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Articles - North America

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Canada

Canada once again gets failing grade in free expression

In the free expression world, Canada receives failing grades for the way it muzzles its scientists and for its archaic access to information laws, says Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE).

Mexico

Another investigative journalist killed in Veracruz

A woman investigative journalist working for a prominent national news magazine was found beaten and strangled to death in her home in the Veracruz state capital of Xalapa on 28 April, report ARTICLE 19, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the International Press Institute (IPI) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Mexico

State responsible for most attacks on press, says ARTICLE 19 report

Mexico, 2011: 172 attacks on press freedom, including nine journalists and two media workers killed, two disappeared, and eight media outlets bombed. Most shockingly, the security forces and other state authorities were behind 40 percent of the attacks, while organised crime only accounted for 13 percent of cases.

Mexico

In landmark decision, Senate says attacks on journalists to be federal crimes

The Mexican Senate has finally approved a constitutional amendment that will enable federal authorities to investigate and prosecute certain attacks on the press and calls on authorities to end the widespread impunity for crimes against journalists, report ARTICLE 19, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and the Inter American Press Association (IAPA).

Canada

Government muzzles its scientists, says Canadian Journalists for Free Expression

The Canadian government "muzzles" government scientists and doesn't allow journalists timely access to them, says IFEX member Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE).

Africa / Mexico / Russia

Recent advancements in criminal defamation laws in Africa, Mexico offset by setbacks in Russia

IFEX members have noted some significant advancements in the criminal defamation field these past weeks: the President of Niger has become the first head of state to endorse the Declaration of Table Mountain, which calls for repeal of criminal defamation and insult laws in Africa, and Mexico's Senate has unanimously approved to decriminalise slander and libel. But although Russia recently amended its defamation legislation, critics say it did not go far enough.

Mexico

Drug gangs continue hunt for anonymous netizens with barbaric beheading

The decapitated body of someone first believed to be the moderator of an online forum that reported on the activities of the Zetas drug gang was found in Nuevo Laredo province on 9 November, report the Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) of International PEN, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Mexico

Draw attention to murdered writers by holding your own Day of the Dead event

Join PEN International in honouring fallen writers on Mexico's national Day of the Dead on 2 November. On Day of the Dead, an annual holiday in Mexico, people pay tribute to late friends and family members through numerous rites, including creating altars, visiting gravesites and cooking their deceased loved ones' favourite foods.

United States

Journalists covering Occupy Wall Street detained, beaten and pepper sprayed

With the New York Police Department (NYPD) having the right to decide who does and who does not qualify as a journalist, at least three reporters have been arrested and two others assaulted while covering the Occupy Wall Street protests, says Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Mexico

News editor beheaded for condemning drug gangs on social media

At a time when the murderous spree of drug cartels in Mexico seemed it couldn't get any more horrific, the decapitated body of María Elizabeth Macías, news editor of "Primera Hora" was found on 24 September, report the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Adding to the atmosphere of despair, another journalist is missing, according to IAPA and RSF.

North America

Launch of INSI-North America to reduce risks to frontline journalists

The official launch of the International News Safety Institute (INSI) - North America office, which will provide safety training and additional support to North American journalists, will take place in New York on 14 October.

Mexico

Drug cartels target social media users as international community addresses journalists' safety at UN anti-impunity conference

Last week, a young man and woman were found hanging from ropes off a pedestrian bridge in Nuevo Laredo, northern Mexico. Accompanying their lifeless, mutilated bodies were handwritten signs that declared the two were killed for posting denouncements of drug cartel activities on a social network. With few reporters daring to cover Mexico's ongoing drug war for fear of becoming victims themselves, the murderers appear to have a new target: those using social media networks to cover the story, say the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) and ARTICLE 19.

Mexico

Two women journalists found strangled in Mexico City

Two women journalists were found dead in a park in eastern Mexico City on 1 September, their bodies naked with their hands and feet tied, with signs of strangulation and at least one gunshot wound, report ARTICLE 19, Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social (CENCOS) and other IFEX members.

Mexico

Kidnapped journalist found dead

Missing Mexican journalist Humberto Millán Salazar was found dead on 25 August with a gunshot wound to the head, report ARTICLE 19, the Centro de Periodismo y Etica Publica (CEPET) and other IFEX members. Millán, a political reporter from Culiacán in Sinaloa state, was kidnapped the day before by armed men, say the members.

Mexico

Veteran reporter slain


The decapitated body of Mexican journalist Yolanda Ordaz de la Cruz was found on 26 July in Veracruz, report the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), ARTICLE 19 and other IFEX members. A journalist for more than 20 years, Ordaz de la Cruz reported on crime and security issues. IFEX members are calling on the state prosecutor to investigate the case and put in place mechanisms to protect her colleagues.

Mexico

Journalist and his family killed amid relentless attacks on press

A journalist who wrote about security and drug trafficking was killed in his home with his wife and photographer son in the eastern port city of Veracruz on 20 June, underscoring Mexico's cycle of violence, report ARTICLE 19, the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) and other IFEX members, who are calling on the Mexican government to take "concrete" action.

United States

Justice served in Chauncey Bailey case thanks to journalist collective

Four years ago, U.S. journalist Chauncey Bailey was gunned down on his way to work. Within weeks, local journalists, including a representative from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), came together as the Chauncey Bailey Project to finish his work looking at criminal activity at a local bakery and to investigate his death. On 9 June, victory finally came: the manager and employee of the business were convicted of first-degree murder, report CPJ and Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Mexico

Missing journalist found dead; newspaper bombed

Mexican criminal gangs are using a variety of tactics to pressure the press into not reporting their activities, including murdering critical journalists. A journalist who disappeared in March was found buried in a grave in the state of Veracruz on 1 June, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) of PEN International. Noel López Olguín was known for criticising local corruption in his articles.

Canada

CJFE gives Harper government failing grade on access to information

When it comes to access to information, Canada has received an F minus and is positioned last among five leading democracies, says Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) in a new report that is making headlines in the country.

Mexico

Media agree to guidelines for covering organised crime

Just moments before two journalists were found dead in the drug-riddled city of Monterrey last week, nearly 50 leading Mexican news organisations agreed on a code for covering drug-related violence and organised crime, report the Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social (CENCOS) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Mexico

Violent attack on news outlet leaves media worker dead

A violent attack on two media companies in Torreón, Mexico, last week has left a TV engineer dead, report the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) and other IFEX members.

Mexico

Another media worker killed in Ciudad Juárez

A woman who worked as a newspaper distributor in Ciudad Juárez was shot to death on 31 January while driving a vehicle bearing the logo of the media company, reports the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET).

United States

Reporters arrested for covering protest against military

A reporter and cameraman for an English-language, Moscow-based TV channel were arrested while covering protests near the Fort Benning military base in Columbus, Georgia, last week, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF). A local community radio journalist was also arrested, despite having press credentials, says RSF.

Awards / Canada

Canadian Internet pioneer Citizen Lab wins CJFE award

The Citizen Lab, the Toronto-based centre that unearthed one of the largest Internet spying networks, is to be honoured by Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE). The lab has won CJFE's 2010 Vox Libera Award, granted annually to a Canadian individual or organisation dedicated to free expression. This year CJFE will also recognise five journalists from Mexico and Cameroon for their fearless reporting.

Mexico

Reporter killed; IFEX members sceptical of government's journalist protection programme

On 5 November, yet another journalist in Mexico was lost to the drug war. At the same time, the government has finally come round to announcing a strategy to protect journalists from death threats from common criminals, drug cartels and even government officials. IFEX members ARTICLE 19, Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social (CENCOS) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) have strongly denounced the programme as it stands - having been devised and run entirely by government officials who have little understanding of what it's like to be a journalist operating in a climate of endemic impunity.

Mexico

IFEX members step up fight to protect journalists

Last month, when a photographer was shot dead in the drug-addled city of Ciudad Juárez, his newspaper ran a front-page editorial offering to compromise its drug coverage in an effort to keep its journalists alive. It was a stunning example of self-censorship, but unfortunately, not an isolated one. In response, IFEX members in recent weeks have gotten an audience with the President, used YouTube to campaign, and, united, have taken matters into their own hands to address the security needs of Mexican journalists.

Mexico

Journalist slain in Ciudad Juárez, newspaper makes plea to drug cartel

A photographer was shot dead in the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juárez on 16 September, report the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and other IFEX members. The brazen attack occurred in a mall parking lot and also injured another journalist. In response, the journalists' newspaper published an editorial openly offering to compromise its coverage in order to keep its journalists alive. Meanwhile, violence has escalated in other regions, says the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), with reports of a breakdown in security for journalists and media outlets in Zacatecas.

Mexico

CPJ report says violence against the press is a national crisis

A justice system controlled by criminals has created an environment of pervasive self-censorship with news outlets abandoning investigative reporting and basic daily coverage of crime and corruption in Mexico, says a new report by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). "Silence or Death in Mexico's Press" says systemic impunity has become entrenched at the state and local levels.

Mexico

Drug cartels terrorise media with car bombs and grenades

A car bomb exploded outside the offices of Mexico's largest media organisation, Televisa, on 27 August, days after it reported that 72 Central and South American migrants were killed by drug traffickers in the same region, report the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and other IFEX members. Two weeks ago, explosives ripped through facilities owned by the same media conglomerate in Tamaulipas and Nuevo León states.

United States

President Obama signs law blocking "libel tourism" in US courts

President Barack Obama recently signed new legislation that will protect journalists, authors and publishers from becoming victims of defamation lawsuits filed in countries with harsh libel laws that discourage critical media, reports Freedom House. The practice of filing libel lawsuits in foreign countries with weak libel protections is called "libel tourism." Countries like England continue to permit this practice with foreign plaintiffs bringing libel actions against foreign defendants in British courts, regardless of where the alleged offense occurred.

Mexico

Journalists take to the streets demanding protection after recent kidnappings

The abduction of four Mexican journalists in Durango State illuminates how local governments are corrupted by organised crime as well as the dangers for journalists attempting to work under the control of drug traffickers, report the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and other IFEX members. This case sparked an unprecedented show of solidarity and outrage against the kidnapping and killing of journalists. Journalists from all over the country and local and international IFEX members joined forces in protests attended by thousands over the weekend, demanding the right to inform, the right to know.

Mexico

Five journalists and media workers killed in two weeks

A Mexican radio journalist was abducted and found dead in a car last week, and in another part of the country, a former cameraman was shot dead as he sat in his car waiting for his girlfriend, report the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The murders come after three journalists were killed in two other states within the same two weeks. As the violence escalates, journalists live in constant fear of being kidnapped, tortured and murdered.

Colombia / United States

Journalist Hollman Morris permanently barred from entering the US

Prominent Colombian journalist Hollman Morris has been denied a visa to the US based on a "terrorist activities" provision of the Patriot Act, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the PEN American Center, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE). IFEX members are urging the US to lift the travel ban.

Mexico

Three journalists killed in two separate attacks

Three journalists have been killed in Mexico, including a husband and wife who were brazenly shot in an Internet cafe, and an editor known for his crime reporting in a different state, according to local and international IFEX members. The deaths followed three separate incidents in Coahuila state in which gunmen riddled the buildings of two media outlets with bullets and fired a grenade at another.

Canada

Journalists and protesters assaulted and detained during massive police clampdown at G20

As thousands came out to demonstrate last weekend at the G20 summit held in Toronto, Canada, a significant expansion of police powers led to arbitrary searches and mass arrests, and numerous journalists beaten and detained as they attempted to do their jobs. According to Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE), legitimate public protest was suppressed with the use of excessive force against peaceful demonstrators in designated free speech zones.

Mexico

Human rights defenders killed on mission; journalists attacked

A convoy of more than 40 international and local human rights defenders, activists and journalists were ambushed by gunmen in Mexico on 27 April in the town of San Juan Copala, Oaxaca state, report the National Center for Social Communication (CENCOS), ARTICLE 19, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF). Two rights defenders were killed.

Mexico

More journalists abducted and murdered

A Mexican journalist who reported on government policy, environmental issues and organised crime was abducted on 6 April, report the Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social (CENCOS), ARTICLE 19 and other IFEX members. In the same week, another journalist was killed, report the International Press Institute (IPI), Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) of International PEN and Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Mexico

Eight journalists abducted, two killed

In Mexico, information can be fatal. Eight journalists were abducted in separate episodes between 18 February and 3 March, report the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), Inter American Press Association (IAPA), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Three journalists were later released; one of them died as a result of being tortured. Mexican journalists in newsrooms remain silent about the kidnappings for fear of reprisals from drug traffickers. And in another part of the country also caught in the terror of drug cartels, another journalist was slain on 12 March.

Mexico

Public officials behind crimes against journalists

Mexico is the deadliest country in the Americas for journalists trying to do their job. Organised crime is often perceived as being predominantly behind attacks on the press, but a new report by ARTICLE 19 and the National Center for Social Communication (CENCOS) points to public officials as the main perpetrators. And there is a movement to challenge this culture of impunity with newspaper editors and journalists joining forces to urge the government to take action, reports the Inter American Press Association (IAPA).

Mexico

Editor slain

A Mexican editor was shot in the face and killed on 29 January, report the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and other IFEX members.

Canada

Guardians of the Winter Olympics restrict free expression

Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) has launched a campaign to monitor free expression violations related to the Winter Olympics. CJFE's Olympic Watch is highlighting recent incidents where the protection of the Olympic brand has led to threats to free expression.

United States

U.S. Secretary of State defends unfettered access to the Internet

In a historic speech on Internet freedom last week, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton declared her support for freedom of expression and acknowledged that unrestricted access to the Internet is integral to human rights, economic development and political stability, report Human Rights Watch and Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Mexico

Body of young radio journalist found

The body of a radio journalist was found on 16 January, 17 days after he was kidnapped, report the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), the International Press Institute (IPI) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Mexico

Kidnapped reporter murdered

A Mexican reporter was found dead on 8 January, a day after he was kidnapped, report the Centro Nacional de Comunicadión Social (CENCOS), Observatorio Latinoamericano para la Libertad de Expresión (OLA) and other IFEX members.

Mexico

Editor killed; reporter kidnapped

A Mexican journalist who wrote about corruption in local politics was murdered on 22 December 2009, report the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), the Observatorio Latinoamericano para la Libertad de Expresión (OLA), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and other IFEX members. The journalist's newspaper had received death threats in recent months and its printing press was fire bombed last November, says CPJ.

Mexico

Journalist's murder linked to reporting on environment

A Mexican journalist was found dead in his home in Jalisco State on 24 November; his hands tied with a cable, his body wrapped in a blanket, reports Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the International Press Institute (IPI).

Mexico

Committee to protect press freedom dissolved; journalist slain

A special government committee designed to combat crimes against Mexican journalists and news media has been disbanded, reports the Inter American Press Association (IAPA). Underscoring the urgent need for such a panel is the murder of yet another journalist in Mexico on 2 November, report the Centre for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET) and other IFEX members.

United States

Government reading over citizen's shoulders

The USA Patriot Amendments Act of 2009 introduced on 20 October prohibits the U.S. government from carrying out searches to monitor its citizens' choice of books from libraries and bookstores, reports the Pen American Center, a member of the Campaign for Reader Privacy.

Mexico

Local crime critic slain

As the war between brutal drug cartels and militant authorities continues to unfold in Mexico, journalists who refuse to engage in self-censorship pay with their lives. In the most recent tragedy, a radio journalist was shot to death inside the station where he worked on 23 September, report the Centre for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) and other IFEX members.

Mexico

Second investigator in journalist's murder case killed

Last November in Ciudad Juárez, Mexican crime journalist Armando Rodríguez was killed in front of his daughter on the way to school. In July, the federal investigator who was leading the Rodríguez case was gunned down, and less than a month later, his replacement suffered the same fate, say Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Mexico

Journalist murdered in gruesome fashion in Guerrero

Mexican authorities have found the battered body of a journalist near the southwestern resort city of Acapulco, report Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social (CENCOS), el Centro de Periodismo y Ética Pública (CEPET), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), ARTICLE 19 and other IFEX members. They call on the Mexican authorities to thoroughly investigate the killing, and to put an end to the ongoing violence against Mexican journalists.

North Korea / United States

Bill Clinton returns to U.S. with pardoned journalists

IFEX members the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the International Press Institute (IPI) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) welcomed last week's release of U.S. journalists Euna Lee and Laura Ling, who were jailed since March in North Korea. Following rare talks with reclusive leader Kim Jong-il, who pardoned the women, former U.S. President Bill Clinton brought the journalists home on 5 August.

Mexico

Two journalists killed; radio station raided

Two Mexican journalists were murdered last week, with motives still unknown, report the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN (WiPC) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

North Korea / United States

U.S. journalists sentenced to 12 years hard labour

U.S. journalists Euna Lee and Laura Ling have been sentenced to 12 years of hard labour in North Korea after a closed-door trial from 4 to 8 June, report the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), Reporters Without Borders (RSF), the International Press Institute (IPI) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Mexico

Authorities don't see death threats as crimes

Lydia Cacho, an investigative journalist in Mexico who exposed a paedophilia network involving businessmen and government officials in her book, is facing a new round of death threats and surveillance.

Mexico

Crime reporter found dead in Durango

The body of a journalist who covered the police beat in northern Mexico was found on 26 May, a day after he was abducted from his home, report Centro Nacional de Comunicación (CENCOS), the Center of Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) and other IFEX members.

Iran / United States

Roxana Saberi freed

IFEX members welcomed the release of U.S. Iranian journalist Roxana Saberi, whose eight-year jail term for spying for the U.S. was this week reduced to a suspended two-year sentence and a five-year ban on reporting from Iran.

Mexico

Reporter under threat killed on World Press Freedom Day

A Mexican journalist who was critical of local authorities in the northern state of Durango was assassinated on 3 May, World Press Freedom Day, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) of International PEN.

Iran / United States

Freelancer Roxana Saberi convicted of spying

Iran convicted an American-Iranian journalist of spying for the United States and sentenced her to eight years in prison, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the International Press Institute (IPI).

United States

RECLAME LA LIBERACIÓN DE DOS MUJERES PERIODISTAS DETENIDAS EN COREA DEL NORTE

United States

EXIGEZ LA REMISE EN LIBERTÉ DE DEUX FEMMES JOURNALISTES DÉTENUES EN CORÉE DU NORD

United States

DEMAND RELEASE OF TWO WOMEN JOURNALISTS DETAINED IN NORTH KOREA

Two U.S. women journalists who were reporting on the fate of North Korean women being smuggled and sold to China have been detained in North Korea for more than a week on charges of entering the country illegally and carrying out "hostile" activities. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the International Women's Media Foundation (IWMF) have launched a petition calling for their release.

Mexico

MÉXICO GOBIERNO "PENALIZA" LA LIBRE EXPRESIÓN AL ATACAR ESTACIÓN DE RADIO

Mexico

LE GOUVERNEMENT « CRIMINALISE » LA LIBRE EXPRESSION EN CIBLANT UNE STATION DE RADIO

Mexico

GOVERNMENT "CRIMINALISES" FREE EXPRESSION BY TARGETING RADIO STATION

Tierra y Libertad is a community radio station in the northeast of Mexico that has for more than seven years provided the poorest neighbourhoods in Monterrey with info on workers' rights, health and legal assistance. But perhaps not for much longer, because the government says the station is operating without a licence. Employees are facing up to 12 years in prison and a fine of US$100,000 for operating illegally. ARTICLE 19 - Mexico, the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) say it is an alarming case of the "criminalisation of free expression."

North America

AGISSEZ ! EXIGEZ AL-JAZIRAH ANGLAIS

North America

TAKE ACTION! DEMAND AL JAZEERA ENGLISH

Al Jazeera has launched a new website called IwantAlJazeera.net, which dispels the myths around the popular news agency and gives North American visitors the chance to watch the news Al Jazeera produces directly - in the hopes that they will contact their cable or satellite provider and demand that they carry Al Jazeera English.

Mexico

UN AUTRE JOURNALISTE ASSASSINÉ; LE GOUVERNEMENT NE FAIT PAS ASSEZ POUR PROTÉGER LES MÉDIAS, DISENT LES MEMBRES DE L'IFEX

Mexico

MÉXICO OTRO PERIODISTA ASESINADO; GOBIERNO NO ESTÁ HACIENDO LO SUFICIENTE PARA PROTEGER A LOS MEDIOS, DICEN MIEMBROS DE IFEX

Mexico

ANOTHER JOURNALIST KILLED; GOVERNMENT NOT DOING ENOUGH TO PROTECT MEDIA, SAY IFEX MEMBERS

Jean Paul Ibarra Ramírez, a crime photographer for the local daily "El Correo", and crime reporter Yenny Yuliana Marchán Arroyo of the daily "Diario 21", were sent by their papers to cover a road accident in Iguala, Guerrero state on 13 February. But they didn't have a chance to file the story. According to the Center for Journalist and Public Ethics (CEPET), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and other IFEX members, they were attacked by gunmen as they travelled to the scene. Ibarra was killed, while Marchán suffered serious injuries.

United States

OBAMA S’ENGAGE À FAIRE PREUVE D’OUVERTURE ET DE TRANSPARENCE

Mexico

LA VILLE DE CIUDAD JUÁREZ, INFESTÉE PAR LA DROGUE, EST LE PIRE ENDROIT DU MEXIQUE POUR LES JOURNALISTES, DIT UNE MISSION

United States

OBAMA PROMETE APERTURA Y TRANSPARENCIA

Mexico

CIUDAD JUÁREZ, INFESTADA POR LAS DROGAS, ES EL PEOR LUGAR DE MÉXICO PARA LOS PERIODISTAS, DICE MISIÓN

United States

OBAMA PLEDGES OPENNESS AND TRANSPARENCY

IFEX members ARTICLE 19 and Privacy International (PI) welcomed U.S. President Barack Obama's new policies that enhance public access to government information - announced on his first day of office.

Mexico

DRUG-INFESTED CIUDAD JUÁREZ WORST PLACE IN MEXICO FOR JOURNALISTS, SAYS MISSION

Last November, veteran crime reporter José Armando Rodríguez was shot to death at his home in Ciudad Juárez on the Texas border. His murder prompted a fact-finding mission by the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF), which found that journalists in the region face a terrible dilemma: "censor themselves, go into exile or risk an almost certain death that will go completely unpunished."

United States

LES MEMBRES DE L'IFEX AUX ÉTATS-UNIS PRESSENT OBAMA DE RÉAFFIRMER LE LEADERSHIP DE SON PAYS EN MATIÈRE DE DROITS DE LA PERSONNE

United States

LOS MIEMBROS DE IFEX INSTAN A OBAMA A REAFIRMAR SU LIDERAZGO EN DERECHOS HUMANOS

United States

IFEX MEMBERS IN U.S. URGE OBAMA TO REAFFIRM LEADERSHIP IN HUMAN RIGHTS

New U.S. President Barack Obama must retake leadership of the global agenda that has been hijacked by "spoiler" states like China, Egypt and Russia, and put human rights at the heart of it, said Human Rights Watch in issuing its annual world report. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) voiced a similar sentiment in a letter to Obama.

Mexico

ARTICLE 19 ET LE CENCOS DÉVOILENT UNE CAMPAGNE DE PROTECTION DES JOURNALISTES

Mexico

ARTICLE 19 Y CENCOS PRESENTAN CAMPAÑA PARA PROTEGER PERIODISTAS

Mexico

ARTICLE 19 AND CENCOS UNVEIL CAMPAIGN TO PROTECT JOURNALISTS

Last month, veteran crime reporter José Armando Rodríguez was shot to death at his home in Ciudad Juárez on the Texas border, setting off another round of condemnation from IFEX members about the relentless violence that is stifling critical journalism in Mexico.

Mexico

UN CHRONIQUEUR JUDICIAIRE CHEVRONNÉ EST ABATTU À CIUDAD JUÁREZ

Mexico

MÉXICO VETERANO REPORTERO POLICÍACO MUERTO A TIROS EN CIUDAD JUÁREZ

Mexico

VETERAN CRIME REPORTER SHOT DEAD IN CIUDAD JUÁREZ

A crime reporter was shot to death outside his home last week in the border city of Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, report the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), the Committee to Protect Journalists and other IFEX members.

Canada

PERIODISTA LIBERADA; ASISTENTE E INTERMEDIARIO BAJO CUSTODIA

Canada

JOURNALIST FREED; FIXER AND DRIVER IN CUSTODY

Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) and other IFEX members welcomed the release of a Canadian TV journalist who spent four weeks in captivity, and continue to call for the release of her fixer and driver, who are in custody.

Mexico

LES ASSASSINATS DE JOURNALISTES METTENT EN LUMIÈRE LA TENDANCE À LA VIOLENCE CONTRE LES MÉDIAS EN AMÉRIQUE LATINE

Mexico

ASESINATOS DE PERIODISTAS DESTACAN TENDENCIA DE VIOLENCIA CONTRA MEDIOS EN AMÉRICA LATINA

Mexico

JOURNALISTS' MURDERS HIGHLIGHT TREND OF VIOLENCE AGAINST MEDIA IN LATIN AMERICA

Last week, a bullet-ridden body was found in a garbage dump on the outskirts of Lázaro Cárdenas, a city in the western state of Michoacán in Mexico. It belonged to Miguel Ángel Villagómez Valle, the editor of a Michoacán newspaper. He was last seen leaving the office a day earlier, on 9 October.

Mexico

UN ANIMATEUR DE LA RADIO EST ABATTU DANS LE TABASCO

Mexico

LOCUTOR DE RADIO BALEADO EN TABASCO

Mexico

RADIO HOST GUNNED DOWN IN TABASCO

A radio announcer dedicated to fighting organised crime in his community was killed last week in Tabasco, southeastern Mexico, report the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET) and regional and international press freedom groups.

United States

REPORTEROS ARRESTADOS MIENTRAS CUBRÍAN CONVENCIONES POLÍTICAS

United States

DES REPORTERS ARRÊTÉS TANDIS QU'ILS COUVRAIENT DES CONVENTIONS POLITIQUES

United States

REPORTERS ARRESTED WHILE COVERING POLITICAL CONVENTIONS

Three journalists from the popular U.S. public TV and radio programme "Democracy Now!" and a photographer from The Associated Press (AP) were manhandled and arrested while covering anti-war demonstrations at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota on 1 September, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and local media groups.

Mexico

AUTOR Y CINEASTA DE DOCUMENTALES ASESINADO

Mexico

UN AUTEUR ET UN DOCUMENTARISTE SONT ASSASSINÉS

Mexico

AUTHOR AND DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER MURDERED

Anthropologist, author and filmmaker Miguel Ángel Gutiérrez Ávila was apparently beaten to death in the southern Mexican state of Guerrero on 26 July 2008. The Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN (WiPC) says his murder may be related to his documentation of attacks against an indigenous community radio station.

Mexico

DIFUSIÓN COMUNITARIA ATACADA EN TRES PAÍSES Y PROMOVIDA EN URUGUAY

Canada

POLICÍA QUE SE HACE PASAR POR REPORTERO EROSIONA LIBERTAD DE PRENSA, DICE CJFE

Canada

QUE LA POLICE SE FASSE PASSER POUR DES REPORTERS, CELA ÉRODE LA LIBERTÉ DE LA PRESSE, DIT LE CJFE

Canada

POLICE POSING AS REPORTERS ERODES PRESS FREEDOM, SAYS CJFE

Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) and other media organisations are concerned about an undercover police tactic that puts officers at the scene in the guise of journalists.

United States

U.S.: RIGHTS GROUPS CHALLENGE SPYING LAW

PEN American Center has joined the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and other leading rights organisations in challenging the U.S. government over the constitutionality of a new surveillance law.

United States

BLOG ESTADOUNIDENSE "TALKING POINTS MEMO" GANA PREMIO PIONERO DE MEDIOS LIBRES

United States

LE BLOGUE AMÉRICAIN « TALKING POINTS MEMO » REMPORTE LE PRIX PIONNIER DE LA LIBERTÉ DES MÉDIAS

United States

U.S. BLOG "TALKING POINTS MEMO" WINS FREE MEDIA PIONEER AWARD

The New York-based political blog "Talking Points Memo" has won the 2008 Free Media Pioneer award of the International Press Institute (IPI). Managing editor David Kurtz received the prize at an award ceremony on 17 June during IPI's world congress in Belgrade, Serbia.

Mexico

POLICÍA FEDERAL CIERRA ESTACIÓN DE RADIO COMUNITARIA

Mexico

LA POLICE FÉDÉRALE FERME UNE STATION DE RADIO COMMUNAUTAIRE

Mexico

FEDERAL POLICE CLOSE COMMUNITY RADIO STATION

Tierra y Libertad is a community radio station in Monterrey in the northeast of Mexico with a broadcasting radius of four kilometres - just far enough to hit some of the poorest neighbourhoods in Monterrey's west end. It's been on the air for seven years, giving the locals news and analysis on education, health, culture, human rights and labour issues. So it came as some surprise when a large armed police contingent surrounded the station and forced its closure one Friday this month, in what ARTICLE 19 - Mexico and the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) say is an alarming case of the "criminalisation of free expression."

Mexico

FUNCIONARIO CALIFICA A DEFENSORA DE LIBRE EXPRESIÓN DE "ENEMIGA DEL ESTADO" DURANTE MISIÓN

Mexico

LORS D'UNE MISSION, UN RESPONSABLE GOUVERNEMENTAL QUALIFIE UNE CHAMPIONNE DE LA LIBRE EXPRESSION D'« ENNEMIE DE L'ÉTAT »

Mexico

OFFICIAL CALLS FREE EXPRESSION ADVOCATE "ENEMY OF THE STATE" DURING MISSION

The international vice-president of the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) was called an "enemy of the state" by a high-ranking government official while on a free expression mission to Mexico.

United States

LE CAMÉRAMAN D'AL-JAZIRAH EST LIBÉRÉ DE GUANTÁNAMO

United States

CAMARÓGRAFO DE AL YAZIRA LIBERADO DE GUANTÁNAMO

United States

AL JAZEERA CAMERAMAN FREED FROM GUANTANAMO

An Al Jazeera cameraman held at the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay for six years without charge was freed on 1 May, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and Al Jazeera.

Mexico

MISIÓN INTERNACIONAL SE DIRIGE A MÉXICO PARA INVESTIGAR INFRACCIONES

Mexico

LA MISSION INTERNATIONALE SE REND AU MEXIQUE POUR FAIRE ENQUÊTE SUR DES VIOLATIONS

Mexico

INTERNATIONAL MISSION HEADS TO MEXICO TO INVESTIGATE VIOLATIONS

On the heels of the murder of two female indigenous radio broadcasters, an international mission has gone to Mexico to assess the country's deteriorating press freedom situation.

Mexico

REPORTERA DE INVESTIGACIÓN MEXICANA GANA PREMIO A LALIBERTAD DE PRENSA UNESCO

United States

LE PHOTOGRAPHE DE L'AP SERA RELÂCHÉ

Mexico

UNE JOURNALISTE D'ENQUÊTE MEXICAINE REMPORTE LE PRIX DE LA LIBERTÉ DE LA PRESSE DE L'UNESCO

United States

AP PHOTOGRAPHER TO BE RELEASED

The U.S. military has promised to release Associated Press (AP) photographer Bilal Hussein on 16 April, after two years of detention without charge for his alleged links to insurgents, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Human Rights Watch, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and AP.

Mexico

MEXICAN INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER WINS UNESCO PRESS FREEDOM PRIZE

A Mexican reporter who has been the target of death threats, sabotage, defamation suits and police harassment because of her work uncovering prostitution and child pornography networks is this year's winner of the prestigious Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize, awarded by UNESCO.

Mexico

« POUVOIRS PARALLÈLES » : PRINCIPALE MENACE À LA LIBRE EXPRESSION AU MEXIQUE, CONCLUT LE CEPET

Mexico

"PODERES PARALELOS" SON LA PRINCIPAL AMENAZA A LA LIBRE EXPRESIÓN EN MÉXICO, ENCUENTRA CEPET

Mexico

"PARALLEL POWERS" MAIN THREAT TO FREE EXPRESSION IN MEXICO, FINDS CEPET

"Parallel powers" ("poderes paralelos") were behind almost a third of all attacks on free expression last year in Mexico, says a new report by the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET).

Mexico

UNO DE CADA DOS TRABAJADORES INDEPENDIENTES MEXICANOS HA SIDO ACOSADO, DICE ESTUDIO

Mexico

UN PIGISTE MEXICAIN SUR DEUX CONSULTÉS A ÉTÉ HARCELÉ, DIT UNE ÉTUDE

Mexico

ONE IN TWO MEXICAN FREELANCERS SURVEYED HAS BEEN HARASSED, STUDY FINDS

One in two freelance newsgatherers in Mexico, the most dangerous country in Latin America for journalists, has been threatened or attacked, says a new survey by the Rory Peck Trust, an organisation dedicated to supporting and protecting freelancers. And more than half of those attacks come from local government, police and the military, the trust says.

United States

DECLARAN COMBATIENTE ENEMIGO A PERIODISTA AFGANO

United States

UN JOURNALISTE AFGHAN DÉCLARÉ COMBATTANT ENNEMI

Mexico

LE GOUVERNEMENT RESTE SILENCIEUX AU SUJET DE LA VAGUE RÉCENTE D'ATTAQUES CONTRE LA PRESSE

United States

PROGRAMME DE BOURSES D'ÉTUDES EN JOURNALISME SUR LES AFFAIRES MONDIALES

Mexico

GOBIERNO GUARDA SILENCIO SOBRE RECIENTE OLEADA DE ATAQUES CONTRA LA PRENSA

United States

PROGRAMA DE BECAS DE PERIODISMO SOBRE SUCESOS MUNDIALES

Mexico

GOVERNMENT SILENT ON RECENT SPATE OF ATTACKS ON PRESS

Three journalists killed. A crime reporter goes into exile. A newspaper is forced to cut down on crime reporting for security reasons. Dozens of journalists attacked or threatened. All this in Mexico so far this year - and the government has once again failed to respond, say ARTICLE 19 - Mexico, the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) - Mexico, the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (CEPET), the National Center for Social Communication (CENCOS) and other Mexican rights groups.

United States

WORLD AFFAIRS JOURNALISM FELLOWSHIP PROGRAMME

The International Center for Journalists is currently accepting applications for the World Affairs Fellowship, which enables U.S. newspaper reporters to travel overseas and report on international stories that will have an impact in their local communities.

United States

RATIFICATION DES MODIFICATIONS APPORTÉES À LA LOI D'ACCÈS À L'INFORMATION

United States

RATIFICAN CAMBIOS A LEY DE LIBERTAD DE INFORMACIÓN

United States

CHANGES TO FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT RATIFIED

President George W. Bush has signed into law amendments to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) that improve public access to federal government information. But his move comes "so late in an administration that has shown little respect" for freedom of information, says Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Mexico

BALEAN Y MATAN A REPORTERO LOCAL

Mexico

UN REPORTER LOCAL EST ABATTU

Mexico

LOCAL REPORTER SHOT DEAD

A newspaper reporter who covered agriculture and occasionally crime in the central state of Michoacán, Mexico was shot dead last weekend, report the Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (Centro de Periodismo y Etica Publica, CEPET), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF).

Mexico

SUPREMA CORTE FALLA CONTRA PERIODISTA LYDIA CACHO

Mexico

LA COUR SUPRÊME TRANCHE CONTRE LA JOURNALISTE LYDIA CACHO

Mexico

SUPREME COURT RULES AGAINST JOURNALIST LYDIA CACHO

IFEX members have condemned the Mexican Supreme Court's decision on 29 November that a local governor did not violate the rights of a journalist who had exposed a paedophile ring when he had her jailed on defamation charges.

Canada

UN TRIBUNAL ONTARIEN AFFIRME LE DROIT DES MÉDIAS DE PUBLIER DANS L'INTÉRÊT PUBLIC

Canada

TRIBUNAL DE ONTARIO AFIRMA DERECHO DE MEDIOS A PUBLICAR POR EL INTERÉS PÚBLICO

Canada

ONTARIO COURT AFFIRMS MEDIA'S RIGHT TO PUBLISH IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST

Ontario's Court of Appeal has given the media the freedom to publish information deemed in the public interest, a major victory for freedom of expression in Canada, says Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE).

United States

AGISSEZ ! ENRAYEZ L'AUGMENTATION DES TARIFS POSTAUX AUX ÉTATS-UNIS

United States

¡ACTÚE! AYUDE A DEROGAR AUMENTOS EN TARIFAS POSTALES ESTADOUNIDENSES

United States

TAKE ACTION! STAMP OUT U.S. POSTAL RATE HIKES

Today, on 30 October, the U.S. Congress is holding a hearing on the recent postage rate hike that has brought some small and independent publications to the brink of financial disaster. Take a stand: help Free Press, a non-profit org dedicated to promoting democratic media policy, collect 100,000 signatures to stamp out the rate hikes.

United States

NUEVA LEY PROTEGERÍA FUENTES Y LIBERTAD EN INTERNET

United States

UNE NOUVELLE LOI PROTÉGERAIT LES SOURCES ET LA LIBERTÉ DE L'INTERNET

United States

NEW LEGISLATION WOULD PROTECT SOURCES AND INTERNET FREEDOM

Two new pieces of legislation in the United States would help protect reporters' sources and promote Internet freedom.

Mexico

TRES TRABAJADORES MUERTOS A TIROS EN VEHÍCULO DE PERIÓDICO

Mexico

TROIS TRAVAILLEURS ABATTUS DANS LE CAMION DE DISTRIBUTION D'UN JOURNAL

Mexico

THREE WORKERS SHOT DEAD IN NEWSPAPER VAN

Three distributors of the newspaper "El Imparcial del Istmo" were attacked and shot dead on 8 October on a highway in Oaxaca, following weeks of threats made to the paper, report Mexican member the National Centre for Social Communication (Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social, CENCOS), ARTICLE 19 and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

United States

« PAS D'HABEAS CORPUS », LA NOUVELLE QUI ARRIVE EN TÊTE DE LISTE DES REPORTAGES CENSURÉS EN 2006-2007

United States

"NO HABEAS CORPUS" ENCABEZA LA LISTA DE ARTÍCULOS CENSURADOS EN 2006-2007

United States

"NO HABEAS CORPUS" TOPS LIST OF CENSORED STORIES IN 2006-07

For the 31st year running, Project Censored has released the top 25 stories the U.S. news media missed in the past year. According to the "San Franciso Bay Guardian", the picture isn't pretty: together, the stories "present a chilling portrait of a newly empowered executive branch signing away civil liberties for the sake of an endless and amorphous war on terror."

Mexico

MIEMBROS DE IFEX Y SOCIOS INTENSIFICAN ORGANIZACIÓN DE CAMPAÑA POR LA LIBERTAD DE PRENSA

Mexico

MEMBRES ET PARTENAIRES DE L'IFEX ACCENTUENT LEUR CAMPAGNE EN FAVEUR DE LA LIBERTÉ DE LA PRESSE

Mexico

IFEX MEMBERS AND PARTNERS STEP UP PRESS FREEDOM CAMPAIGNING

In Mexico, now the second most dangerous country in the world for journalists after Iraq, press freedom advocates and journalists have teamed up to fight against free expression violations and restrictions in the country.

United States

¡ACTÚE! PIDA QUE SAMI AL-HAJ SEA LIBERADO DE GUANTÁNAMO

United States

AGISSEZ ! DEMANDEZ LA REMISE EN LIBERTÉ DE SAMI AL-HAJ DE GUANTANAMO

United States

TAKE ACTION! CALL FOR SAMI AL-HAJ TO BE RELEASED FROM GUANTANAMO

Sudanese cameraman Sami al-Haj, who has been held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for more than five years without charge, is in failing health. Petitions continue to be organised worldwide demanding his release.

Canada

POLICÍA USA PROVOCADORES EN MANIFESTACIONES

Canada

LA POLICE A RECOURS À DES AGENTS PROVOCATEURS LORS D'UNE MANIFESTATION

Canada

POLICE USE AGENTS PROVOCATEURS AT PROTEST

Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) has voiced concern that police disguising themselves as protesters at a North American leaders' summit acted like agents provocateurs by provoking violence from within the crowd.

United States

EDITOR MUERTO POR ARTÍCULO QUE CRITICABA A PANADERÍA

United States

UN RÉDACTEUR EST TUÉ POUR UN ARTICLE QUI CRITIQUAIT UNE PÂTISSERIE

United States

EDITOR KILLED FOR ARTICLE CRITICISING BAKERY

A newspaper editor was shot to death on a downtown street in California for writing negative reports of a local bakery, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reports.

Mexico

GOBIERNO MEXICANO ES INEFICAZ PARA PROTEGER PERIODISTAS, DICEN MIEMBROS DE IFEX

Mexico

LE GOUVERNEMENT MEXICAIN INCAPABLE DE PROTÉGER LES JOURNALISTES, DISENT LES MEMBRES DE L'IFEX

Mexico

MEXICAN GOVERNMENT INEFFECTIVE IN PROTECTING JOURNALISTS, SAY IFEX MEMBERS

Mexico is the second most dangerous country after Iraq for journalists, and the Mexican government is to blame for being grossly ineffective in protecting journalists and the right to freedom of expression, five IFEX members and three other human rights groups told the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).

Mexico

TROIS MEMBRES DE L'IFEX DEMANDENT DES LOIS DÉMOCRATIQUES SUR LES MÉDIAS COMMUNAUTAIRES

Mexico

TRES MIEMBROS DE IFEX PIDEN LEYES DE MEDIOS COMUNITARIOS DEMOCRÁTICAS

Mexico

THREE IFEX MEMBERS CALL FOR DEMOCRATIC COMMUNITY MEDIA LAWS

IFEX members ARTICLE 19, the National Centre for Social Communications (Centro Nacional de Comunicacíon Social, CENCOS) and the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) are demanding that Congress proceed with major reforms to the Radio and Television Law that would allow for more diversity in the media.

United States

¡ACTÚE! SALVE A MEDIACHANNEL.ORG

United States

AGISSEZ ! SAUVONS MEDIACHANNEL.ORG

United States

TAKE ACTION! SAVE MEDIACHANNEL.ORG

After seven and a half years, MediaChannel.Org (http://www.mediachannel.org), the United States-based media monitoring network, is threatening to close its doors because of lack of funds.

Mexico

L'ANNÉE 2006 AURA ÉTÉ LA PIRE DE L'HISTOIRE POUR LES MÉDIAS MEXICAINS, CONCLUT UN RAPPORT

Mexico

EL AÑO 2006 FUE EL PEOR PARA MEDIOS DE MÉXICO, AFIRMA INFORME

Mexico

2006 WORST YEAR YET FOR MEXICO'S MEDIA, REPORT FINDS

State authorities, armed groups and drug cartels made 2006 the worst year on record for Mexico's media, say ARTICLE 19, the National Center for Social Communication (Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social, CENCOS), Fundación Manuel Buendía, and Mexico's press union (Sindicato Nacional de redactores de la prensa, SNRP) in their annual assessment of press freedom in the country.

Mexico

DES MEMBRES DE L'IFEX FONT CAMPAGNE CONTRE LES PUISSANCES EN PLACE; UN REPORTER EST ASSASSINÉ

Mexico

MIEMBROS DE IFEX HACEN CAMPAÑAS CONTRA PODERES PARALELOS; REPORTERO ASESINADO

Mexico

IFEX MEMBERS CAMPAIGN AGAINST RULING POWERS; REPORTER MURDERED

The same day that Latin American members of the International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX) gathered in Mexico City to discuss how to hold the "poderes paralelos", or "ruling powers", to account for the increase in attacks on the media, a journalist was kidnapped in the northwestern part of the country. He was found murdered a week later, on 23 April, according to Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Mexico

UN CORRESPONDANT DE LA TÉLÉVISION ABATTU DANS UNE VAGUE D'HOMICIDES

United States

UN BLOGUEUR EST LIBÉRÉ APRÈS 224 JOURS DE PRISON

Mexico

CORRESPONSAL DE TV BALEADO EN MEDIO DE OLA DE ASESINATOS

United States

AUTOR DE BLOG LIBERADO DESPUÉS DE 224 DÍAS EN LA CÁRCEL

Mexico

TV CORRESPONDENT GUNNED DOWN AMID WAVE OF KILLINGS

Press groups worldwide are demanding justice for a TV correspondent who was gunned down in southern Mexico on 6 April in an apparent premeditated hit. His murder added to a flurry of killings across the country that left 14 dead in a 24-hour period.

United States

BLOGGER RELEASED AFTER 224 DAYS IN PRISON

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) welcomed the release last week of a blogger who had spent more time in jail than any other journalist in the United States because he wanted to protect his sources.

Mexico

ARTICLE 19 ENCUENTRA QUE LIBERTAD DE EXPRESIÓN EN EL PAÍS SIGUE LIMITADA

Mexico

ARTICLE 19 CONSTATE QUE LA LIBERTÉ D'EXPRESSION EST TOUJOURS LIMITÉE DANS LE PAYS

Mexico

ARTICLE 19 MISSION FINDS FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION STILL LIMITED

Despite ground-breaking steps by the Mexican government to broaden access to information, freedom of the media in the country remains "particularly troubling and worrisome," an ARTICLE 19 mission has found.

Mexico

ON EXIGE LA PROTECTION DES STATIONS DE RADIO COMMUNAUTAIRE

Mexico

PIDEN PROTECCIÓN PARA ESTACIONES DE RADIO COMUNITARIAS

Mexico

PROTECTION URGED FOR COMMUNITY RADIO STATIONS

Following increased threats and attacks on community radio stations in Mexico, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IAHCR) has urged the Mexican government to ensure the safety of community radio workers and protect their freedom of expression.

United States

LES CLIMATOLOGUES DU GOUVERNEMENT FÉDÉRAL SONT MUSELÉS

United States

SILENCIAN A METEORÓLOGOS FEDERALES

United States

FEDERAL CLIMATE SCIENTISTS MUZZLED

PEN American Center has joined eight prominent free expression and academic organisations in calling for more congressional monitoring of the censorship of government scientists in the United States, following a government hearing in January 2007 that examined allegations that officials edited scientific reports and took other actions to downplay the significance of climate change.

Mexico

NUEVE PERIODISTAS MUERTOS EN 2006

Mexico

NEUF JOURNALISTES TUÉS EN 2006

Mexico

NINE JOURNALISTS KILLED IN 2006

It has been a bloody year for journalists in Mexico, with nine killed in 2006, according to Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF).

Mexico

MÉXICO ENCUENTRAN MUERTO A PERIODISTA DESAPARECIDO

Mexico

UN JOURNALISTE QUI ÉTAIT PORTÉ DISPARU EST TROUVÉ MORT

Mexico

MISSING JOURNALIST FOUND SLAIN

Police in the Mexican state of Veracruz are investigating the circumstances surrounding the murder of reporter Adolfo Sánchez Guzmán, whose body was found near Mendoza on 30 November 2006.

United States

AGISSEZ ! UN CAMÉRAMAN D'AL-JAZIRAH EST DÉTENU À GUANTÁNAMO

Mexico

LE NOMBRE DES MEURTRES DE JOURNALISTES CONTINUE DE S'ACCROÎTRE

Mexico

ASESINATOS DE PERIODISTAS CONTINÚAN EN ASCENSO

Mexico

OTRO PERIODISTA ASESINADO

United States

TAKE ACTION! AL-JAZEERA CAMERAMAN DETAINED AT GUANTANAMO BAY

28 November 2006

Mexico

MURDERS OF JOURNALISTS CONTINUE TO RISE

In Mexico, at least five journalists have been killed this year, prompting IFEX members to express serious concern for press freedom in the country. On 21 November 2006, Roberto Marcos García became the latest casualty, the third in November alone.

Mexico

UN AUTRE JOURNALISTE EST ASSASSINÉ

Mexico

ANOTHER JOURNALIST KILLED

Eleven days after journalist Misuel Tamayo Hernández was found dead in a motel room in Zihuatanejo in the Mexican state of Guerrero, another journalist has been killed, report the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF).

Mexico

ASESINAN A EDITOR DE DIARIO EN ESTADO DE GUERRERO

Mexico

LE RÉDACTEUR EN CHEF D'UN QUOTIDIEN DE L'ÉTAT DE GUERRERO EST ASSASSINÉ

Mexico

EDITOR OF GUERRERO STATE DAILY MURDERED

Misael Tamayo Hernández, editor and owner of the daily "El Despertar de la Costa", was found dead in a motel room in Zihuatanejo, a Pacific coastal resort town in the southern state of Guerrero, on 10 November 2006, report the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), the Institute for Press and Society (Instituto Prensa y Sociedad, IPYS), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF).

Mexico

PERIODISTA MUERTO Y FOTÓGRAFO HERIDO EN ENFRENTAMIENTOS EN OAXACA

Mexico

UN JOURNALISTE EST ASSASSINÉ ET UN PHOTOGRAPHE BLESSÉ DANS DES AFFRONTEMENTS À OAXACA

Mexico

JOURNALIST KILLED, PHOTOGRAPHER WOUNDED IN OAXACA CLASHES

A U.S. journalist has been killed and a Mexican photographer wounded in the state of Oaxaca while covering clashes between protesters and paramilitary groups linked to the ruling provincial PRI party, report the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontieres, RSF) and the Inter American Press Association (IAPA).

United States

LE PEN TIRE LA SONNETTE D'ALARME SUR LA SURVEILLANCE GOUVERNEMENTALE

United States

PEN DA VOZ DE ALARMA POR ESPIONAJE GUBERNAMENTAL

United States

PEN RAISES ALARM OVER GOVERNMENT SURVEILLANCE

PEN American Center (PEN) has joined more than 1,100 writers and free expression advocates in the United States to raise grave concerns over government surveillance and threats against the press, saying authorities are intruding too much on privacy in the name of national security.

Mexico

MANIFESTANTES TOMAN ESTACIONES DE RADIO

Mexico

DES PROTESTATAIRES S'EMPARENT DE STATIONS DE RADIO

Mexico

PROTESTERS SEIZE RADIO STATIONS

In the Mexican state of Oaxaca, one of the poorest in the country, tensions are high following the takeover of 12 private radio stations by demonstrators protesting low teaching wages and government corruption, report the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and the Institute for Press and Society (Instituto Prensa y Sociedad, IPYS).

Mexico

REPORTERO VETERANO ASESINADO

Mexico

UN REPORTER CHEVRONNÉ EST ASSASSINÉ

Mexico

VETERAN REPORTER MURDERED

Mexican authorities are investigating the death of Enrique Perea Quintanilla on 9 August 2006 in the city of Chihuahua to determine whether he was killed for his work as a journalist, report the Institute for Press and Society (Instituto Prensa y Sociedad, IPYS), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

United States

Des doyens d'écoles de journalisme des États-unis se portent à la défense de la publication des "secrets" de l'administration Bush

United States

U.S. Journalism Deans Defend Publication of Bush Administration "Secrets"

18 July 2006

Mexico

INSTAN A CANDIDATOS PRESIDENCIALES A PROMOVER TRANSPARENCIA

Mexico

LES CANDIDATS À LA PRÉSIDENCE SONT PRIÉS DE PRENDRE POSITION EN FAVEUR DE LA TRANSPARENCE

Mexico

PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES URGED TO PROMOTE TRANSPARENCY

As Mexicans await the final results of the most closely contested presidential election in the country's history, the National Centre for Social Communication (Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social, CENCOS) and ARTICLE 19 have joined 13 other civil society organisations in urging the new government to publicly pledge its commitment to transparency, accountability and the right to access information.

United States

RSF DOCUMENTA DIFÍCIL SITUACIÓN DE PERIODISTAS DETENIDOS EN BASES ESTADOUNIDENSES

United States

Legisladores estadounidenses forman bloque de libertad de prensa

United States

Des législateurs américains forment un groupe parlementaire consacré à la liberté de la presse

United States

U.S. Lawmakers Form Press Freedom Caucus

6 June 2006

Mexico

LES RÉFORMES DU DROIT DES MÉDIAS BIEN ACCUEILLIES

Mexico

ENCOMIAN LEY DE MEDIOS

Mexico

MEDIA LAW REFORMS HAILED

Mexico's Chamber of Deputies has passed two bills that would eliminate criminal defamation, libel and slander laws from federal statutes, and protect journalists from being forced to reveal their sources to authorities, a move applauded by the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Mexico

DES JOURNAUX S'UNISSENT POUR COMBATTRE L'IMPUNITÉ QUI ENTOURE LES MEURTRES DE JOURNALISTES

Mexico

PERIÓDICOS SE UNEN PARA COMBATIR LA IMPUNIDAD EN ASESINATOS DE PERIODISTAS

Mexico

NEWSPAPERS UNITE TO FIGHT IMPUNITY IN MURDERS OF JOURNALISTS

More than 100 newspapers in Mexico have published the first of a series of investigative articles aimed at breaking through the mystery surrounding the unsolved murders of journalists in the country, reports the Inter American Press Association (IAPA).

Mexico

DEUX JOURNALISTES SONT ASSASSINÉS

Mexico

DOS PERIODISTAS ASESINADOS

Mexico

TWO JOURNALISTS MURDERED

Two journalists were murdered in Mexico last week, prompting the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) to call for thorough investigations into the deaths.

Mexico

LA VIOLENCE ET LA PEUR DÉSORGANISENT COMPLÈTEMENT LES MÉDIAS D'UNE VILLE FRONTALIÈRE MEXICAINE, DIT LE CPJ

Mexico

VIOLENCIA Y TEMOR CAUSAN CONFUSIÓN EN MEDIOS DE CIUDAD FRONTERIZA: CPJ

Mexico

VIOLENCE AND FEAR WREAK HAVOC ON MEXICAN BORDER CITY'S MEDIA: CPJ

In the border city of Nuevo Laredo in Northern Mexico, where violent crime and corruption are rampant, local media have been cowed into silence and self-censorship, according to a new report by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Mexico

UN PROCUREUR SPÉCIAL FERA ENQUÊTE SUR LES MEURTRES DE JOURNALISTES

Mexico

FISCAL ESPECIAL INVESTIGARÁ ASESINATOS DE PERIODISTAS

Mexico

SPECIAL PROSECUTOR TO PROBE JOURNALISTS' SLAYINGS

Mexican president Vicente Fox has appointed a special prosecutor to investigate crimes against journalists in response to a rash of murders that have fostered a climate of fear among media organisations in the country's border regions, reports the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Mexico

DES JOURNALISTES S'APPRÊTENT À ENQUÊTER SUR LES ASSASSINS DE LEURS COLLÈGUES

Mexico

JOURNALISTS TO PROBE COLLEAGUES' MURDERS

Journalists from Mexico have announced plans to conduct joint investigations into the unsolved murders of colleagues, following a meeting in Nuevo Laredo organised last week by the Inter American Press Association (IAPA).

Mexico

MEXIQUE: LA SIP FAIT CAMPAGNE CONTRE L'IMPUNITÉ

United States

UNE JOURNALISTE DU « NEW YORK TIMES » EST REMISE EN LIBERTÉ

Mexico

MÉXICO: CAMPAÑAS DE SIP CONTRA IMPUNIDAD

United States

REPORTERA DE NEW YORK TIMES SALE DE CÁRCEL

Mexico

MEXICO: IAPA CAMPAIGNS AGAINST IMPUNITY

4 October 2005

United States

NEW YORK TIMES REPORTER RELEASED FROM JAIL

"New York Times" reporter Judith Miller was released from prison on 29 September 2005 after agreeing to testify before a U.S. grand jury about the leaking of a CIA operative's identity in 2003, reported the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF).

Canada

DES ÉCRIVAINS EN EXIL SE TROUVENT DE NOUVEAUX DOMICILES

Canada

ESCRITORES EXILIADOS ENCUENTRAN NUEVOS HOGARES

Canada

EXILED WRITERS FIND NEW HOMES

For many writers who have been forced to leave their home countries because of political persecution, life in a new, albeit safe, country, can be difficult. The rupture and separation that comes with exile can often mean that individuals forfeit their careers as writers in order to make a living in their adopted land.

United States

ORGANISMO FEDERAL INTENTA CENSURAR COBERTURA TRAS HURACÁN KATRINA

United States

UNE AGENCE FÉDÉRALE TENTE DE CENSURER LA COUVERTURE DE L'APRÈS-KATRINA

United States

FEDERAL AGENCY TRIES TO CENSOR POST-KATRINA COVERAGE

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, U.S. authorities have attempted to prevent several journalists from covering rescue efforts, say Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Mexico

LA SIP EXERCE DES PRESSIONS SUR LE GOUVERNEMENT À PROPOS DES ASSASSINATS DES JOURNALISTES

Mexico

SIP PRESIONA A GOBIERNO POR ASESINATOS DE PERIODISTAS

Mexico

IAPA PRESSES GOVERNMENT ON JOURNALISTS' MURDERS

The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) has urged Mexican President Vicente Fox to make crimes against freedom of expression federal offences and to stiffen penalties for those found guilty of them.

United States

LA CONFIDENTIALITÉ DES SOURCES DES JOURNALISTES EST MENACÉE

Mexico

MÉXICO: REPORTERO POLICIACO DESAPARECIDO

United States

CONFIDENCIALIDAD DE FUENTES DE PERIODISTAS AMENAZADA

United States

CONFIDENTIALITY OF JOURNALISTS' SOURCES UNDER THREAT

Press freedom in the United States was dealt a blow last week with the Supreme Court's refusal to hear an appeal by two journalists who face jail for refusing to reveal their confidential sources and ignoring subpoenas to testify before a grand jury. The decision has several IFEX members concerned that the decision gives authoritarian regimes further ammunition to justify crackdowns on the press.

Mexico

MEXIQUE : UN CHRONIQUEUR JUDICIAIRE EST PORTÉ DISPARU

Mexico

DES MEMBRES DE L'IFEX EXIGENT LA FIN DE L'IMPUNITÉ

Mexico

MEXICO: CRIME REPORTER MISSING

28 June 2005

Mexico

IFEX MEMBERS CALL FOR END TO IMPUNITY

The unsolved murders of journalists working in northern Mexico near the US border have perpetuated a climate of impunity that makes the region one of the most dangerous in Latin America for the media, say the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF).

Mexico

LES CENTRES DU PEN SE JOIGNENT À UNE COALITION DE LUTTE CONTRE L'IMPUNITÉ

Mexico

CENTROS PEN SE UNEN A COALICIÓN CONTRA IMPUNIDAD

Mexico

UNE JOURNALISTE SUCCOMBE À SES BLESSURES

Mexico

REPORTERA HERIDA MUERE

Mexico

WOUNDED REPORTER DIES

Mexican reporter Dolores Guadalupe García Escamilla, who was shot nine times by an unidentified gunman on 5 April 2005 in the northern city of Nuevo Laredo, has died, report the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Mexico

DES JOURNALISTES VISÉS PAR LES TRAFIQUANTS DE DROGUE

Mexico

PERIODISTA ATACADO POR TRAFICANTES DE DROGAS

Mexico

JOURNALISTS TARGETED BY DRUG TRAFFICKERS

In Mexico, journalists risk grave danger in covering drug trafficking. In 2004, two journalists were murdered in the cities of Tijuana and Matamoros because of their work. In the past two weeks, an editor was gunned down, a crime reporter narrowly survived an assassination attempt and a correspondent specialising in drug trafficking went missing, reported IFEX members.

United States

LA SIP S'ATTAQUE AU JOURNALISME « PAYOLA »

United States

SIP ARREMETE CONTRA PERIODISMO DE SOBORNO

United States

IAPA ASSAILS "PAYOLA" JOURNALISM

The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) has criticised the Bush administration for secretly paying journalists to propagate its policies and pressuring reporters to reveal their sources.

United States

Película investiga fracaso de medios estadounidenses sobre cobertura de Irak

United States

Film Probes US Media's Failure over Iraq Coverage

8 March 2005

United States

UN FESTIVAL D'ÉCRIVAINS POUR PROMOUVOIR LE DIALOGUE INTERCULTUREL

United States

FESTIVAL DE ESCRITORES PROMOVERÁ TO DIÁLOGO INTERCULTURAL

United States

WRITERS FESTIVAL TO PROMOTE INTER-CULTURAL DIALOGUE

For one week in April, New York will be the centre of the literary world when it plays host to PEN World Voices, a week-long festival of readings, debates and programmes involving more than 70 of the world's leading writers.

Mexico

UN PHOTOGRAPHE EST ASSASSINÉ

Mexico

FOTÓGRAFO MUERTO

Mexico

PHOTOGRAPHER KILLED

On 27 November 2004, Mexican photographer Gregorio Rodríguez was gunned down in the northwestern state of Sinaloa, reports the World Association of Newspapers (WAN).

Mexico

LE CPJ ENQUÊTE SUR UN MEURTRE À TIJUANA

Mexico

CPJ INVESTIGA ASESINATO EN TIJUANA

Mexico

CPJ INVESTIGATES TIJUANA MURDER

For Jesús Blancornelas, editor of Mexico's muckraking newspaper "Zeta," the price for investigating Tijuana's powerful drug cartels has been very high. He is a virtual prisoner, moving only between home and office accompanied by 20 heavily armed bodyguards. Three "Zeta" staff members have been murdered, the most recent being Blancornelas' co-editor, Francisco Ortiz Franco, gunned down in front of his children in June 2004.

United States

PREMIO NOBEL DEMANDA A GOBIERNO ESTADOUNIDENSE

United States

LA LAURÉATE IRANIENNE DU PRIX NOBEL POURSUIT LE GOUVERNEMENT DES ÉTATS-UNIS

Mexico

LE GOUVERNEMENT MANIFESTE SON APPUI À LA RADIO COMMUNAUTAIRE

United States

IRANIAN NOBEL LAUREATE SUES US GOVERNMENT

Iranian human rights advocate and Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi has filed a lawsuit against the US Treasury Department for preventing her from publishing a book in the United States, reports PEN American Center (PEN).

Mexico

GOBIERNO DA SEÑAL DE APOYO PARA RADIO COMUNITARIA

Mexico

GOVERNMENT SIGNALS SUPPORT FOR COMMUNITY RADIO

The Mexican government is sending "positive signals" to supporters of community radio in the country, saying social groups and communities should be given equal opportunities to access public airwaves, reports the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC).

United States

LE DROIT DES JOURNALISTES DE PROTÉGER LEURS SOURCES EST MENACÉ

United States

AMENAZAN DERECHO DE PERIODISTAS A PROTEGER FUENTES

United States

JOURNALISTS' RIGHT TO PROTECT SOURCES THREATENED

One of the indicators of a free press is the degree to which journalists are able to protect their sources. In the United States, that privilege is being sorely tested, with prosecutors compelling more journalists to reveal their sources this year than in decades, reports the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Mexico

AGISSEZ ! MEXIQUE : LA SIP PRESSE À L'ACTION CONTRE L'IMPUNITÉ

Mexico

¡ACTÚE! MÉXICO SIP INSTA A REALIZAR ACCIONES CONTRA IMPUNIDAD

Mexico

TAKE ACTION! MEXICO: IAPA URGES ACTION AGAINST IMPUNITY

5 October 2004

Mexico

UN CHRONIQUEUR EST ASSASSINÉ

Mexico

COLUMNISTA ASESINADO

Mexico

COLUMNIST MURDERED

IFEX members have condemned the killing of Mexican newspaper columnist Francisco Arratia Saldierna, who was beaten to death by unidentified assailants in the northern border city of Matamoros on 31 August 2004.

Mexico

LES AUTORITÉS FÉDÉRALES PRENNENT EN MAIN L'ENQUÊTE SUR LE MEURTRE D'UN JOURNALISTE

Mexico

AUTORIDADES FEDERALES SE HACEN CARGO DE INVESTIGACIÓN DE ASESINATO

Mexico

FEDERAL AUTHORITIES TAKE OVER MURDER INVESTIGATION

An investigation into the June 2004 murder of Mexican journalist Francisco Javier Ortiz Franco is now being taken up by federal prosecutors, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontierès, RSF).

Mexico

L'OEA VEUT UN RAPPORT DU GOUVERNEMENT SUR L'AFFAIRE D'UN JOURNALISTE ASSASSINÉ

Mexico

OEA BUSCA INFORME GUBERNAMENTAL SOBRE PERIODISTAS ASESINADOS

Mexico

OAS SEEKS GOVERNMENT REPORT ON MURDERED JOURNALIST

The Organization of American States' Special Rapporteur on Free Expression, Eduardo Bertoni, has requested a report from the Mexican government concerning the murder of journalist Roberto Mora García, citing inconsistencies in the official investigation into the case.

United States

DES MEMBRES DE L'IFEX INSISTENT POUR QU'ON MODIFIE LA POLITIQUE DE DÉLIVRANCE DE VISAS AUX JOURNALISTES

United States

MIEMBROS DE IFEX PIDEN CAMBIOS A REGLAS DE VISADO PARA PERIODISTAS

United States

IFEX MEMBERS URGE VISA RULE CHANGES FOR JOURNALISTS

The United States' reputation as a "beacon of press freedom" is being tarnished by a pattern of incidents in which at least 13 foreign journalists have been detained and deported from the country in the past 18 months because of unfair visa regulations, say four IFEX members.

Mexico

LES MEMBRES DE L’IFEX CONDAMNENT LE MEURTRE D’UN JOURNALISTE

Mexico

MIEMBROS DE IFEX CONDENAN ASESINATO DE PERIODISTA

Mexico

IFEX MEMBERS CONDEMN JOURNALIST'S MURDER

Seven IFEX members have expressed outrage at the murder of respected Mexican journalist Francisco J. Ortiz Franco, who was gunned down in broad daylight on 22 June 2004 in Tijuana, northern Mexico.

Mexico

DECRECEN ATAQUES CONTRA MEDIOS EN 2003, PERO LIBRE EXPRESIÓN SIGUE OBSTACULIZADA

Mexico

AGISSEZ! MEXIQUE : LE GOUVERNEUR DU CHIAPAS EST PRIÉ D'ABOLIR LES RÉCENTES « RÉFORMES » RÉPRESSIVES DU CODE PÉNAL

Mexico

LE NOMBRE DES ATTAQUES CONTRE LES MÉDIAS A DIMINUÉ EN 2003, MAIS LA LIBRE EXPRESSION EST TOUJOURS ENTRAVÉE

Mexico

MEDIA ATTACKS DOWN IN 2003, BUT FREE EXPRESSION STILL HINDERED

Even though there was a 50 per cent drop in direct attacks on journalists in Mexico in 2003, the Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social (National Center for Social Communication, CENCOS) says there were still 260 cases of free expression violations registered.

United States

CAMPAÑA DE PEN INSTA A REVISIÓN DE LEY PATRIÓTICA DE ESTADOS UNIDOS

United States

CAMPAGNE DU PEN EN FAVEUR D'UNE RÉVISION DU « PATRIOT ACT »

United States

PEN CAMPAIGN URGES REVIEW OF U.S.A. PATRIOT ACT

PEN American Center (PEN) has launched a campaign calling for a review of the U.S.A. Patriot Act, saying the legislation has compromised core American values and damaged U.S. credibility internationally.

Mexico

LE CHEF DE LA RÉDACTION D'UNE PUBLICATION EST ASSASSINÉ

Mexico

DIRECTOR EDITORIAL ASESINADO

Mexico

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR MURDERED

Journalists Against Corruption (Periodistas frente a la corrupción, PFC), Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) and the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) are calling on Mexican authorities to investigate the murder of journalist Roberto Javier Mora García, who was killed in the northern city of Nuevo Laredo on 19 March 2004.

Canada

CANADÁ: CJFE BUSCA NUEVO DIRECTOR EJECUTIVO

United States

Organizaciones de periodismo de 11 países crean red

United States

AMÉRIQUES : DES GROUPES DE JOURNALISTES DISCUTENT DE LA FORMATION D'UN RÉSEAU

United States

LE PEN SE JOINT AUX LIBRAIRES ET AUX BIBLIOTHÉCAIRES DANS UNE CAMPAGNE CONTRE LE « PATRIOT ACT »

United States

PEN SE UNE A LIBREROS Y BIBLIOTECARIOS EN CAMPAÑA CONTRA LEY PATRIÓTICA

United States

PEN JOINS LIBRARIANS, BOOKSELLERS IN CAMPAIGN AGAINST PATRIOT ACT

PEN American Center (PEN) has joined librarians, writers and booksellers across the United States to launch a nation-wide campaign in support of legislation to amend the controversial USA Patriot Act.

Canada

POLICÍA FEDERAL ALLANA CASA DE PERIODISTA

Canada

LA POLICE FÉDÉRALE EFFECTUE UNE DESCENTE AU DOMICILE D'UNE JOURNALISTE

Canada

FEDERAL POLICE RAID JOURNALIST'S HOME

Canada's anti-terrorism legislation, passed shortly after the September 11 attacks on the United States, came under heavy criticism from IFEX members last week after federal police raided the home and office of "Ottawa Citizen" reporter Julie O'Neill in pursuit of the journalists's confidential sources.

Mexico

DES JUGES ET DES JOURNALISTES MEXICAINS ENTAMENT LE DIALOGUE

Mexico

JUECES Y PERIODISTAS MEXICANOS INICIAN DIÁLOGO

Mexico

MEXICAN JUDGES, JOURNALISTS ENGAGE IN DIALOGUE

Judges and journalists from Mexico will be engaging in dialogue this week to deepen understanding on press freedom and the law, reports the Inter American Press Association (IAPA).

United States

L'érosion des libertés aux États-Unis représente une « nouvelle norme », dit un rapport

United States

Erosión de libertad estadounidense es "nueva norma", dice informe

United States

Erosion of US Freedoms a "New Norm," says Report

7 October 2003

United States

LE TRIBUNAL BLOQUE LES RÉFORMES SUR LA PROPRIÉTÉ DES MÉDIAS

United States

TRIBUNAL OBSTACULIZA REFORMAS A PROPIEDAD DE MEDIOS DE COMUNICACIÓN

United States

COURT BLOCKS MEDIA OWNERSHIP REFORMS

A United States Federal Court has blocked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from proceeding with media ownership reforms allowing companies to increase ownership of local television and radio stations, reports the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ).

Mexico

LE RAPPORTEUR DE L'OEA EN VISITE AU MEXIQUE

United States

INDEX ON CENSORSHIP EXAMINE LA LIBERTÉ DE PAROLE AUX ÉTATS-UNIS

Mexico

RELATOR DE LA OEA VISITARÁ MÉXICO

United States

ÍNDICE DE LA CENSURA EXAMINA LIBERTAD DE PALABRA EN ESTADOS UNIDOS

Mexico

OAS RAPPORTEUR TO VISIT MEXICO

The Organization of American States' Special Rapporteur on Free Expression, Eduardo Bertoni, will visit Mexico from 18 to 26 August to assess the state of free expression there, reports the Rapporteur's Office.

United States

INDEX ON CENSORSHIP EXAMINES FREE SPEECH IN AMERICA

Index on Censorship, the quarterly magazine on freedom of expression, has devoted its latest issue to America, a country where free speech is considered sacred yet now appears "inconvenient or unpatriotic" in the wake of September 11. "Rewriting America" looks at the most powerful country in the world through the words of local people on the frontlines of free expression.

Canada

UN AFGHAN PREMIER PARTICIPANT AU PROGRAMME DE PLACEMENT DE PEN CANADA

Canada

AFGHANI BECOMES FIRST PARTICIPANT IN PEN CANADA PLACEMENT PROGRAM

An Afghani writer now living in Canada will be the first participant in a new placement program assisting writers whose professional and cultural contributions have been imperiled by the need to leave their home countries, PEN Canada has announced. Saboor Siasang will begin a four-week writing residency in October at the Banff Centre in Banff, Alberta.

United States

UNE CONFÉRENCE DEMANDE AU SOMMET MONDIAL SUR LA SOCIÉTÉ DE L'INFORMATION DE SOUTENIR LA LIBRE EXPRESSION SUR INTERNET

United States

CONFERENCE CALLS ON WSIS TO SUPPORT INTERNET FREE EXPRESSION

More than 100 participants at a New York City conference on "Press Freedom and the Internet" have endorsed the demand that the upcoming World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) be rooted in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Rights, reports Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE).

Canada

IRAQI AWARDED DONNER/CJFE FELLOWSHIP

Canadian Journalists for Free Expression has announced that Iraqi journalist Hikmet El-Hadj has been awarded the Donner/CJFE Journalist-at-Risk Fellowship at Massey College, University of Toronto.

United States

IFJ SOUNDS ALARM ON MEDIA CONCENTRATION

Some of the world's largest media conglomerates in the United States could become more powerful at the expense of democracy and pluralism if secret proposals to amend media ownership regulations are approved, warns the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ).

United States

US MEDIA GIVE SHORT SHRIFT TO GOVERNMENT'S SECRET ATTACK ON CIVIL LIBERTIES: FAIR

The United States government has secretly drafted amendments to the USA Patriot Act that would fundamentally jeopardise civil liberties afforded American citizens by the Constitution -- yet it has been virtually ignored by mainstream media, reports the US media watchdog Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR).

United States

L?EXPERT DES MÉDIAS DE L?OSCE CRITIQUE LE « PATRIOT ACT »

United States

EXPERTOS EN LOS MEDIOS DE COMUNICACIÓN DE OSCE CRITICAN LEY PATRIÓTICA DE EE.UU.

United States

OSCE MEDIA EXPERT CRITICISES USA PATRIOT ACT

The United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has come under criticism from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation's (OSCE) Media Freedom Representative for investigating library records, newspaper subscriptions and bookstore receipts under the pretext of anti-terrorism.

United States

US "WAR ON TERRORISM" UNDERMINES HUMAN RIGHTS: HRW

The United States government is undermining human rights principles by ignoring the abuses of its allies in the "war on terrorism," said Human Rights Watch (HRW) today in releasing its 2003 World Report. The report documents the state of human rights, including freedom of expression, in 58 countries during 2002.

United States

LE CONGRÈS DÉPOSE LE PROJET DE LOI SUR LA LIBERTÉ DE L?INTERNET

United States

CONGRESO PRESENTA PROYECTO DE LEY DE LIBERTAD EN INTERNET

United States

CONGRESS TABLES INTERNET FREEDOM BILL

Internet free-expression campaigners may have cause for hope: the United States Congress is considering a bill calling for the creation of a special office to combat Internet censorship in authoritarian regimes around the world, report International Journalists' Network (IJNet) and the Far Eastern Economic Review (FEER).

Canada

CANWEST GLOBAL DESPIDE A EDITOR VETERANO

Canada

LA SOCIÉTÉ CANWEST GLOBAL CONGÉDIE UN RÉDACTEUR EN CHEF D?EXPÉRIENCE

Canada

CANWEST GLOBAL FIRES LONG-TIME PUBLISHER

Canada's reputation as a country that upholds press freedom is being put to the test following the firing of a long-time newspaper publisher by CanWest Global Communications Corp (CanWest Global), the country's largest media conglomerate. Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) says "Ottawa Citizen" publisher Russell Mills was told by CanWest Global that he lost his job because he published an article and editorial about scandals involving Prime Minister Jean Chrétien without first submitting them to head office for approval. Mills was fired from his post on 16 June.

Mexico

SIP ENCOMIA NUEVA LEY DE ACCESO A LA INFORMACIÓN

Mexico

LA SIP SALUE LA NOUVELLE LOI D?ACCÈS À L?INFORMATION

Mexico

IAPA PRAISES NEW ACCESS TO INFORMATION LAW

The government of Mexico has passed the country's first access to information law, drawing praise from the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) and the Organisation of American States' Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression. Passed by Congress on 30 April, the Law on Transparency and Access to Public Information is a good first step, says IAPA, although "much needs to be done" to ensure "all Mexican citizens will have access to information when they request it."

Canada

LE CJFE INVITE LE PUBLIC À DÎNER EN COMPAGNIE D?UNE JOURNALISTE RÉPUTÉE

Canada

CJFE INVITA AL PÚBLICO A ALMUERZO CON RENOMBRADA PERIODISTA

Canada

CJFE INVITES PUBLIC TO LUNCH WITH NOTED JOURNALIST

Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) is inviting the public to a lunch-time event on 3 May featuring noted "Globe and Mail" journalist Jan Wong. Participants can enter to win one of six copies of the book "Lunch with Jan Wong," to be signed by the author at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. CJFE will also be on hand to raise awareness of free-expression issues confronting Canada and other parts of the world.

Canada

CJFE PIDE INVESTIGACIÓN PÚBLICA DE CONCENTRACIÓN DE MEDIOS

Canada

PUBLIQUE SUR LA CONCENTRATION DE LA PROPRIÉTÉ DES MÉDIAS

Canada

CJFE CALLS FOR PUBLIC INQUIRY INTO MEDIA CONCENTRATION

Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) has released a report taking Canada's largest media company to task for failing to respect the free-expression rights of its employees. The 32-page report, "Not in the Newsroom: CanWest Global, Chain Editorials and Freedom of Expression in Canada," examines the controversy over CanWest Global Corporation's (CanWest Global) handling of editorial disputes with its employees and outside critics.

Mexico

PERIODISTA ASESINADO; GENERAL DEL EJÉRCITO LIBERADO

Mexico

UN JOURNALISTE PERD LA VIE; UN GÉNÉRAL DE L'ARMÉE EST LIBÉRÉ

Mexico

JOURNALIST KILLED; ARMY GENERAL FREED

Julio Samuel Morales Ferron, a columnist for the daily "El Sol de Medio Día", was murdered on 1 February in Mexico City, becoming the second journalist in two weeks to be killed in the country. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) reports that the body of the 79-year old journalist was found in the offices of the Mexican Radio and Television Association (MRTA). His throat had been slit. Morales Ferron was the president of MRTA and also wrote for a number of other media outlets. RSF says a Mexico City prosecutor is rejecting claims that Morales Ferron's death was politically motivated or the subject of a robbery. "El Sol de Medio Día" editor Humberto Hernández says the columnist was not conducting any investigative activities at the time of his murder and his criticisms were not polemic.

Canada

FPJQ EXIGE INVESTIGACIÓN DE CONCENTRACIÓN DE MEDIOS

Canada

EXIGE UNE ENQUÊTE PARLEMENTAIRE SUR LA CONCENTRATION DE LA PROPRIÉTÉ DES MÉDIAS

Canada

FPJQ DEMANDS INQUIRY INTO MEDIA CONCENTRATION

The Quebec Federation of Professional Journalists (FPJQ) is calling for a parliamentary inquiry into the effects of media concentration in Canada, saying the recent policies of CanWest Global Communications Corp (CanWest) represent a "disturbing pattern of censorship and repression of dissenting views." FPJQ, in collaboration with the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ), has sent a letter to all members of parliament and senators, stating "With concentration of media ownership in Canada at an unprecedented level, safeguards are needed to ensure diversity of opinion in Canada's news."

Mexico

EDITOR ASESINADO

Mexico

ASSASSINAT DU DIRECTEUR D?UNE PUBLICATION

Mexico

EDITOR ASSASSINATED

Félix Fernández Garcia, editor of the magazine "Nueva Opcion", was shot and killed on the night of 18 January in the Mexican border town of Miguel Alemán, Tamaulipas, after two individuals sprayed machine-gun fire at him from a passing vehicle, report the National Center for Social Communication (CENCOS) and the International Federation of Journalists' Human Rights Section for Latin America (IFJ/L). Fernández Garcia, accompanied by bodyguards Martín Acosta and Carlos Domínguez, was shot while exiting a restaurant half a block away from the Municipal Palace. Acosta and Dominguez survived the shooting and were taken to a local jail for questioning.

United States

UNE JOURNALISTE EST RELAXÉE

United States

PERIODISTA LIBERADA DE LA CÁRCEL

United States

JOURNALIST RELEASED FROM JAIL

Freelance reporter Vanessa Leggett has been released from prison in Texas after more than five months of detention, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and the Inter-American Press Association (IAPA). The reporter was released on 4 January after the federal grand jury overseeing her court case ended its term on 3 January. According to CPJ, Leggett had been in jail since 20 July 2001 after a district court judge found her guilty of contempt of court for refusing to hand over information she had compiled while researching a local high-profile murder case. Leggett had cited the need to protect the confidentiality of her sources in refusing to hand over her information. On 17 August 2001, a United States Court of Appeals upheld the lower court ruling.

Canada

POLÍTICA EDITORIAL DE CANWEST SUSCITA TEMORES DE CONCENTRACIÓN DE MEDIOS

Canada

ACCROÎT L?APPRÉHENSION DE LA CONCENTRATION DE LA PROPRIÉTÉ DE LA PRESSE

Canada

CANWEST'S EDITORIAL POLICY RAISES MEDIA CONCENTRATION FEARS

Fears surrounding the effects of increased media concentration on free expression in Canada have surfaced in recent weeks, with the announcement that media giant CanWest Global is demanding that all of its 14 newspapers run the same national editorial each week.

Canada

RESOLUCIÓN DE FPJQ EXIGE RETIRO DE PROYECTO DE LEY ANTITERRORISMO

Canada

ADOPTE UNE RÉSOLUTION QUI EXIGE LE RETRAIT DU PROJET DE LOI ANTITERRORISME

Canada

FPJQ RESOLUTION DEMANDS WITHDRAWAL OF ANTI-TERRORISM BILL

The Fédération professionelle des journalists du Québec (FPJQ) has urged the Canadian government to withdraw its proposed anti-terrorism bill, C-36, citing concerns that the legislation "opens the door to a possible abuse of power and places considerable restrictions on freedom of expression and access to information." At its annual convention on 18 November, the federation's members unanimously adopted a resolution against the bill.

Canada

CJFE EXIGE REVISIONES A PROYECTO DE LEY ANTITERRORISMO

Canada

LE CJFE EXIGE DES MODIFICATIONS AU PROJET DE LOI ANTITERRORISME

Canada

BURMESE, TAJIK JOURNALISTS; CJFE DEMANDS REVISIONS TO ANTI-TERRORISM BILL

A spotlight was briefly shone in the dark corners of Burma and Tajikistan two weeks ago when Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) presented its 2001 International Press Freedom Awards in Toronto. At a ceremony hosted on 8 November at the Westin Harbour Castle hotel, an audience of over 600 guests listened to the stories of jailed Burmese journalist Myo Myint Nyein and exiled Tajik editor Dodojon Atovulloev. Both of them have been awarded the prizes for demonstrating a "commitment to freedom of expression" and overcoming "enormous odds to produce the news." [See IFEX "Communiqu%26#233;" #10-43].">http://communique.ifex.org/articles.cfm?system_id=3725">IFEX "Communiqué" #10-43].

United States

PUBLIENT UN RAPPORT SUR LA COUVERTURE PAR LES MÉDIAS DE LA GUERRE AU TERRORISME

United States

PUBLICAN INFORME SOBRE COBERTURA DE LOS MEDIOS DE LA GUERRA CONTRA EL TERRORISMO

United States

RSF, CPJ, IFJ ISSUE REPORTS ON MEDIA COVERAGE OF WAR ON TERRORISM

US PRESS FREEDOM GROUPS HAVE BEEN MUTED, SAYS RSF

United States

PRESSURES QATAR TO REIN IN ARAB NEWS CHANNEL;BRITISH JOURNALIST RELEASED

UNITED STATES PRESSURES QATAR TO REIN IN ARAB NEWS CHANNEL

United States

FBI CRACKS DOWN ON US-BASED ARABIC WEBSITES

According to an article in the "New York Times", an 80-strong terrorism task force from the United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) raided Texas-based InfoCom Corporation, which hosts Arabic websites, although its clients are not uniquely Arabic or Muslim. The raid resulted in a service interruption that affected InfoCom's clients, including Qatar's Al-Jazeera television, which has been called the "Arab CNN," and "Al-Sharq" newspaper, both of which rely on the company's services.

United States

GOBIERNO INFRINGE DERECHOS DE LOS PERIODISTAS A CONFIDENCIALIDAD

United States

LE GOUVERNEMENT EMPIÈTE SUR LE DROIT DES JOURNALISTES À LA CONFIDENTIALITÉ

United States

GOVERNMENT INFRINGES JOURNALISTS' RIGHTS TO CONFIDENTIALITY

One month after a journalist in Texas was imprisoned for refusing to hand over confidential information, the issue of journalists' rights to protect the confidentiality of their sources received attention from another incident last week.

United States

PERIODISTA ENCARCELADA POR REHUSARSE A ENTREGAR NOTAS

United States

UNE JOURNALISTE EST EMPRISONNÉE POUR AVOIR REFUSÉ DE REMETTRE SES NOTES

United States

JOURNALIST JAILED FOR REFUSING TO HAND OVER NOTES

Freelance journalist Vanessa Leggett has been jailed for refusing to hand over her research notes to a US federal grand jury, report the International Press Institute (IPI), the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Leggett was found in contempt of court by District Court Judge Melinda Harmon and jailed without bail in Houston, Texas on 20 July. She has refused to give prosecutors notes from her investigation into the 1997 murder of socialite Doris Angleton. Under the law, Leggett could remain in custody for up to 18 months, the length of the grand jury's term, if she decides not to hand over the notes or if her appeal is rejected, notes IPI.

United States

DE "LA GUERRA DE LAS GALAXIAS" PODRÍAN ENFRENTARSE A SENTENCIAS DE DIEZ AÑOS

United States

PROJET MILITAIRE AMÉRICAIN SERAIENT PASSIBLES DE DIX ANS DE PRISON

United States

JOURNALISTS ARRESTED AT "STAR WARS" PROTEST COULD FACE TEN-YEAR SENTENCES

Steve Morgan, a British photographer, and Nick Clyde, an Australian videographer, were arrested on 14 July while covering a protest by 15 Greenpeace activists against American anti-missile tests, according to Reporters sans frontières (RSF). The protestors entered the military's exclusion zone at Vandenberg Air Force base in California and delayed a test of the "Star Wars" missile defence system, says Greenpeace.

North America

ENTOURANT LES NÉGOCIATIONS DE L'ALENA EST CONTESTÉ DEVANT LE TRIBUNAL

Canada

LA POLICE SAISIT DE NOUVEAU LES BANDES FILMÉES D?UNE MANIFESTATION

North America

NAFTA SECRECY CHALLENGED IN COURT

A Canadian coalition has launched a constitutional challenge of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), arguing that its rules violate press freedom guarantees. The Canadian Union of Public Employees and the citizen advocacy group Democracy Watch, represented by the Sierra Legal Defence Fund, maintain that the secrecy of NAFTA's investor-state tribunal process violates freedom of expression and freedom of the press, as guaranteed by Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. NAFTA's Chapter 11 gives foreign corporations the power to sue governments for infringing on their investments, notes the coalition. Claims, which can cover virtually all aspects of public policy-making, are heard by tribunals behind closed doors.

Canada

POLICE SEIZE PROTEST FOOTAGE AGAIN

In the latest case of police seizure of journalist's footage, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) have seized videotapes and other materials belonging to Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) correspondent Todd Lamirande, reports Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE). On 24 June, in Sun Peaks, British Columbia, Lamirande videotaped part of a confrontation between aboriginal people protesting a ski resort development and local supporters of the project. As Lamirande was driving away from the site, the RCMP pulled his car over and seized the vehicle and all its contents, including his TV news camera, videotapes, notes and personal effects. According to the journalist, the only reason that police gave for his detention and the seizure of materials was that "they suspect the videotapes have evidence of a crime on them." The RCMP later released Lamirande and returned his vehicle and personal effects, but they continue to hold onto the video footage. The APTN is seeking a court injunction to prevent use of the videotape.

Canada

POLICÍA VUELVE A DECOMISAR GRABACIÓN DE MANIFESTACIÓN

United States

REVELAN LAS 25 PRINCIPALES HISTORIAS CENSURADAS DE 2000

United States

LES 25 PRINCIPAUX SUJETS CENSURÉS EN 2000 SONT DÉVOILÉS

United States

TOP 25 CENSORED STORIES OF 2000 REVEALED

For the twenty-fifth year, Project Censored, a US-based media watchdog, has released its list of the "top 25 censored media stories for 2000." The controversial list covers important stories that, according to Project Censored, go unreported or under-reported by the mainstream media in the United States. Alongside it, the organisation has issued its annual report on the "Junk Food News" served to the public in the place of more substantive reporting.

United States

CONTROVERSIA POR DIFAMACIÓN CRIMINAL EN KANSAS

United States

À PROPOS DE POURSUITES EN DIFFAMATION PÉNALE

United States

CRIMINAL DEFAMATION CONTROVERSY IN KANSAS

Two journalists are facing criminal defamation charges in the state of Kansas, reports the International Press Institute (IPI), in contradiction with international principles stating that defamation should be dealt with using civil rather than criminal law. David Carson and Edward H. Powers Jr, publisher and editor of "The New Observer", respectively, will appear in court on 10 April to face ten misdemeanour charges for criminal defamation, says IPI. They could face a fine of up to US$ 2,500 and one year in prison. Eight of the charges are based on statements in "The New Observer" that Carol Marinovich, the mayor of Wyandotte County's Unified Government, and her husband, a District Court judge, do not live in the county and therefore cannot hold public office in it. In the past, the newspaper has criticised both Marinovich and Wyandotte County District Attorney Nick Tomasic, who filed the charges. Tomasic denies that his decision is politically motivated, claiming that he filed charges because the allegations made by Powers and Carson were "false and malicious".

Mexico

UN AUTRE JOURNALISTE TUÉ PRÈS DE LA FRONTIÈRE AMÉRICAINE

Mexico

MÉXICO: OTRO PERIODISTA ASESINADO CERCA DE FRONTERA CON ESTADOS UNIDOS

Mexico

MEXICO: ANOTHER JOURNALIST KILLED NEAR U.S. BORDER

Saúl Antonio Martínez Gutiérrez, deputy editor of the daily "El Imparcial" published in Matamoros, was found dead on 24 March, according to Reporters sans frontières (RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Martínez Gutiérrez was found by police between the towns of Matamoros and Río Bravo, near the border with Texas, with four 9mm bullets in the head, says RSF. Bruises on his body suggest that he had been tortured, adds CPJ. The journalist disappeared the evening before, while he was investigating Ignacio Coronel, a narcotics trafficker in the region, says RSF.

Mexico

EN ESTADO FRONTERIZO, NUEVO PRESIDENTE SE COMPROMETE A NO REGULAR PRENSA

Mexico

LE NOUVEAU PRÉSIDENT S?ENGAGE À NE PAS RÉGLEMENTER LA PRESSE

Mexico

JOURNALIST KILLED IN BORDER STATE, NEW PRESIDENT PLEDGES NOT TO REGULATE PRESS

José Luis Ortega Mata, publication director for the weekly "Semanario de Ojinaga", was shot twice in the head and killed by two assassins on 19 February, according to Reporters sans frontières (RSF). The weekly is circulated in the northern region of Chihuahua state and on the other side of the U.S. border, in the cities of Odessa and Milan in Texas. On 15 February, the journalist published information on drug trafficking in the region, reports RSF. "Northern Mexican states, bordering on the United States, are a particularly dangerous region for journalists," says RSF. At least two other journalists have been killed for their work in Chihuahua state since 1991.

Canada

CONCENTRACIÓN DE MEDIOS AMENAZA PLURALISMO DE PRENSA, DICE FPJQ

Canada

LA CONCENTRATION DES MÉDIAS MENACE LE PLURALISME DE LA PRESSE, DIT LA FPJQ

Canada

MEDIA CONCENTRATION THREATENS PRESS PLURALISM, SAYS FPJQ

The dangers of the growing concentration of media ownership are the theme of the February 2001 issue of "Le 30", a publication of the Fédération professionelle des journalistes du Québec (FPJQ). The media in Quebec, as in the rest of Canada, have recently experienced a wave of mergers linking newspapers, cable services, TV networks, and internet sites. "Le 30" asks whether the press barons' desires for "synergies" and "convergence" are compatible with journalistic objectives of diversity and quality of information. At issue is whether there is a conflict between free enterprise and free expression, and whether news has become just another commodity?

United States

CRITIQUENT VERTEMENT LES INEXACTITUDES DES MÉDIAS

United States

ATACA VIOLENTAMENTE A MEDIOS DE COMUNICACIÓN POR IMPRECISIONES

United States

WATCHDOGS SLAM MEDIA FOR INACCURACIES

The United States media's "rushed and faulty projections for election results were dramatic manifestations of the kind of intrinsically flawed coverage of politics" and elections in the country, states Norman Solomon in the electronic bulletin "AlterNet" of 8 November. In his article, "TV Networks Compound the Voting Crisis", Solomon argues that the US media has played more than an observer role in national politics. In fact, he states that journalists "shape the media terrain through which politicians walk." Solomon observes that the independence of journalists institutions is challenged by the fact that they are often financed "by many of the same business interests" that finance political parties. Solomon charges that the media companies' rush to give election results appeared to be more motivated by competition and profit than to provide accuracy in reporting.

Mexico

EL PRI RETIENE CONTROL DE LOS MEDIOS

Mexico

LE PRI PRÉSERVE SON CONTRÔLE SUR LES MÉDIAS

Mexico

PRI RETAINS CONTROL OVER MEDIA

The Mexican media continues to face "unofficial censorship" from the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI) despite the recent win of Vincente Fox, of the National Action Party (PAN) in the presidential elections in July, writes Federico Campbell Pena in an article published by "Index on Censorship". Although PAN's victory has ended 70 years of PRI's presidential power, it is insufficient to breaking the party's stranglehold on the media, says Campbell. "Years of corruption in Mexican politics have severely challenged the independence of the country's media," and "true press freedom will remain a chimera in Mexico for the foreseeable future."

Mexico

CONTINÚAN LAS VIOLACIONES A LA LIBRE EXPRESIÓN, DICE INFORME DE CENCOS

Mexico

LES VIOLATIONS DE LA LIBERTÉ DE LA PRESSE SE POURSUIVENT, DIT CENCOS

Mexico

FREE EXPRESSION VIOLATIONS CONTINUE, SAYS CENCOS REPORT

Despite the fact that in the last five years, the fight for free expression has become stronger, paradoxically or perhaps consequently, the large number of attacks and restrictions placed on the media continues to threaten the journalistic profession, says the Centro Nacional de Comunicacion Social (CENCOS) in its review of press freedom in Mexico in 1999. Over the course of 1999, there were 135 registered cases of attacks on media and journalists, a 33 per cent decrease from the 202 cases in 1998 and a 28 per cent decrease from the 187 cases documented in 1997. The decrease in the number of attacks, however, does not necessarily mean that free expression has improved, states CENCOS, noting that the figures were lower in 1995 and 1996 than in 1999.

Canada

CUESTIONAN DECOMISO QUE POLICÍA HIZO DE SUS MATERIALES

Canada

DES GROUPES DE PRESSE CONTESTENT LA SAISIE DE LEUR MATÉRIEL PAR LA POLICE

Canada

MEDIA GROUPS CHALLENGE POLICE SEIZURE OF THEIR MATERIALS

Seven of Canada's national and regional media organisations are legally challenging the Toronto police's recent seizure of the media outlets' film and videotapes on the basis of media freedom and independence, reports the "The Toronto Star". Subsequent to a 15 June demonstration in front of the provincial legislature which saw violent clashes between police and protesters, the police served 14 search warrants to media outlets which enabled them to seize the outlets' footage of the event. The demonstration was organised to protest the provincial government's response to homelessness, with protesters stating that some of the government's social policies have led directly to a homelessness crisis in the province.

Canada

ROCIADOS CON PIMIENTA EN REUNIÓN DE OEA

Canada

DES TRAVAILLEURS DES MÉDIAS ET DES MANIFESTANTS SONT ARROSÉS DE POIVRE

Canada

MEDIA WORKERS, PROTESTERS PEPPER SPRAYED AT OAS MEETING

While the Organisation of American States (OAS) General Assembly in Windsor, Canada, was met with largely peaceful demonstrations, seven accredited photographers covering the event and many protesters were doused with pepper spray by Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), reports Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE). The Assembly took place from 4-6 June. Among other things, protesters demonstrated against the intergovernmental body's failure to prioritise the social, cultural and economic rights of peoples in its promotion of free trade throughout the region. One of the photographers reports that the presence of hundreds of RCMP in riot gear patrolling the area was "intimidating," and that protesters were pepper sprayed without any warning. "I think they just didn't want us to take more photos," said the freelance photographer. This tactic infringed upon the right to peaceful protest as well as upon journalists' right to cover the event, says CJFE.

Canada

PERIODISTAS SE ENFRENTAN A LA AUTOCENSURA

Canada

JOURNALISTS FACE SELF-CENSORSHIP

The majority of Canadian journalists recently surveyed "identified external pressures from owners, advertisers and interest groups as significant news filters," report Bob Hackett and Richard Gruneau, in the "Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) Monitor". The authors published their findings in "The Missing News: Filters and Blind Spots in Canada's Press". Forty-five percent of Canadian journalists surveyed indicated that "the fear of reprisals from [media] owners occasionally or often leads reporters to censor themselves," although an even higher number (52 percent) said that they felt direct pressure "often" or "occasionally" from owners. In addition, approximately one-third of those interviewed stated that they had occasionally exercised self-censorship out of a fear of reprisals from advertisers, say the authors.

United States

FUSIÓN AOL-TIME WARNER PODRÍA PLANTEAR AMENAZA A DIVERSIDAD DE MEDIOS

United States

POURRAIT CONSTITUER UNE MENACE POUR LA DIVERSITÉ DES MÉDIAS

United States

AOL-TIME WARNER MERGER COULD POSE THREAT TO MEDIA DIVERSITY

The merger of the Internet service provider American Online (AOL) with the media and entertainment company Time Warner could "threaten democratic values and freedom of expression unless action is taken to protect editorial independence from corporate influence," warns the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ). According to IFJ, the recently announced merger has the potential to re-define "the worlds of entertainment, communication and commerce... but it may also threaten democracy, plurality and quality in media." IFJ cautions that the merger could decrease media diversity, noting that this move grants more control of information to fewer companies, and that it could widen the gap between the "information rich" and the "information poor." With respect to this gap, IFJ says that "half the world's population still have no access to a telephone. The information gap between rich and poor is already intolerable and now may be made much worse with a greater concentration of technology and information resources in rich, northern countries."

United States

HRW PIDE INVESTIGACIÓN DE VIOLENCIA POLICIACA

United States

HRW DEMANDE LA TENUE D?UNE ENQUÊTE SUR LA VIOLENCE POLICIÈRE

United States

HRW CALLS FOR INVESTIGATION OF POLICE VIOLENCE

The actions of police and city officials in their recent clash with protesters at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) meeting in Seattle, United States, should be investigated by an impartial and independent panel, urges Human Rights Watch (HRW). HRW issued this statement in a 2 December press release that responds to allegations that the police used excessive and indiscriminate "force and city officials placed unwarranted restrictions on the rights to free expression and assembly of peaceful protesters in violation of constitutional and international standards." While HRW condemns the destructive or violent acts of some of the protesters, it emphasises that those named as responsible for abuses or wrongdoing by the aforementioned panel must be held accountable.

United States

AMARC EXIGE JUICIO JUSTO PARA MUMIA ABU-JAMAL

United States

L'AMARC EXIGE UN PROCÈS ÉQUITABLE POUR MUMIA ABU-JAMAL

United States

AMARC DEMANDS FAIR TRIAL FOR MUMIA ABU-JAMAL

In solidarity with other international groups, the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) is demanding that United States journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal's death sentence be suspended and that he receive a fair trial. The international movement in solidarity with Jamal has recently stepped up its pressure on the US courts and government in light of the recent announcement of the 2 December date for Jamal's execution. While Jamal has received a stay of execution pending a Federal Judge's review of his case, the outcome of this stay is unknown.

United States

SENTENCIAS DE CÁRCEL

Mexico

CONTRÔLE TRÈS SERRÉ DES INFORMATIONS AU CHIAPAS

Mexico

NOTICIAS ESTRECHAMENTE CONTROLADAS EN CHIAPAS

Mexico

NEWS TIGHTLY CONTROLLED IN CHIAPAS

The flow of information is tightly controlled in Chiapas by both the authorities and the Zapatista rebels, reports the International Press Institute's (IPI) "IPI Report" (Fourth Quarter 1998.) James Smith of the "Los Angeles Times" reports for IPI on his trip to Chiapas in an article entitled "In Chiapas, the Search for Truth is Frustrating." Smith describes his journey to the conflict-ridden state of Chiapas in southern Mexico as one series of roadblocks after another. Since the 1994 uprising by the rebels, the government has kept a heavy army presence in the state. They set up roadblocks into zones declared autonomous by the Zapatistas and their supporters - who in turn set up their own roadblocks at the entrance to each community. Sometimes Smith was unable to obtain permission to talk to anybody, other times he had to wait at length for an official Zapatista spokesperson to comment on the current situation. Since the massacre in December 1997 of 45 Zapatista supporters in Acteal, the region has been very tense, and there have been "increasingly bloody clashes," says Smith.

Mexico

PERIODISTA ESTADOUNIDENSE PHILIP TRUE ASESINADO

Mexico

LE JOURNALISTE AMÉRICAIN PHILIP TRUE EST ASSASSINÉ

Mexico

US JOURNALIST PHILIP TRUE MURDERED

Journalist Philip True, Mexico correspondent for the United States-based "San Antonio Express-News" was found murdered in Mexico earlier this month in suspicious circumstances, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters sans frontières (RSF) . CPJ says, "Because of the circumstances of this crime, we fear that True may have been murdered in reprisal for his work as a journalist." According to his editors and family members, True left his home in Mexico City on 28 November for a ten-day reporting trip through the rugged Sierra Madre Occidental of Nayarit and Jalisco states. After visiting the region earlier this year, True had filed a memo with his editors at the paper in April outlining a major project on the local Huichol Indians. True was last seen alive in the village of Chalmotitia on 4 December.

United States

MUMIA ABU-JAMAL PIERDE APELACIÓN

United States

REJET DE L'APPEL DE MUMIA ABOU-JAMAL

Canada

ASSASSINAT DU DIRECTEUR D?UN JOURNAL

Canada

NEWSPAPER PUBLISHER KILLED

Canadian newspaper publisher Tara Singh Hayer was shot to death outside of his home in Surrey, just outside of Vancouver, British Columbia home on the evening of 18 November, according to the Canadian Committee to Protect Journalists (CCPJ).

Canada

REDACTOR DE PERIÓDICO ASESINADO