Press Freedom

MEDIA-THAILAND: Thaksin’s Departure Spells Press Freedom

By Marwaan Macan-Markar
With Thaksin Shinawatra stepping down as Thailand's leader, the country's media are rediscovering traits that had earned them a reputation for in the region - criticising and exposing those in power.

INDONESIA: Debate on Pornography Bill Steers Clear of Religion

By IPS Correspondents
Public debate on an anti-pornography bill, although presented in parliament by conservative Islamic groups, has managed to steer away from religion.

MEXICO: New Law to Benefit Media Giants

By IPS Correspondents
The Mexican Senate gave in to the pressure of media giants Televisa and TV Azteca, approving reforms to the country's broadcasting laws that will strengthen the broadcasters' influence.

MEDIA-THAILAND: Libel Case Backfires on PM’s Firm

By Marwaan Macan-Markar
"This is a victory for freedom of speech and freedom of the press," said the plucky young woman as she stepped out of a criminal court Wednesday after winning a legal battle that may well mark the end of profit without public accountability in this country.

MEDIA-MEXICO: A Larger Piece of the Pie, for the Few

By IPS Correspondents
Seven out of 10 Mexican television viewers watch channels belonging to the Televisa consortium, while two out of 10 watch TV Azteca channels. Radio broadcasting stations are concentrated in the hands of 13 business groups.

INT’L WOMEN’S DAY: More Female Voices on Screens, Airwaves and Pages

By Moyiga Nduru
South Africa has made substantial progress in having women's voices heard in the media, says a study released to coincide with International Women's Day on Wednesday.

RIGHTS-KENYA: Alarm Sounded over Police Raids on Media Group

By IPS Correspondents
Attacks on Kenya's second-largest media house by police have sparked widespread anger against the government, already unpopular because of its links with corruption.

MALAYSIA: Cartoon Row Blunts Media Edge

By Baradan Kuppusamy
The Prophet Muhammad cartoon controversy is trailing blood in Malaysian newsrooms at a time when mainstream media showed signs of emerging into the sunshine, after two decades of serving as the mouthpiece of the dictatorial former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad.

MEXICO: Writer Who Exposed Child Sex Ring Fears Worst Is Yet to Come

By IPS Correspondents
When Mexican freelance journalist and human rights activist Lydia Cacho published a book last year exposing a paedophile ring, she was warned by friends and colleagues that she would run into trouble.

RELIGION: Christian Churches Call for Dialogue with Muslims

By IPS Correspondents
Dialogue has been one of the most frequently mentioned words at the ninth assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC), which ends Friday in this southern Brazilian city after 10 days of debates marked by the controversy triggered by the publication of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad in newspapers in Europe.

MEDIA-EUROPE: Burmese TV Beats the Censors

By IPS Correspondents
A new television station broadcasting from Norway is giving millions of Burmese their first access to independent news in their own language.

MEDIA-RELIGION: Yemen Journalists Fight Cartoon Crackdown

By IPS Correspondents
The cartoons controversy has taken a new turn in Yemen with a plea by four jailed journalists that they re-published the cartoons in defence of Islam.

POLITICS-US: Rumsfeld Declares War on Bad Press

By Emad Mekay
Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld has signaled that he plans to intensify a campaign to influence global media coverage of the United States, a move that is likely to heighten the debate over press freedom and propaganda-free reporting.

RIGHTS-RELIGION: Fear or Fiat – the Limits of the Free Press

By Miren Gutierrez
The cartoons issue has been argued as a debate between freedom of expression on one side and the responsibility of protecting religious sensibilities on the other. But each of these arguments needs to be examined a little more closely, because questions arise within each of these arguments, and not just between them.

POLITICS-US: Cartoon Crisis Echoes “Why They Hate Us” Debate

By Jim Lobe
While Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy Karen Hughes flies off on her second tour of the Middle East Friday, she must feel at least some relief that Europe - rather than the United States - has been the main target of the two-week outpouring of anger in the Islamic world that has come to be called the "cartoon crisis".

MEDIA-PAKISTAN: Shackled by Ruling Elite, Security Forces

By IPS Correspondents
Journalists face severe harassment and detention in Pakistan where freedom of expression is guaranteed under the constitution but attempts by the media to challenge the country's feudal and authoritarian structure are quickly crushed.

MEDIA-RELIGION: Britain Looks Away From the Cartoons

By Sanjay Suri
As violence over the Mohammed cartoons continues at scattered locations around the world, Britain has looked away from them in the interest of good race relations.

INDONESIA: Holy Ire at Cartoons Shifts to Soft Porn

By IPS Correspondents
As the controversy over newspaper caricatures of Prophet Mohammad simmers, religious orthodoxy in this country has a new issue to get hot and bothered about - a local edition of 'Playboy' magazine set to be launched in March.

MEDIA-ARGENTINA: “Subtle” Means of Censorship

By Marcela Valente
Discriminatory use of government advertising, phone calls by public officials to exert pressure on journalists, editors and media owners, delays in passing a "sunshine law" on public access to information, and refusal by government officials to give interviews or press conferences.

POLITICS: U.S. Risks Reporter’s Life to Strike Tough Pose

By Gareth Porter
The George W. Bush administration went well beyond refusing to negotiate with terrorists in its handling of the threat by freelance journalist Jill Carroll's abductors to kill her if all female detainees were not released from U.S.-run prisons in Iraq.

MEDIA-EAST TIMOR: ‘Criminalise Defamation and See Democracy Die’

By IPS Correspondents
Jose Ximenes, news editor of the popular 'Timor Post' daily, shook his head in disgust. ''East Timor's independence and peace were achieved at great cost. We cannot remain silent while some of our leaders endanger our press freedom and undermine our hard-won democratic accomplishments,'' he told IPS emphatically.
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