World Press Freedom Day

Odd Situation in the “Paradise” of Press Freedom

A strange situation has emerged in Finland where some people feel that the press freedom is currently jeopardised. The small Nordic country is a press freedom celebrity leading the index kept by Reporters Without Borders since 2009 and hosting the UNESCO World Press Freedom Day on May 3.

Media Freedom in Africa Remains Under Attack

Imagine a world without the media, where we have no verified information about what’s going on around us. Where everything is hearsay and gossip, where there are no trusted sources of information. It would be hard to operate in a world like that: to make decisions about what to do about the things that affect our lives.

Violence Against Women Journalists Threatens Media Freedom

For women journalists, violence and intimidation don't just happen in conflict zones, they are every day experiences.

Despite its History and Reputation, Finland Has to Guard Press Freedom

The year 2015 was a sad one for journalists around the world, with approximately 60 journalists killed, more than 200 imprisoned and more than 400 exiled.

Journalists Seek Protection in Proposed Post-2015 Agenda

As civil disputes, societal destruction and political unrest swept through the world last year, about 92 journalists were killed in the line of duty. Reporting from war zones—often without proper protection, journalists have continued to risk their lives to inform the general public.

Providing Safety, Combating Impunity on World Press Freedom Day

Securing the safety of journalists and media workers is an urgent matter. More than 600 journalists and media workers have been killed in the last ten years. In other words, every week a journalist loses his or her life while bringing news and information to the public. These statistics highlight the relevance of the World Press Freedom (WPF) Day, which remains the fundamental principles of press freedom.

Journalism is Not ‘More Fun’ in the Philippines

Reporters working in the Philippines, the world’s third most dangerous nation for journalists, are having difficulty identifying with the "It’s More Fun in the Philippines" tourism promotion campaign launched by the Liberal Party-led government of President Benigno Aquino III.

Criticising authorities online has now become so dangerous that 2011 was considered the deadliest year for online activists in many countries. Credit: Antonella Beccaria/CC BY 2.0

Journalists and Netizens in Govt Crosshairs

Two years ago, Ashkan Delanvar was arrested by Iranian authorities and held in poor conditions for 14 days before he was sentenced to 10 months in prison.

Flagged for Removal: Online Censorship on the Rise

The shutdown was surprisingly swift and almost total. In the midst of a popular revolution – one that was blogged, YouTubed, and Twittered in minute-by-minute cyber blasts – the Egyptian regime tightened its Internet spigot in late January, choking the free flow of information down to a trickle.

Radio Chinelo web site.  Credit: Radio Chinelo

MEXICO: Journalists Defy Violence, Self-Censorship

In Mexico, the country in the Americas facing the worst wave of violence against reporters, different journalistic initiatives are combating this dynamic, which fuels a tendency towards self-censorship.

POLITICS: Sri Lanka’s Turnaround Could Signal New Beginning

For a country that has had quite a few run-ins with global giants in the diplomatic arena, the last fortnight has witnessed somewhat of a turnaround for Sri Lanka.

Broken Promises on Zimbabwe Press Freedom

Fourteen months after Zimbabwe's government of national unity was formed, harassment, arbitrary arrest and general intimidation of journalists remains common.

French memorial to slain reporters at Bayeux, France. Credit: Town of Bayeux

MEDIA: Press Freedom Day to Focus on Threats

"Please remember that we know where your child goes to school."

MEDIA: Journalists Increasingly at Risk Says UN Report

A record 77 journalists were killed last year, making 2009 one of the most dangerous years for media workers, according to a report published Thursday by UNESCO, the United Nations’ cultural agency.

Journalists protest new media law requiring, among other things, registration and accreditation of journalists and an enforced right to reply. Credit:  Ephraim Nsingo/IPS

BOTSWANA: Deep Divisions Remain Over Media Law

While the international theme for World Press Freedom Day was "Fostering Dialogue, Mutual Understanding and Reconciliation", the Botswana government and the media seemed to take the opposite route - taking turns to snub each other’s calls for dialogue.

David Makali Credit:

Q&A: Average Marks for East African Press Freedom

Four years ago, a furious Lucy Kibaki, Kenya's First Lady, marked World Press Freedom Day by storming the offices of leading independent publisher the Nation Group with her entourage."

RIGHTS-ETHIOPIA: Press Freedom Still Under Attack

The May edition of popular Ethiopian entertainment magazine Enku did not appear on newsstands as scheduled this month. Ethiopian police impounded all 10,000 copies before they could be distributed; Alemayehu Mahtemework, the magazine's publisher and deputy editor, was charged with threatening public order and spent five days in detention, along with three of his staff.

FIJI: Aussie Journo Expelled on Press Freedom Day Eve

Fiji’s interim government has come under withering criticism both nationally and internationally for the deportation on Friday of the Australian publisher of the leading ‘Fiji Times’ daily, Evan Hannah.

MEDIA-ASIA: More Than Just Freedom

More than gaining the freedom to report on society’s problems Asian media must gauge it’s real contribution to the public‘s needs, especially at a time of increasing commercialisation.

RIGHTS: Impunity Reigns in Journalist Murders

Over the last 15 years, at least 500 journalists were killed directly because of their work. But in less than 15 percent of cases have the perpetrators been brought to justice, according to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

MEDIA-CARIBBEAN: A Chill in the Air

At a Caribbean media conference to mark World Press Freedom Day last month, Patrick Cozier, the general secretary of the Barbados-based Caribbean Broadcasting Union, issued a grim warning.

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