Press Freedom

Journalists Pay the Price in Egypt’s Crackdown on Dissent

By Kitty Stapp
The Egyptian government is holding a record number of journalists in jail, a press freedom group said Thursday, despite promises to improve media freedoms in the country.

Smart Phones New Tool to Capture Human Rights Violations

By Thalif Deen
The widespread use of digital technology – including satellite imagery, body cameras and smart phones – is fast becoming a new tool in monitoring and capturing human rights violations worldwide.

Democracy on the Retreat in Over 96 of the 193 U.N. Member States, Says New Study

By Thalif Deen
Democracy is on the retreat and authoritarianism is on the rise in more than 96 of the U.N.’s 193 member states, according to a new report released here.

South Sudan Again Tops Fragile States Index

By Beatrice Paez
For the second year in a row, South Sudan has been designated as the most fragile nation in the world, plagued by intensifying internal conflict that has displaced more than two million of its people.

Chechen Media Outlet Issues Death Threats against Russian Journalist

By Nora Happel
Press freedom groups are condemning veiled death threats against Novaya Gazeta correspondent Elena Milashina by a Chechen online news portal last month.

Opinion: Why Are Threats to Civil Society Growing Around the World?

By Mandeep S.Tiwana
Whistle-blowers like Edward Snowden and Julian Assange are hounded – not by autocratic but by democratic governments – for revealing the truth about grave human rights violations. Nobel peace prize winner, writer and political activist Liu Xiaobo  is currently languishing in a Chinese prison while the killing of Egyptian protestor, poet and mother Shaimaa al-Sabbagh, apparently by a masked policeman, in January this year continues to haunt us. 

Journalists, Gov’ts Square Off in Game of Drones

By Kitty Stapp
For some, the word "drone" immediately conjures up ominous phrases like "targeted assassination" and "precision strike."

Civil Society, Journalists “Risk Death” as Burundi Crackdown Intensifies

By Kitty Stapp
As the U.N. Security Council met to discuss the ongoing political crisis in Burundi Thursday, a rights group says violence has intensified in the capital Bujumbura, with individuals and groups close to the presidency and the ruling party targeting civil society activists, journalists and opposition members.

U.N. Security Council Takes “Historic” Stand on Killings of Journalists

By Kitty Stapp
When war breaks out, most non-combatants run the other way. But a handful of courageous reporters see it as their duty to tell the world what's happening on the ground. And many pay a high price.

Burundi Leader, Stifling Attempted Coup, Cracks Down on Media

By Lisa Vives
Burundi’s President Pierre Nkuruziza, who narrowly avoided his removal from office by a citizen-backed military coup, has turned against the media that closely reported the day to day protests.

Press Freedom Groups Denounce NSA Spying on AJ Bureau Chief

By Kitty Stapp
Ahmad Muaffaq Zaidan doesn’t deny that he’s had contact with terrorist groups. In fact, it would have been rather difficult to do his job otherwise.

Media Watchdog Unveils Top Ten Worst Censors

By Valentina Ieri
While technology has given millions greater freedom to express themselves, in the world's 10 most censored countries, this basic right exists only on paper, if at all.

Opinion: Burundi – Fragile Peace at Risk Ahead of Elections

By David Kode
Pierre Claver Mbonimpa is not permitted to get close to an airport, train station or port without authorisation from a judge.  He cannot travel outside of the capital of his native Burundi, Bujumbura. Whenever called upon, he must present himself before judicial authorities.

Israeli Forces Target Journalists in West Bank

By Mel Frykberg
It is becoming increasingly risky to cover clashes and protests between Israeli security forces and Palestinian protesters in the West Bank as the number of journalists injured, in what appears to be deliberate targeting by Israeli security forces, continues to rise.

Lawyers, Rights Groups Rally Around Author of ‘Blood Diamonds’, Facing Jail

By Lisa Vives
The Southern Africa Litigation Centre, Amnesty International and over a dozen other human rights organisations including the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights have signed an open letter demanding justice for crusading Angolan journalist Rafael Marques de Morais, whose exposés have offended several military officials and other higher-ups.

“My Number Was Six”

By Sudeshna Chowdhury
Outwardly, Feras Fayyad is stoic in face of the immense turmoil both he and his country are going through. All of 30 years old, Fayyad, who runs Sout Raya, a radio station in Turkey, exudes calm. His voice is almost soothing.

Winners Announced for Free Expression Prize

By Lisa Vives
At home she was subjected to death threats for defending women in northeastern Kenya who are vulnerable to rape, female circumcision and murder. This month, Amran Abdundi Amram was cheered as a hero as she collected the 2015 Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Award for Campaigning.

Pro-Democracy Activists at U.S. Event Jailed in DR Congo

By Lisa Vives
Journalists, activists, hip hop artists and a United States diplomat were rounded up by police at a pro-democracy event on Sunday in Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, sponsored in part by the U.S. government. Security forces charged them with threatening stability, according to a government spokesperson.

Jailed Journalist’s Family Looks to Iran’s New Year with Hope

By Jasmin Ramsey
The lawyer for Jason Rezaian, the Iranian-American Washington Post reporter detained in Tehran since Jul. 22, 2014, has officially requested temporary bail for her client during Nowruz, the beginning of the Persian calendar year when some prisoners have customarily been granted furlough requests.

200 Million Fewer Women than Men Online

By Lyndal Rowlands
Two hundred million fewer women have access to the internet than men, according to a report released Monday.

Bridging the Gender Inequality Gap in the Media

By Valentina Ieri
Despite the vast number of media outlets and news sources worldwide, women and girls are still not getting enough attention in the news.
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