Skip to content

Press Freedom

When The Journalists Are Gone, The Stories Will Disappear

October 30, 2023 Zoe Alexandra and Vijay Prashad, People's Dispatch. , , , ,
Every few hours we check the social media timeline of Muhammed Smiry, the Gaza-based Palestinian journalist. He has been walking the ruined streets of Gaza, documenting everyday life amidst Israeli bombs and the impact they have had on Palestinian life. Close to seven thousand Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli barrage, and any one of them could have been Muhammed. “I am still alive,” he wrote on October 10. A few days later, Muhammed wrote, “I am still alive. I can’t tell you how bad the situation is in Gaza.” On Telegram, Muhammed wrote, “Nowhere is safe in Gaza.” His Telegram timeline is horrifying – so many killed here, so many killed there. It is unrelenting.

‘Operation Al Aqsa Flood’ Day 20: Israel Using Starvation As A Weapon

October 27, 2023 Leila Warah, Mondoweiss. , , , , , ,
Gaza’s population of over 2 million, which continues to be carpet bombed, is still being denied fuel, clean water, and adequate food supply by Israel’s ongoing siege on the enclave. The situation is “horrific” as millions are being “collectively punished in full view of the world,” says Oxfam, a British charity focused on alleviating global poverty.  “It’s estimated that only three liters of clean water are now available per person. The UN said a minimum of 15 liters a day is essential for people in the most acute humanitarian emergencies as a bare minimum,” they stated.

Australians Call To End Persecution Of WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange

October 27, 2023 Robin Andersen, Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. , , , ,
As WikiLeaks founder and Australian citizen Julian Assange has nearly exhausted his appeals to British courts against a US extradition order, Australia has ramped up its advocacy on his behalf. Six Australian MPs held a press conference outside the US Department of Justice on September 20 to urge the Biden administration to halt its pursuit of Assange (Consortium News, 9/20/23). They came representing an impressive national consensus: Almost 80% of Australian citizens, and a cross-party coalition in Australia’s Parliament, support the campaign to free Assange (Sydney Morning Herald, 5/12/23). Opposition leader Peter Dutton joined Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in urging Assange’s release.

Reporters Without Borders Launches Global ‘Collateral Damage’ Campaign

October 18, 2023 Reporters Without Borders (RSF). , , , ,
Developed in partnership with the French advertising agency BETC, RSF’s new communications campaign features a depiction of Assange with his facial features made up of the logos of dozens of media organisations from around the world. These media are among those that initially ran stories based on the leaked classified documents published by WikiLeaks in 2010. The campaign tagline “Collateral Damage” refers to the danger that the US government’s prosecution of Assange poses to media around the world, as well as the public’s right to information. It is also a reminder of the “Collateral Murder” video that was among the leaked materials published by WikiLeaks in 2010,

The Crackdown On Newsclick Is An Attack On India’s Farmers’ Movement

October 11, 2023 Vijay Prashad, Jacobin. , , , , ,
On October 3, 2023, five hundred Delhi Police officers fanned across India’s capital to raid and detain almost a hundred journalists and researchers. The Delhi Police — which is under the authority of India’s Ministry of Home Affairs — seized laptops, cell phones, and hard drives. The central target of this massive assault on the media was Newsclick, a news website founded in 2009. At the end of the day, the Delhi Police arrested Newsclick’s founder and chief editor, Prabir Purkayastha, and its human relations chief, Amit Chakravarty. One issue, among others, had the Delhi Police investigators fixated: the Indian farmers’ movement, which culminated in a massive protest between 2020 and 2021.

Press Freedom Is Slipping Away In Canada

October 7, 2023 Marc Edge, Canadian Dimension. , , , ,
Press freedom is increasingly under assault worldwide by governments that are finding the Internet much easier to control than the press ever was. While dictators everywhere suppress dissent by throttling the chokepoint of Internet access, Canada unfortunately leads the so-called “free” world in regulating online communication. First it was the Online Streaming Act, which was passed in April and expands the Broadcasting Act to cover not just online video but now also podcasts and even (shudder) online porn. It got back into the news recently with a requirement issued by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) that podcasters, adult websites and even social media services that earn $10 million or more in annual revenues must register with it by November 28.

300+ Journalists, Political Leaders, Artists, And Academics Sign Letter In Support Of Newsclick

October 6, 2023 People's Dispatch. , , ,
Just days after Indian authorities raided the homes of over 100 journalists affiliated with Indian leftist outlet Newsclick, international outlet Peoples Dispatch, and Tricontinental Research Services, over 300 journalists, political leaders, artists, academics, and progressive activists signed an open letter repudiating the repression. The individuals also demanded the immediate release of Newsclick editor-in-chief Prabir Purkayastha and administrator Amit Chakraborty who were arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and remain in police custody. The letter comes amid an outpouring of support and solidarity for Newsclick and those harassed and detained on October 3.

International Uproar Following Mass Raids And Arrest Of Indian Journalists

October 5, 2023 People's Dispatch. , , , , ,
In the hours following the raids of over 100 journalists affiliated with Indian leftist outlet Newsclick, international outlet Peoples Dispatch, and Tricontinental Research Services, and the detention of around 50, leading academics and journalists from across the world have expressed solidarity and outrage. The coordinated repressive action was carried out as part of an investigation under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, a draconian law which has been widely criticized by human rights organizations in India and internationally as it undermines civil liberties and rights. Newsclick editor-in-chief Prabir Purkayastha and administrator Amit Chakraborty were arrested during the raid under the draconian anti-terror law and remain in police custody.

Julian Assange May Be Extradited To The United States This Month

October 2, 2023 Margaret Flowers, Clearing the FOG. , , ,
Julian Assange may be extradited to the United States as soon as this month. His last avenues to appeal the United Kingdom's extradition order are being exhausted. Clearing the FOG speaks with Kevin Gosztola, an investigative journalist and author of "Guilty of Journalism: The political case against Julian Assange," about why the power structure is targeting Julian Assange, the charges against him and how his trial in the United States will be constrained to prevent him from defending himself. Gosztola also discusses the bigger picture of the impacts of Assange's case, especially how it will embolden more attacks on journalists who expose wrongdoing.

Press Freedom Does Not Exist While My Husband Julian Assange Is In Jail

September 29, 2023 Stella Assange, Evening Standard. , , , , ,
We must defend the right to offend. The most important aspect of the right to offend is the one that confronts those in power with the truths that they most eagerly wish to conceal. Without this right, the powerful become untouchable. My husband, Julian Assange, pictured below right, has been imprisoned in HMP Belmarsh in Thamesmead since 2019 because, as the publisher of WikiLeaks, he exposed the abuses of the war on terror which the United States wanted to remain concealed. The US has brought charges against Julian that carry 175 years in prison. As Home Secretary, Priti Patel failed to block Julian’s extradition.

Australian, Latin American Leaders Demand End To Assange Prosecution

September 27, 2023 Chip Gibbons, The Dissenter. , , , , , , , ,
During their addresses to the UN General Assembly, both Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Honduran President Xiomara Castro called for Assange to be freed. Lula stated, “It is essential to preserve the freedom of the press. A journalist like Julian Assange cannot be punished for informing society in a transparent and legitimate way.” Castro struck a similar chord, calling Assange a “faithful defender of free expression.” Both Lula and Castro are left-wing leaders who were elected as part of what’s been dubbed in Latin America as a second or resurgent “Pink Tide." Lula had previously served as Brazil’s president during the original Pink Tide.

Arrests Of Independent Journalists Should Make Headlines Too

September 27, 2023 Seth Stern, Freedom of the Press Foundation. , , , ,
The New York Times, CNN, and many other national outlets reported on NewsNation journalist Evan Lambert’s arrest at a news conference in Ohio earlier this year. Same when Phoenix police detained Wall Street Journal reporter Dion Rabouin outside a bank. We’re glad those arrests made headlines — if anything, they should have gotten more coverage. The publicity prompted Phoenix’s mayor to apologize to Rabouin for his detainment and Ohio’s governor to denounce Lambert’s arrest while authorities dropped the charges. Without the backlash, who knows — his case might have proceeded to trial.

All Out For Assange! Emergency Actions If He Is Extradited

September 26, 2023 Assange Frontline Defense, Popular Resistance. , , ,
As Julian Assange’s options to appeal the decision to extradite him to the United States are being exhausted, he could be extradited as early as the beginning of October. We must be prepared to support him and fight for his release in the United States. It is time to start planning in your organization or community for emergency actions as soon as we become aware that he is being extradited (if there is a warning) or as soon as he is on his way (if it happens without warning). If there is a warning, all focus will be on the British Embassy to protest their extradition. You can join the rally in Washington DC or hold an action locally in a highly visible place.

Journalists Fight Back Against Attacks On Our Right To Know

September 25, 2023 Margaret Flowers, Clearing the FOG. , , ,
Information control in the United States is growing stronger as journalists face more restrictions on their ability to speak with people who work for the public good in agencies and institutions from the local to federal levels and are being targeted through illegal raids and confiscation of their equipment. Clearing the FOG speaks with Kathryn Foxhall, a journalist who works on freedom of information, about another journalist, Brittany Hailer, who is suing over restrictions on her ability to interview employees at a local jail where an unprecedented number of deaths are occurring. Foxhall explains why these restrictions are human rights abuses. Clearing the FOG also speaks with Seth Stern of the Freedom of Information Foundation and Bobby Block of the Florida First Amendment Foundation about journalists' legal rights and their new Know Your Rights Guild for journalists.

Lessons From One Hundred Years Of Journalism

September 22, 2023 Mischa Geracoulis, Project Censored. , , , , ,
In Mr. Associated Press, Gene Allen investigates the Associated Press (AP) and its trajectory from a pony express news agency founded in 1846 to the international stage, by way of the person most responsible for that transformation, Kent Cooper (1880-1965). As exceptional as every era believes itself to be, the history chronicled in these pages reveals that many of the problems currently facing the media and the public’s relationship to it are reiterations of the past. Some one hundred years on, Allen—a professor emeritus of journalism at Toronto Metropolitan University—analyzes Cooper’s time in the news industry and spotlights evergreen issues, including the politicization, polarization, and corporatization of the news.
«12345678910»
assetto corsa mods

Urgent End Of Year Fundraising Campaign

Online donations are back! Keep independent media alive. 

Due to the attacks on our fiscal sponsor, we were unable to raise funds online for nearly two years.  As the bills pile up, your help is needed now to cover the monthly costs of operating Popular Resistance.

Donate Here

Urgent End Of Year Fundraising Campaign

Online donations are back! 

Keep independent media alive. 

Due to the attacks on our fiscal sponsor, we were unable to raise funds online for nearly two years.  As the bills pile up, your help is needed now to cover the monthly costs of operating Popular Resistance.

Donate Here
Sign Up To Our Daily Digest

Independent media outlets are being suppressed and dropped by corporations like Google, Facebook and Twitter. Sign up for our daily email digest before it’s too late so you don’t miss the latest movement news.