Angoula Angoula, told CPJ. The station was…
China’s Green Dam finally cracks
The Chinese government backed away on Thursday from its attempt to mandate censorship software, “Green Dam” and “Youth Escort,” on personal computers, a move that was previously delayed. Ministry of Industry and Information Technology official Li Yizhong denied there was ever an intention to require pre-installation of the programs on Thursday, saying the government’s May…
Ethiopia pushes Kenyan TV to drop report on rebels
Last week, the Ethiopian government tried to force private Kenyan broadcaster Nation Television (NTV) to drop a four-part exclusive report on separatist rebels in southern Ethiopia. NTV aired the first two parts of “Inside Rebel Territory: Rag-Tag Fighters of the Oromo Liberation Front,” which led Ethiopia’s ambassador to Kenya to accuse the Nation Media Group of giving a platform…
Moroccan newsweeklies confiscated over royal poll
A bizarre case of press censorship arose recently in Morocco when authorities seized 100,000 copies of the country’s two leading newsweeklies–TelQuel and its Arabic-language sister publication, Nichane–after they published the results of a poll in which Moroccans were asked to assess their king. The odd part? Ninety-one percent of Moroccans said they found the rule…
In Iran, journalist association closed down, more arrested
New York, August 6, 2009–Officials shut down the office of the Association of Iranian Journalists in Tehran on Wednesday night, just after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was sworn in for a second term, according to international news reports.