How Islamic State uses killings to try to spread fear among media
The militant group Islamic State may be trying to push Syria back into the dark ages, but it is fighting a very modern war. From slick propaganda videos to online surveillance and wide restrictions on Internet use, the Islamic State is trying to control media output and stamp down on dissent.
Hopes of independent press in Rwanda fade as head of media body flees
Rwanda’s progress towards a more liberal media environment has been short-lived. In May Fred Muvunyi, the head of the Rwanda Media Commission, fled the country for fear of being detained or attacked, and the country’s telecommunications regulator suspended the operation agreement for the BBC’s Great Lakes radio service indefinitely.
Media freedom advocate Emin Huseynov flees Azerbaijan as Baku hosts European Games
New York, June 13, 2015-Azerbaijani journalist Emin Huseynov was flown into exile in Switzerland on June 12, a few hours after the opening ceremony of the European Games in Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, according to reports. Fearing imminent arrest during the country’s crackdown on rights groups and the press, Huseynov, the director of media freedom group…
Baku 2015: Press freedom, Azerbaijan, and the European Games
Tomorrow 50 countries are due to take part in the opening ceremony of the inaugural European Games in Baku, but Azerbaijan’s most prominent journalist, Khadija Ismayilova, will not be at the celebrations. The award-winning investigative reporter has been in jail since December on retaliatory charges over her writing on corruption.
Chinese cartoonist Rebel Pepper struggles to survive in self-imposed exile
When calls for Wang Liming to be arrested were made on a forum hosted by China’s state-controlled press last year, the satirical cartoonist who lampooned the Communist Party leadership decided it would be safer to stay in Japan, where he had been traveling. But while he may have avoided possible arrest, the cartoonist, known as…
With limited independent press, Ethiopians left voting in the dark
On Sunday Ethiopians go to the polls in the country’s fifth general election since the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front came to power more than 20 years ago. Citizens are expected to choose the right party to lead them for the next five years. To do so, they need to have a clear understanding…
CPJ calls on Sri Lanka to improve press freedom
Dear President Sirisena, As your government’s post-election 100-day agenda nears completion the Committee to Protect Journalists, an international press freedom organization, recognizes your early endeavors in keeping promises to ensure media freedom. CPJ would like to request a meeting with you and your government to discuss the problems that persist for the country’s media.
Four Bahraini journalists stripped of citizenship
Washington D.C. February 4, 2015–Bahraini authorities revoked the nationality of at least four journalists among a total of 72 citizens, after accusing them under article 10 of the country’s citizenship act of supporting terrorism, the state-run Bahrain News Agency reported.
Mission Journal: Ethiopian journalists must choose between being locked up or locked out
A sharp increase in the number of Ethiopian journalists fleeing into exile has been recorded by the Committee to Protect Journalists in the past 12 months. More than 30–twice the number of exiles CPJ documented in 2012 and 2013 combined–were forced to leave after the government began a campaign of arrests. In October, Nicole Schilit…
Mission Journal: As South Sudan conflict continues press still suffers
On December 15 last year, fighting that broke out between supporters of South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir and Riek Machar–who had been vice president until Kiir fired the entire Cabinet–escalated into a civil war that has increased pressure on an already fragile independent press.