AFGHANISTAN: Taliban Court Sentences Afghan Journalist to Prison

VOA News: A court in Afghanistan has sentenced a journalist to one year in prison on charges that free press advocates say included criticism of the Taliban government in his social media posts and “espionage.” A Taliban spokesman said he was sentenced for “criminal misconduct.”

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CAMBODIA: Government should scrap rights-abusing national internet gateway (Statement)

Article 19: We, the following 32 human rights organizations, call on the Cambodian authorities to revoke the Sub-Decree on the Establishment of the National Internet Gateway (NIG). 

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HONG KONG: RSF deeply concerned after election of next Chief Executive, John Lee, who assisted Carrie Lam’s dismantling of press freedom

RSF: Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is deeply concerned by the election of the next chief executive, John Lee, who as a former secretary for security and chief secretary for administration took an active role in the dismantling of press freedom in Hong Kong under his predecessor Carrie Lam.

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INDIA: How low-cost guerrilla media is helping press freedom in India (Paywall)

Times of India: India’s position has fallen from 142 to 150 out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index for 2022 of Reporters Without Borders. India’s position on the index was a terrible 140 even before the BJP came to office in 2014, so media harassment is hardly new; but it does seem to have got worse.

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INDIA & MADAGASCAR: India’s Public broadcaster Prasar Bharati and ORTM Madagascar signs an MoU on cooperation & collaboration!

News on Air: India’s Public Broadcaster Prasar Bharati on Tuesday, May 10, signed a memorandum of understanding with the Madagascar state public broadcaster ORTM (Office de la Radio et de la Television) on cooperation and collaboration in Broadcasting. 

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JAPAN: NHK STRL Open House 2022: “Cutting edge technologies to spin up future media” (Press release)

NHK: This annual event where we present the results from our R&D on broadcast media technology to the general public, will take place both online – with content accessible via STRL’s website – and in person – with exhibitions at STRL site.

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KASHMIR: Kashmir media at a ‘breaking point’ amid rising number of journalist detentions

CPJ

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KYRGYZSTAN: The Public Television and Radio Corporation (OTRK) was transformed into the National (Russian)

Kloop: The Public Television and Radio Corporation (OTRK) was transformed into the National Corporation. The bill was initiated by the Ministry of Culture. Despite criticism of the bill from lawyers and the media community, it was adopted by Parliament on April 6 in the third reading.

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NEPAL: ‘We direly need media houses unaffiliated to business groups’

The Kathmandu Post: Rojita Adhikari, who has been doing grassroots reporting for national and international media outlets like The Guardian, Aljazeera, CNN, and Nepali Times, has become a well-known name in Nepal’s independent journalism scene.

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PAKISTAN: Pakistan’s erosion of press freedom poses challenge for PM Sharif

Nikkei Asia: A decline in Pakistan’s press freedom ranking has highlighted looming threats to its democracy and focused attention on whether the new government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will reverse the tide.

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PAKISTAN: PFUJ calls for repeal of laws gagging media freedom 

Dawn: The Federal Executive Council (FEC) of Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) on Sunday called upon the government to repeal all black laws gagging media freedom in the country, ensure complete independence of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) and start a meaningful dialogue with media stakeholders.

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PAKISTAN: PTV sees ‘change of guard’ (10 May)

Dawn: The state-run broadcaster Pakistan Television (PTV) terminated the services of several department heads, and reshuffled key personnel in top positions, on Monday.

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PHILIPPINES: Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s Contempt for the Philippine Press

Article 19: Camp of Presumptive President Ignores, Harasses Journalists.

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PHILIPPINES: RSF calls on future President to restore press freedom and end impunity for crimes against journalists

RSF: Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on Philippine’s President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr, who will be inaugurated on 30 June, to break with the policy of harassing the media pursued by his predecessor and supporter, Rodrigo Duterte, and to end impunity for crimes against journalists.

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REGIONAL: Rethinking self-censorship in Southeast Asia’s media landscape

New Mandala: In Southeast Asia, media freedom is deteriorating. From Singapore to Cambodia to Myanmar to Vietnam, governments are taking further measures to limit journalists’ and media outlets’ ability to publish critical and unfavourable reportage. 

AUSTRALIA: ABC and Screenwest partner for the ABC Factual Formats Initiative (Press release)

ABC: Screenwest and the ABC are excited to announce a major Western Australian joint initiative, the ABC Factual Formats Initiative, designed to discover the next great returnable factual series out of Western Australia.

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AUSTRALIA: ABC Canberra Parliament House bureau chief Louise Yaxley on 28 years covering federal politics and 10 election campaigns

ABC: Canberra Parliament House bureau chief Louise Yaxley explains how ABC News covers election campaigns, the daily editorial discussions and the stand-out moments from reporting on federal politics over three decades.

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AUSTRALIA: ABC’s Ita Buttrose responds to broadcaster criticism (Paywall)

Sydney Morning Herald: ABC chair Ita Buttrose has confirmed plans to appoint an independent ombudsman to assess complaints about its editorial content.

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AUSTRALIA: ABC veterans call on voters to back election candidates who support the public broadcaster (Watch)

The Guardian: ABC veterans Kerry O’Brien and Philip Williams have thrown their weight behind a campaign to encourage people to vote for political candidates who support a well-funded ABC.

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AUSTRALIA: ‘Extraordinary and unprecedented’: Court order could have chilling effect on journalism (Paywall)

Sydney Morning Herald: Investigative journalists and publishing executives have warned a court order compelling a major media company to hand over documents before publication would have a chilling long-term effect on freedom of the press unless overturned.

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AUSTRALIA: Independent Review of ABC Complaints Handling Procedures (Press release)

ABC: The independent review into complaints handling procedures commissioned by the ABC Board has endorsed the national broadcaster’s record in handling complaints and made recommendations to strengthen public trust and confidence in this important process.

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AUSTRALIA: NITV to deliver more targeted opportunities for audiences and brands with 12 market broadcast signal

SBS: National Indigenous Television (NITV) will move from broadcasting one signal nationally to begin broadcasting to 12 markets from tomorrow, Tuesday 17 May. 

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FIJI: RSF report another reminder for Fiji to drop harsh media penalties, says FMA

Asia Pacific Report: The Fijian Media Association says the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) 2020 [sic] World Press Freedom Index report is another clear reminder to the government to review and remove sections in the Media Industry Development Authority Act that impose harsh penalties.

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NEW ZEALAND: Outgoing chief censor calls for media regulation re-jig (Listen)

RNZ: The Chief Censor’s Office used to worry about the odd boundary-pushing book, film or video game. These days it’s extreme stuff published online that forms the bulk of the work

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NEW ZEALAND: TVNZ-RNZ likely to be detached from NZ On Air in biggest media reforms since 1989 

The Spinoff: Budget 2022: The big, hybrid public broadcaster will be funded directly for local commissioning, sources have told The Spinoff. That means a shrunken NZ on Air, and a seismic change in our public media funding model, writes Duncan Greive.

ALBANIA: RSF asks for effective investigations following the intimidation of journalists reporting on prosecutor’s vetting

RSF: Alongside other NGOs defending press freedom, RSF asks the Albanian Commissioner for the Right to Access to Information and Personal Data Protection to shed light upon the private data breaches and intimidation of at least two journalists who investigated a public interest issue: the vetting process of the now dismissed Tirana Chief Prosecutor Elizabeta Imeraj that was part of a wider judicial reform project in the country.

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BULGARIA: The media, law, and freedom of information 

OBC: In Bulgaria, media freedom has traditionally been restricted by grey areas, and journalists often come under severe pressure. 

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CZECH REPUBLIC: Independence of public broadcasters must be insulated against future attacks

IPI: Recent boost in press freedom should drive legislative reform for public service media.

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CZECH REPUBLIC: Czech Republic to champion media freedom as it replaces Russia on UN Human Rights Council

Radio Prague International: The UN General Assembly has voted overwhelmingly for the Czech Republic to replace Russia on the Human Rights Council, the United Nations’ leading human rights body. 

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DENMARK: The target group participates in the creation of a new children’s series (Danish)

Nordvision

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FINLAND: New deliveries will be opened in Jämsä and Rauma – Yle will strengthen its local presence in Finland (Press release – Finnish)

Yle: The new offices employ 1 to 3 journalists on a permanent basis. Yle has similar deliveries in Kuusamo and Savonlinna.

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FRANCE: France set to abolish TV licence fee later this year 

TBI: France’s TV landscape could soon be transformed after it emerged that plans to scrap the country’s annual audiovisual licence fee are set to be introduced later this year.

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GEORGIA: Critical TV Boss Sent to Prison for 3,5 Years

Civil: The Tbilisi City Court today sentenced director of government-critical Mtavari Arkhi TV Nika Gvaramia to 3.5 years in prison for abuse of power over his managerial decisions when he ran Rustavi 2 TV.

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GERMANY: ZDF improves framework conditions for commissioned productions (Press release – German)

ZDF: ZDF has further developed its framework for fair cooperation with television producers and will implement numerous improvements as of June 1, 2022. 

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GREECE: World Press Freedom Index: Greek government spokesman responds to poor ranking with counterfactual claims

RSF: Reporters Without Borders (RSF) deplores the Greek government spokesman’s counterfactual claims in response to Greece’s ranking in RSF’s 2022 World Press Freedom Index – 108th out of 180 countries worldwide – which is the lowest of any European country.

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IRELAND: Gearóid Mac Donnacha on Why Public Media Matters

RTÉ: Our Community. This is the raison d’être of RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta, to provide a service to the people of the Gaeltacht and to the Irish language community around the country and around the world. 

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IRELAND: Unions accuse RTÉ of breaching policy on new appointment

RTÉ: The RTÉ Trade Union Group (TUG) has written to the Director General of the organisation accusing management of breaching policy in relation to a recent appointment.

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ITALY: Press freedom report examines journalists’ safety and legal threats

IPI: The International Press Institute (IPI) today joins its partner organisations in the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) in publishing a mission report focusing on key challenges facing press freedom in Italy.

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HUNGARY: Viktor Orbán’s regime continues to crush media pluralism in Hungary

RSF: Tilos Rádió, an independent, Budapest-based community radio station, is about to be taken off the air following a sanction by the Hungary’s Media Council. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) alerts Europe’s institutions to this disproportionate sanction and calls on the Media Council to examine the radio station’s bid for its frequency in a transparent and non-discriminatory manner.

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NORWAY: Local radio receives eight million in support – half goes to cover DAB expenses (Press release – Norwegian) 

Norwegian Media Authority: The Norwegian Media Authority allocates NOK 8.2 million in support to local radios, of which NOK 4.4 million will be used to cover the expenses that local radio stations have to broadcast on DAB. 

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RUSSIA & UKRAINE: War in Ukraine – List of journalists who are victims gets longer by the day

RSF: Since the start of the Russian offensive in Ukraine, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has documented attacks directly targeting journalists wearing a “Press” armband, and has seen more and more of them killed or injured in the course of their work. 

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SERBIA: As Serbia climbs press freedom rankings, opposition journalists still fear abuse

Euronews

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SLOVENIA: Protest over changes splitting TV Slovenija news programmes (Paywall)

STA: Journalists’ trade unions have urged withdrawal of changes planned to the statute of the Slovenian public broadcasting service under which TV news programme would be split into two separate production units, which staff see as an attempt to create separate pro-government and anti-government news programmes.

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SPAIN: RTVE organizes the 1st Hispano-Arab Forum of Audiovisual Public Service (Press release – Spanish)

RTVE: Radiotelevisión Española  continues to bet on international relations and launches the  1st Hispano-Arab Forum of Audiovisual Public Service, with the aim of strengthening and establishing ties with the Arab community. 

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SPAIN: The RTVE Institute organizes the conference ‘Women in the audio sector, experiences in the first person’ (Press release – Spanish)

RTVE: The women who have opted for the audio sector are a minority of those who work in the audiovisual field in general. 

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SWEDEN: A historic weekend – this is how SVT monitors the NATO issue (Press release – Swedish)

SVT: In just three dramatic months, politicians have reconsidered 200 years of Swedish freedom of alliance and Sweden is now, by all accounts, on the threshold of NATO. 

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SWEDEN: Index on Censorship and Reporters Without Borders welcome High Court’s decision in Realtid case

Index on Censorship: Swedish business publication and its journalists still face SLAPP cases over articles about Eco Energy World and its founder.

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SWITZERLAND: Annual Report SWI swissinfo.ch 2021

SWI swissinfo.ch: For decades now, SWI swissinfo.ch has been reporting the news as a digital platform of Switzerland’s public broadcaster, placing Swiss current affairs and decisions in an international context.

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SWITZERLAND: Swiss parliament to tighten media curbs

SWI swissinfo.ch: The Swiss parliament has agreed in principle to boost the right of individuals to block potentially damaging publications.

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UK: BBC announces pay deal (Press release)

BBC: Today’s announcement is about providing a fair deal to licence fee payers and to staff as we continue to transition into a modern, leaner organisation employing fewer people.

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UK: BBC digital director: ‘Social media platforms are often working against us’

Press Gazette: BBC digital director Naja Nielsen accused social media companies of “working against” journalists as she called on publishers to build up audiences on their own platforms.

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UK: BBC will ‘shut a few things’ to weather licence fee freeze (Paywall)

The Times: The director-general of the BBC has warned that it will need to “shut a few things” as it grapples with a two-year licence fee freeze.

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UK: ‘Disastrous privatisation of Channel 4’: Bectu responds to Media Bill in Queen’s Speech

Bectu

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UK: Record 4 million people using BBC Sounds each week (Press release)

BBC: The latest data (January – March 2022) shows there were a record 405 million plays of all audio on BBC Sounds, and a record total of 139 million plays for on-demand radio and podcasts in this quarter.

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UK: U.K. Broadcasting Chiefs on Evolution of Media Landscape: ‘Complacency Will End in Serious Consequences’ 

Variety: The heads of the U.K. public service broadcasters (PSBs) are in agreement that the market is undergoing seismic changes and evolution is the way forward.

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UKRAINE: Some Ukrainian journalists are leaving the media for the military in the name of patriotism 

CPJ

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UK: What next for Channel 4? (Listen) 

BBC – The Media Show: However Channel 4’s future is settled will have major ramifications for the UK’s TV industry. Whether it’ll make such a difference to the programmes that Channel 4 offers viewers depends on who you ask. At the centre of this issue are two key figures, Nadine Dorries, the Culture Secretary, and our guest in this edition – Alex Mahon, the chief executive of Channel 4.

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REGIONAL: “A EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE”: USING GROUND-BREAKING TECHNOLOGY TO FOSTER GREATER UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN CITIZENS IN EUROPE (Press release)

EBU: At a time when the need for mutual understanding in Europe has never been so great, a pioneering digital news service – “A European Perspective” – is stepping up its efforts to offer citizens multilingual coverage of major stories by drawing on content produced by 12 public service newsrooms.

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REGIONAL: Digital Services Act includes many RSF’s proposals but ignores major issues for press freedom

RSF: Reporters Without Borders (RSF) hails the historic nature of the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA), which is due to be adopted by the end of June following the latest negotiations, but also points its insufficiency. 

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GENERAL: News media eye financial diversification with ‘more funding than ever’

Euractiv: New and collaborative funding models are proving crucial to media innovation and will be essential to securing long-term sustainability for newsrooms and beyond.

ARGENTINA: A delegation from the International Federation of Journalists visited various media outlets in the country (Spanish)

IFJ: Zuliana Lainez and Jeremy Dear, Vice President and Deputy Secretary General of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), together with the Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean, met with colleagues and leaders of the Buenos Aires Press Union (SiPreBA) with whom they also visited different media outlets.

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BRAZIL: MEC Radio is the heritage of Rio de Janeiro and Brazil! ALERJ, overthrow the veto! (Portuguese)

Frente em defesa da EBC e da Comunicação Pública – Facebook: The Front in Defense of the EBC and Public Communication and the SJPMRJ call on communicators and the cultural sector to protest against the veto of the governor of Rio de Janeiro, Cláudio Castro (PL), to the law that declares the Radio MEC imangible heritage of the Rio de Janeiro.

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BRAZIL: Report a judge to the press and go bankrupt (if not arrested) (Portuguese)

The Intercept Brazil

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COLOMBIA: RTVC and regional channels, connected with the country in the Debate for Colombia (Press release – Spanish)

RTVC: RTVC ‘s Information System continues with the widest coverage of the presidential elections, this time with the Debate for Colombia, connected with the country, an unprecedented broadcast, in which the Public Media System joins with regional channels to bring candidates’ proposals to all corners of the country, in a balanced, relevant, timely and clear manner.

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CUBA: CPJ condemns Cuba’s new penal code as a threat to independent media

CPJ: In response to news reports that on Sunday, May 15, the Cuban National Assembly passed an amendment to the penal code that could severely damage independent journalism, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement expressing alarm. 

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CUBA: Five voices of independent journalism that have shaken Cuba 

Global Voices: These journalists have suffered censorship, harassment, and arrests for defending press freedom.

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GUYANA: Western envoys, UN laud role of journalists here (Paywall)

Stabroek News: Western envoys and the UN on Saturday held a reception for journalists here to mark World Press Freedom Day and lauded their work.

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MEXICO: 2022 a Deadly Year for Journalists in Mexico (Watch)

VOA News: Mexico has become a killing ground for journalists. As colleagues prepped to mourn last week’s death of Sinaloa reporter Luis Enrique Ramírez, authorities in Veracruz announced that two more – Yessenia Falconi and Sheila Olivera – were assassinated. 

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NICARAGUA: Nicaragua’s Cocktail of Media Repression

VOA News: Reporting in exile became the only option for scores of Nicaraguan journalists threatened under the Ortega regime.

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SURINAME: Suriname journalist detained, investigated on defamation charges after reporting on police (9 May)

CPJ: Surinamese authorities should stop detaining and charging journalists for their work and scrap the country’s criminal defamation laws, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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REGIONAL: CBU and Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) Consortium to Partner

CBU: The Caribbean Broadcasting Union has become an institutional associate member of the Digital Radio Mondiale Consortium.

IRAN: Near total Internet shutdown in Khuzestan as food protests continue

Article 19: ARTICLE 19 calls on Iran to immediately end the use of unlawful force against protesters and respect the right to protest, unconditionally release all those detained solely for exercising their right to protest, and end Internet disruptions. 

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LEBANON: How Lebanon’s independent hopefuls seek to bypass media barriers

Al Jazeera: Contenders running against traditional sectarian parties are turning to podcasts and social media in the face of expensive traditional media packages.

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PALESTINE: RSF calls for independent enquiry into Al Jazeera reporter’s West Bank shooting death

RSF: Today’s fatal shooting of leading Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh as she covered clashes in the West Bank city of Jenin is a serious violation of the Geneva Conventions and UN Security Council Resolution 2222 on the protection of journalists, says Reporters Without Borders (RSF), calling for an independent international investigation into her death as soon as possible.

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TURKEY: TRT Francais holds official inauguration of its digital platform 

TRT World: The French-language edition of TRT is an attempt to create an alternative in the wake of the global “hegemony of a few media companies,” says Türkiye’s Communications Director Fahrettin Altun.

CANADA: Another record season for ICI TÉLÉ in 2021-2022 (Press release – French)

Radio-Canada: For a 4 th consecutive season, ICI TÉLÉ was the audience’s favorite network in the evening, reaching 24.8% of the audience. ICI TÉLÉ also posted its best result for the day as a whole since the introduction of PPM measures in 2004, at 16.0%. 

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CANADA: Bill on communication platforms: Google says biased news sites could be funded (French)

La Presse: Google is warning the federal government that the online communications platform plan could force the company to subsidize biased news sites like Russian Sputnik.

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CANADA: Ian Scott will step down as CRTC chair in September (French)

Le Devoir: The manager has been targeted for a few days by an investigation by the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner.

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CANADA & UK: BBC and CBC/Radio-Canada announce joint commission of three new original podcasts (Press release)

CBC/Radio-Canada: National public broadcasters BBC and CBC/Radio-Canada today announced the joint commission of three new original podcasts by BBC World Service and CBC Podcasts, bringing together two world-leading audio makers to create top-quality, high-impact content for global audiences. 

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US: Hosts of teen mental health podcast discuss what drew them to ‘On Our Minds’

PBS: May is Mental Health Awareness Month and Student Reporting Labs is launching its second season of “On Our Minds,” a student-hosted podcast that explores teen mental health.

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US: How public media can make good on its commitment to diversity (Commentary – Paywall)

Current: During the past couple of years, public media as an industry has been going through another round of reckoning with our lack of audience diversity and struggles to create the kind of internal work culture based in equity and inclusion that would more easily retain and develop diverse staff. 

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US: Today, Explained Debuts on Two New Public Radio Stations, KCRW and WEKU

Vox: After making its public radio debut last month via a distribution deal with WNYC Studios, Vox’s flagship daily news podcast Today, Explained announced its adding two new stations to the roster, KCRW (Los Angeles) and WEKU (Eastern Kentucky). 

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US: Why NPR isn’t using the word ‘manifesto’

WRVO: Any decision involving how to cover a mass shooting is by definition difficult and to some extent a balancing act. 

30 mojo apps from BBC trainer Marc Blank-Settle

Journalism.co.uk: When it comes to knowledge of mobile journalism apps that can help make your work pop, smooth out those workflow kinks or take the pressure off a shoot while on the move, there are few in the business who can rival BBC trainer and mobile journalism expert Marc Blank-Settle.

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Dark week for journalism as four reporters killed around the world

The Guardian: Journalists are increasingly being targeted and killings are only the most dramatic sign of a gloomy outlook for media freedom.

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From COVID-19 to climate: helping journalists understand science (Listen)

Reuters Institute: In this episode we look at the relationship between scientists and journalists with Fiona Fox, from the Science Media Centre.

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“If you are attacked while wearing a press vest, it is clearly unlawful and potentially a war crime”

IFJ: The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) shone the spotlight on media under fire at a webinar on May 16 which heard from journalists from Ukraine and Yemen and the legal team supporting the IFJ’s complaint to the International Criminal Court over Israel’s systematic targeting of Palestinian media workers.

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Podcast: The state of press freedom (Listen)

Global Voices: This week, we did something different. As part of our special coverage on press freedom, we interviewed five people about press freedom in their countries to get a sense of what are the challenges the media face in different parts of the world. 

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The unprecedented rise in journalist slayings — and what can be done to stop them

DW: The shooting of a reporter in the West Bank is among the numerous killings of media workers worldwide. What international protections exist for journalists, and what can be done to make the world safer for the press?

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Welcome to the launch of the Sustainable Journalism Partnership! (Event)

Fojo Media Institute: Together with you, we want to create a Sustainable Journalism Partnership – a global forum for journalists, media- and sustainability researchers and entrepreneurs.