As ruling party fans spew online abuse, Pakistan’s female journalists call for government action
On August 16, Ramsha Jahangir should have been celebrating a journalistic triumph, the release of a long, deeply reported cover story for the weekend magazine of Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper on the government’s social media strategy and image-building. Instead, she spent the day watching in horror as a torrent of abuse filled her social media feeds. Eventually, she went offline. …
Pakistan government suspends advertising in 2 independent media groups
Washington, D.C., March 2, 2020 — Pakistani authorities should grant government advertising to outlets without regard for their editorial stances, and should lift the suspension of advertising in the Dawn and Jang media groups, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Demonstrators block entrance to Dawn newspaper in Pakistan, call for staffers to be hanged
New York, December 3, 2019 — Pakistan authorities must prevent demonstrations against the Dawn newspaper from turning violent, and should investigate death threats made against its staffers, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Silence from judiciary over media attacks increases self-censorship, Pakistan’s journalists say
When it comes to the military and the judiciary, Pakistan’s journalists are “between a rock and a hard place,” Zohra Yusuf, of the independent non-profit Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, told CPJ. In recent months the judiciary, which has a history of siding with Pakistan’s powerful military, has remained largely silent amid attempts to censor…
With elections looming in Pakistan, two journalists attacked
New York, June 6, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today strongly condemned the abduction of journalist Gul Bukhari and the attack against journalist Asad Kharal in Lahore, Pakistan, yesterday and urged Pakistani authorities to promptly investigate the incidents and prosecute the perpetrators.
Pakistani authorities disrupt distribution of Dawn newspaper
New York, May 22, 2018–Pakistani authorities should immediately halt any restrictions on the distribution of Dawn newspaper in Pakistan, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Distribution of the newspaper has been disrupted in many parts of the country in recent weeks, Dawn editor Zaffar Abbas told CPJ.
Greater transparency welcome but social media sites should allow independent audits of content takedowns
In recent days, some of the world’s largest tech companies released new transparency reports, opened up their content moderation guidelines, and adopted approaches to fighting pernicious content as they tried to head off government regulation amid concerns about “fake news,” harassment, terrorism and other ills proliferating on their platforms.
Pakistani security officials assault and briefly detain journalists
New York, July 24, 2017–Pakistani police should launch a thorough investigation into allegations that Federal Investigation Agency officials assaulted and briefly detained journalists in Islamabad last week, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.