Press Freedom

High School Journalists Are Fighting Back Against Censorship

January 26, 2024 Marium Zahra, Prism. Resist! Censorship, Journalism, Journalists, Press Freedom, Student Journalists, Youth Activism

From book bans to anti-critical race theory laws adopted by 28 states, youth censorship is increasingly becoming an issue in U.S. high schools, especially for young journalists. Students say school newspapers are one of the few outlets high schoolers have to report on their communities and that limiting what they can write about directly immobilizes their voices. “[Administrative censorship] firmly says that youth expression should only be at the discretion of the adults in their environment,” said McGlauthon Fleming IV, a high school student from Midlothian, Texas. Despite Tinker v. Des Moines, the historic 1969 SCOTUS ruling that states neither students nor teachers “shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate,” student censorship finds a loophole in the precedent set by Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier case.

In Assange’s Darkest Hour, Committee To Protect Journalists Excludes Him

January 23, 2024 Kevin Gosztola, The Dissenter. Educate! Extradition, Journalists, Julian Assange, Press Freedom, Wikileaks

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) released its census report for 2023. Three hundred and twenty detained or imprisoned journalists were counted by the press freedom organization, as of December 1, 2023. As indicated, that number is not far from the record high of 360 jailed journalists that was set in 2022. The 2023 census takes on greater significance given the Israeli government’s war on Gaza and the military attacks and crackdown on Palestinian journalists. Seventeen journalists were jailed by Israel, the “highest number of arrests” since CPJ began tracking arrests in 1992. It is the first time that Israel has “ranked among the top six offenders.”

Parliamentarians Launch Urgent Bid To Spare Assange From US Extradition

January 15, 2024 Matthew Knott, The Sydney Morning Herald. Resist! Australia, Extradition, Julian Assange, Press Freedom

Australian politicians across the political divide have launched a last-ditch bid to prevent Julian Assange from being extradited to the United States to face espionage charges as the WikiLeaks founder faces a crucial final legal challenge in Britain next month. The four co-convenors of the cross-party Bring Julian Assange Home Parliamentary Group wrote to British Home Secretary James Cleverly arguing for an urgent review of Assange’s case. This was in light of a judgment in the Supreme Court of the UK in November, striking down Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s controversial plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda.

‘Operation Al-Aqsa Flood’ Day 93: Israel Surpasses Three Months Of Gaza Bombing Campaign

January 7, 2024 Mustafa Abu Sneineh, Mondoweiss. Educate! Gaza, Genocide, Israel, Palestine, Press Freedom, Starvation, War crimes, Wars and Militarism

Israel’s bombardment and aggression in the Gaza Strip has been ongoing for three months and is about to enter its fourth, in which tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed, injured, or buried under the rubble. In the past 24 hours, Israeli forces committed 12 massacres, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, killing 112 Palestinians and injuring 250 others. Israeli forces bombed the house of the Abu Alba family in northern Gaza’s Al-Falujah area, killing 20 people and wounding dozens while pummelling Jabalia refugee camp. Al-Jazeera reported that Hamza Al-Dahdouh, a journalist and the son of Al-Jazeera’s bureau chief in Gaza, Wael Al-Dahdouh, was killed on Sunday morning in an Israeli air strike in Khan Younis, south of the Strip.

Bill Introduced In House Calls For US To Drop Charges Against Assange

January 7, 2024 Dave DeCamp, Scheer Post. Organize! Biden administration, Congress, Criminal Justice and Prisons, Extradition, Julian Assange, Press Freedom

A resolution introduced in the House last month calls for the US to drop the charges against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who faces up to 175 years in prison if extradited to the US and convicted for journalism that exposed US war crimes. The bill, introduced by Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ), expresses “the sense of the House of Representatives that regular journalistic activities, including the obtainment and publication of information, are protected under the First Amendment and that the federal government should drop all charges against and attempts to extradite Julian Assange.”

The Cost Of Bearing Witness

December 26, 2023 Chris Hedges, Scheer Post. Educate! Gaza, Journalism, Media, Palestine, Press Freedom

Writing and photographing in wartime are acts of resistance, acts of faith. They affirm the belief that one day – a day the writers, journalists and photographers may never see – the words and images will evoke empathy, understanding, outrage and provide wisdom. They chronicle not only the facts, although facts are important, but the texture, sacredness and grief of lives and communities lost. They tell the world what war is like, how those caught in its maw of death endure, how there are those who sacrifice for others and those who do not, what fear and hunger are like, what death is like.

Reporters Criminalized For ‘Routine Journalism’ In 2023

December 21, 2023 Kevin Gosztola, The Dissenter. Educate! Journalism, New McCarthyism, Press Freedom, Press Freedom Tracker, United States

In 2023, the United States government armed the Israeli military in an assault and siege on Gaza that has killed over 75 journalists. It has repeatedly been confirmed that military forces targeted journalists—and their families—to eliminate them and their coverage of the war. Despite increased calls from the Australian government and other world leaders to drop the charges against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, the U.S. government still backs an unprecedented prosecution that civil liberties, human rights, and press freedom organizations have labeled a dangerous threat to journalism and freedom of expression.

Biden Is Trump’s Poodle

December 20, 2023 Colonel (Ret) Ann Wright, Popular Resistance. Educate! Extradition, Joe Biden, Julian Assange, Press Freedom

Biden, you defeated Trump, yet your administration has NOT rolled back all of the evil caused by Trump. Take the case of journalist Julian Assange. Under the Obama administration of which you, Biden, were Vice-President for 8 years, journalist and publisher Julian Assange was NOT prosecuted for publishing the Collateral Damage video of the U.S. Army murder by hellfire missile of Reuters reporters nor the classified Afghanistan and the Iraq war files. However, you and the Obama administration did prosecute and won conviction of U.S. Army PFC Bradley Manning for disclosing those classified materials.

Assange Appeal Hearing Set For February

December 19, 2023 Joe Lauria, Consortium News. Educate! Extradition, Joe Biden, Julian Assange, Press Freedom, Whistleblowers

Imprisoned publisher Julian Assange will face two High Court judges over two days on Feb. 20-21, 2024 in London in what will likely be his last appeal against being extradited to the United States to face charges of violating the Espionage Act. Assange’s wife Stella Assange confirmed that the hearing will take place at the Royal Courts of Justice. Assange had had an earlier request to appeal rejected by High Court Judge Jonathan Swift on June 6. Assange then filed an application to appeal that decision and the dates have now been set. Assange is seeking to challenge both the home secretary’s decision to extradite him as well as to cross appeal the decision by the lower court judge, Vanessa Baraitser.

Israel Is Wiping Out Gaza’s Journalists: A Tribute

December 16, 2023 Mnar Adley, MintPress News. Resistance Report Gaza, Israel, Journalism, Journalists, Media, Palestine, Press Freedom

I recently became the recipient of the Women and Media Award from the Women’s Institute of the Freedom of the Press. While it’s truly an honor to receive this recognition for the journalism that I direct at MintPress News, it’s nearly impossible for me to revel in this accolade when my heart is weighed down heavily by the ongoing turmoil in Gaza. As a Palestinian-American journalist who has lived under the oppressive shadow of Israeli occupation and witnessed firsthand the relentless brutality of the apartheid regime, I cannot remain silent as my people face relentless oppression and violence. I want to dedicate this award to the fearless journalists in Gaza who are risking their lives to show us the raw reality of life under Israeli bombs.

Provocations By US State Department Chill Press Freedom In Latin America

November 16, 2023 Vijay Prashad, People's Dispatch. Educate! Censorship, Latin America, Press Freedom, US State Department

The headline is provocative: “The Kremlin’s Efforts to Covertly Spread Disinformation in Latin America.” This was a statement on the US State Department website, posted on November 7, 2023. The United States government accused two companies—Social Design Agency and Structura National Technologies—of being the main agents of what it alleged is Russian-backed disinformation. The statement named the heads of both of the firms, Ilya Gambashidze of Social Design Agency and Nikolay Tupkin of Structura. On July 28, 2023, the European Union sanctioned several Russian individuals and firms, including SDA and Structura.

Alabama Prosecutor Criminalizes Journalists

November 4, 2023 Kevin Gosztola, The Dissenter. Educate! Alabama, Journalists, Legal System, Media, Press Freedom

A prosecutor in Alabama had a publisher and reporter arrested on October 27 for publishing “grand jury evidence.” The arrests were roundly condemned by press freedom organizations in the United States. “Arresting journalists for reporting the news is blatantly unconstitutional,” declared Seth Stern, who is the advocacy director for the Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF). “Grand jury secrecy rules bind grand jurors and witnesses, not journalists.” Stern added, “The district attorney should blame himself for failing to maintain the secrecy of grand jury proceedings, not jail journalists for doing their jobs.”

When The Journalists Are Gone, The Stories Will Disappear

October 30, 2023 Zoe Alexandra and Vijay Prashad, People's Dispatch. Educate! Gaza, Israel, Journalists, Murder, Press Freedom

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. Educate! Gaza, Israeli Occupation, Journalists, Press Freedom, Starvation, War crimes, Wars and Militarism

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. Resist! Australia, Extradition, Julian Assaange, Press Freedom, Wikileaks

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.

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