CPJ welcomes Facebook move to add PGP encryption features
San Francisco, June 1, 2015–Facebook today announced that it would offer users a field to post PGP encryption keys on their profiles, and that it will use the encryption standard to protect the contents of notification emails. The improvements were announced on the social network’s security blog and will gradually be rolled out to all…
Brazilian blogger found decapitated in Minas Gerais state
New York, May 20, 2015–Brazilian authorities must fully investigate the murder of a Brazilian blogger, identify the motive, and bring the killers to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The decapitated body of Evany José Metzker was found on Monday in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais, according to news reports.
CPJ joins call urging White House to protect encryption for journalists
Journalists are safest when their devices are secure by default. That is why the Committee to Protect Journalists today joined a coalition of nearly 150 civil society organizations, companies, trade associations, security experts, and policy specialists in sending a joint letter to U.S. President Barack Obama. The letter urges the president to support the broad…
Third blogger hacked to death in Bangladesh this year
New York, May 12, 2015–Four unidentified assailants wielding cleavers and machetes killed a blogger in Bangladesh today, marking the third time in less than three months that a blogger has been slain in the country, according to news reports. Ananta Bijoy Das was hacked to death while headed to work in the city of Sylhet,…
Broadcasting murder: Militants use media for deadly purpose
News of the August 19, 2014, murder of journalist James Foley broke not in the media but instead on Twitter. News organizations faced the agonizing questions of how to report on the killing and what portions of the video to show. If a group or individual commits an act of violence, and then films it,…
Treating the Internet as the enemy in the Middle East
The snow and freezing temperatures that struck Saudi Arabia unexpectedly in December 2013 were newsworthy in a desert kingdom better known for its extreme heat. But the fact that the ensuing power outages at a regional prison left prisoners without power or heat for nearly a week was apparently off-limits to reporters.
Surveillance forces journalists to think and act like spies
Once upon a time, a journalist never gave up a confidential source. When someone comes forward, anonymously, to inform the public, it’s better to risk time incarcerated than give them up. This ethical responsibility was also a practical and professional necessity. If you promise anonymity, you’re obliged to deliver. If you can’t keep your word,…
Journalists overcome obstacles through crowdfunding and determination
During South Africa’s Boer War, at the turn of the 20th century, a determined news organization relocated reporters, copy editors, and printing presses to the front line to ensure accurate reporting. In the Warsaw Ghetto, during World War II, a literal underground press, established to counter Nazi propaganda, required the nightly movement of cumbersome printing…
China’s Great Cannon: New weapon to suppress free speech online
China, rated as the eighth most censored country in the world, in a report released by CPJ today, has long had a strong line of defense against free speech online. Its Golden Shield Project, launched by the Ministry of Public Security in 1998, relies on a combination of technology and personnel to control what can…