BANGLADESH: Bangladeshi TV reporter missing in Dhaka

RSF: Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the Bangladeshi government to do everything possible to find Mushfiqur Rahman, a TV reporter who had received a death threat before going missing in Dhaka two days ago.

CAMBODIA: Verdict set for Cambodians who worked for U.S.-funded radio

AP: Two Cambodian journalists charged with espionage who had worked for the U.S. government-funded Radio Free Asia said they were hopeful they will go free after their trial concluded Friday.

CHINA & HONG KONG: Beijing’s new weapon to muffle Hong Kong protests: fake news

The Guardian: As Hong Kong enters its third month of mass anti-government protests, across the border in China, people are seeing a very different version of events.

HONG KONG: RTHK presenters to join Hong Kong strike

Asia Radio Today: About a dozen RTHK presenters intend to join a city wide strike on Monday (12 Aug) over the now-suspended extradition bill.

INDIA: ‘Anxiety Fills the Air.’ What It’s Like Inside Kashmir When All Communication With the Outside World Is Cut Off

Time: Delivered on a bright Monday morning, Imaad Tariq was one of the first babies born into Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Naya Kashmir or new Kashmir. But most of his family has no idea he has been born.

INDIA: Editors Guild ‘Deeply Concerned’ About Shutdown, Restrictions on Media in Kashmir

The Wire: Meanwhile, the executive editor of Kashmir Times has filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court, seeking directions to create an ‘enabling environment’ for journalists.

INDIA: Kashmir journalists struggle to tell their stories amid clampdown

Aljazeera: Reporters in the disputed region face difficulties due to ban on movement and communications blackout

INDIA: In Kashmir, obstruction, confiscated equipment, and hand-carrying stories and photos on flash drive

CPJ: “You are from the press, you are not allowed,” a local Kashmiri news editor says Indian security forces told him yesterday at one of the dozens of checkpoints set up across the region.

INDIA: India Shuts Down Internet and Phone Services in Kashmir (Watch)

CPJ: Indian authorities have implemented a near-total communications blackout in Jammu and Kashmir, shutting off internet and phone service in the region as the government of India announced plans to change the legal status of the state. 

INDONESIA: Indonesia’s broadcasting watchdog to monitor Netflix, YouTube

The Jakarta Post: The Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI) is set to formulate rules expected to become a legal umbrella for monitoring content on digital media outlets such as YouTube, streaming service Netflix and social media.

INDONESIA: Press Groups: Regulations, Violence Constrain Indonesia’s Journalists

VOA:  The Indonesian press continues to be constrained by regulations and acts of violence, according to Abdul Manan, chairperson of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI).

INDONESIA: The Era of Digital Disruption, The Challenges of the Press are Heavier (Indonesian) 

AJI: Commemorating the 25th anniversary of its birth, the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) held regional and national conference seminars on the big theme of The Biggest Challenge of Journalism in the Digital Era. 

MALAYSIA: Submission to MCMC ahead of WRC-19

Article 19: ARTICLE 19 welcomes the opportunity to provide comments to the Malaysia Communications and Multimedia Commission ahead of the WRC-19 and takes this opportunity to share recommendations the Commission, as well as the Government, should consider when shaping and managing the country’s national spectrum plan. 

MYANMAR: Myanmar’s Other Reporters

CJR: The world cheered when two Reuters journalists were freed from prison. But who’s watching out for the rest? 

PHILIPPINES: American journalist shot, critically wounded in Philippines

CPJ: An American journalist working in the Philippines was shot and critically wounded on August 6 while retrieving his daughter from school in the northern province of Ifugao, according to his outlet and other press reports.

PHILIPPINES: Maria Ressa: ‘It would be great if we didn’t have to fight our government’

The Financial Times: The crusading Filipino journalist on debunking disinformation and taking on President Duterte.

SOUTH KOREA: Nominee for Broadcasting Watchdog Head Vows to Fight Fake News

KBS World: President Moon Jae-in’s nominee for the head of the country’s broadcasting and media watchdog has vowed efforts to fight fake news. 

TAIWAN: China Paying Taiwan Media For Favourable News, Finds Report

The Wire: The coverage was overwhelmingly positive, with no indication to readers that such news was paid for.

AUSTRALIA: Australia tells police to consider importance of free press when investigating leaks

Press Gazette: The Australian Government has told police to consider the importance of a free and open press when investigating leaked documents after raids on journalists’ offices in June sparked outrage about suppression of free speech. 

AUSTRALIA: Council media (Watch)

ABC Media Watch: Local councils move into online news to beat the media at its own game.

AUSTRALIA: Media chiefs slam Australian press freedom curbs 

AP: Australia’s tarnished reputation as a bastion of press freedom came under further attack on Tuesday, with media executives telling a parliamentary inquiry there are many laws that criminalize journalism in a country plagued by an air of official secrecy.

AUSTRALIA: News organisations ‘under pressure to take sides’: Former ABC editorial director

The Sydney Morning Herald: Former ABC editorial director Alan Sunderland has issued a stern warning to journalists who have picked political sides and criticised reporters for fuelling the culture wars by failing to be objective.

AUSTRALIA: Spy agency Asio makes submission to press freedom inquiry – but keeps it secret

The Guardian: Spy agency Asio is being urged to make a public submission to a parliamentary inquiry into press freedom, as the government considers whether changes are needed to national security laws to protect journalists.

NEW ZEALAND: Convergence: yesterday’s media buzzword is now the new normal (Listen)

RNZ: Once upon a time our major media companies and telcos were none of each others’ business. Now they are all up in each others’ business because of ‘convergence’ driven by digital technology and the internet. TVNZ’s board told the government it won’t be getting a return in this crowded market and this week media bosses told Mediawatch the big players can’t all survive in it much longer.  

NEW ZEALAND: Television’s days may be numbered as viewing habits change

RNZ: Television’s days may be numbered as the catchall word for catching up on the latest in news, entertainment and sport in the home.

NEW ZEALAND: Three powerful media projects to commemorate one year since March 15 (Press Release)

RNZ: Three projects that will commemorate the one year anniversary of the March 15 terror attacks have been funded as the final initiatives from the RNZ/NZ On Air Joint Innovation Fund.

NEW ZEALAND: Yours Faithfully: TV Show about religion in New Zealand (Listen) 

RNZ: We have a diverse range of beliefs here in Aotearoa, but how much do you know about them? A new TVNZ On Demand series looks into different religions, from the Kiwi perspective.

REGIONAL: Social media and poor radio service hamper Pacifc met services (Listen)

RNZ: Social media and the lack of radio services in some small Pacific Islands nations present challenges for local met services during extreme weather events. Meteorology directors and officials are met in Samoa for the Pacific Meteorological Council meeting in Apia last week. Moera Tuilaepa-Taylor reports.

BELGIUM: Freelancers in Belgium: wages remain precariously low

EFJ: Freelance fees in the french-speaking Belgium haven’t developed for more than ten years. That reveals the latest inquiry “Les tarifs de la pige”, published on 05 August by our Belgian affiliate Association Générale des Journalistes Professionnels (AJP).

DENMARK: Denmark Broadcaster Uses Meme-Based Journalism To Reach Younger Audience

Forbes: TV2 Østjylland is one of the eight regional stations of Danish broadcaster TV2. In recent years they’ve faced a challenge familiar to news broadcasters around the world: a declining and ageing viewership.

FRANCE: French regulators give broadcasters’ joint SVOD the greenlight

TBI Vision: French regulators have cleared Salto – also referred to as the ‘French Netflix’ – to begin operations, with an eye on launching early next year.

FRANCE: Lazorthes – These words that govern us # 34: press (freedom of the freedom) (French) 

Le Point: To introduce new regulations, authorities are pointing out the dangers of “massive campaigns for spreading false news” online. The development of targeted digital political marketing techniques reveals the flaws of this new public space.

GERMANY: Lawyer’s attempts to influence reporting are increasing

EFJ: German media’s legal departments see an increase of lawyer’s attempts to prevent journalists from reporting.

GERMANY: Resistance to the conversion of the cultural to the classical wave (German)

Deutschlandfunk: The Broadcasting Council of the Hessischer Rundfunk will meet again on 23rd August – and it will not be an easy meeting. Because the protests against the reform of the cultural radio HR2 into a pure classic station do not stop.

HUNGARY: Establishment of KESMA Exacerbates the Overall Risk to Media Pluralism in Hungary (Report)

CMDS CEU: Central European Press and Media Foundation (KESMA) was established in Hungary, and almost immediately, most of the media owners that were considered by public opinion as affiliated or sympathetic to the Hungarian government transferred the ownership rights of their media holdings to it. According to a report by Centre for Media Pluralism and Media Freedom based on the Media Pluralism Monitor, it aggravates the already high risk to media pluralism in the country.

HUNGARY: Report: Establishment of KESMA Exacerbates the Overall Risk to Media Pluralism in Hungary (Report)

SEENPM: The Media Pluralism Monitor (MPM) is a research tool that was designed to identify potential risks to media pluralism in the European Union’s Member States. 

LATVIA: Saeima committee might call on parliament to sack National Electronic Mass Media Council – Kaimins

The Baltic Times: The Saeima Human Rights and Public Affairs Committee might convene this week to decide on an appeal to the parliament to sack the National Electronic Mass Media Council (NEPLP)

POLAND: Police violence against reporters in Poland

RSF: Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns the inappropriate police behaviour towards reporters during a nationalist demonstration last week to mark the 75th anniversary of the Warsaw uprising and calls on the Polish authorities to respect the media. 

SLOVAKIA: Never-ending story: the fight for media freedom in Slovakia

BIRN: Most of Slovakia’s major media outlets are in the hands of oligarchs or politicians. But a few holdouts are keeping the flame of journalistic independence alive.

SPAIN: For a new Press Law (Spanish – Opinion)

El Diario: Traditionally in Spain, when there has been more freedom of the press, it is when there has been no press law, therefore, press law implies that there is no freedom of the press, from the Bourbon restoration to the Franco dictatorship.

SWITZERLAND: Gilles Marchand and the digital future of the Ssr (Italian)

La Regione: From the metamorphosis of Rsi La2 to the arrival of a Netflix for the public service, interview with the general director of Swiss radio and television. 

RUSSIA: Moscow police detain, assault journalists covering protests

CPJ: Russian authorities should allow journalists to cover protests freely and safely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today, after the detention of several journalists and the use of force by police against the media during demonstrations in Moscow on July 27 and August 3.

RUSSIA: Russia accuses YouTube of interfering in its sovereign affairs

The Guardian: Russia has accused YouTube of spreading information on unsanctioned opposition protests, calling recent push notifications from the US-based company interference in Russia’s sovereign affairs.

UK: No ‘clear and compelling’ case for police to seize journalists’ notes from ISIS bride interviews, court hears

Press Gazette: The Metropolitan Police has presented no “clear and compelling” grounds for seizing journalists’ notes from their interviews with ISIS bride Shamima Begum, the lawyer for media groups fighting the case in court said today.

UK: Traditional TV viewing holds off streaming, Ofcom reveals

BBC News: Watching programmes on a TV set is still the most popular way for UK audiences to watch television – but streaming is catching up.

REGIONAL: Balkan Region Trapped in Perception that Journalists Can Be Beaten: EC country reports

SEENPM: Frequent attacks against journalists, lack of mechanisms for prosecuting those responsible, as well as political and economic pressures, present joint problems shared by countries in the region in the sphere of media freedoms and safety of journalists, an analysis of the European Commission’s country reports in the Western Balkan countries concluded.

ARGENTINA: Based on lessons from Brazil and Mexico, Argentina’s Reverso unites 130 media outlets in collaborative fact-checking effort

Knight Centre: After Mexico and Brazil in 2018, as well as Uruguay and Bolivia in 2019, Argentina also launched a collaborative fact-checking project ahead of 2019 general elections. And with 130 participating media outlets, Argentina’s Reverso stands as the broadest alliance against disinformation ever carried out in the region.

BAHAMAS: TV’s Colin Trotman Jr dies, aged 57 

The Tribune: Assistant General Manager of TV production at Bahamas national broadcaster (ZNS) dies from a heart attack. 

BARBADOS: Joseph retains BARJAM presidency

Nation News: Veteran journalist Emmanuel Joseph will continue to lead The Barbados Association of Journalists and Media Workers (BARJAM).

BOLIVIA: On the eve of presidential elections in Bolivia, two fact-checking initiatives put a magnifying glass on political discourse

Knight Centre: A message allegedly written by Bolivian President Evo Morales on his Twitter account congratulating drug traffickers Joaqín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán and Pablo Escobar on the occasion of Teacher’s Day on June 6 went viral in the country.

BELIZE: Earth Journalism Network hosts workshop for local journalists

Love FM: The Earth Journalism Network hosted a workshop in Belize to improve coverage of the Mesoamerican reef. Belize is home to the world’s second-longest Barrier Reef and it is hoped that this project will improve coverage of coastal resources, coastal management, tourism management as well as reef sustainability. 

BRAZIL: Bolsonaro muzzles the press, Brazil on the road to dictatorship? (French)

Moustique: The former military man who became president delivers the war to the Brazilian media. Married to a Brazilian, the American journalist Glenn Greenwald – who participated in the revelations of the Snowden case – makes him resist.

BRAZIL: Brazil top court prevents investigation into U.S. journalist 

AP: Brazil’s top court says officials cannot investigate U.S. journalist Glenn Greenwald for his work or for protecting confidential sources — a ruling praised Friday by press rights groups.

COLOMBIA: In 2019, 85 journalists were threatened in Colombia (Spanish) 

RCN Radio: Pedro Vaca, executive director of FLIP said that threats directed against journalists covering Valle del Cauca and a large part of the Pacific corridor, show that there is an obvious risk on the coverage of public order issues in regions.  

CUBA: Cuba sentences journalist Roberto Quiñones to one-year prison term

CPJ: A municipal court of the Cuban city of Guantánamo yesterday sentenced Roberto Jesús Quiñones, a contributor to the news website CubaNet, to one year in prison on charges of “resistance” and “disobedience,” according to advocacy group Cuban Institute for Freedom of Expression and of the Press and media reports.

EL SALVADOR: Urgent challenges of journalism and journalists (Spanish – Opinion)

Equilibrium: It is pertinent to insist on the deputies and deputies of the Legislative Assembly to approve the draft Law for the Integral Protection of Journalists, Communicators and Information Workers.

HONDURAS: 54 journalists and 18 justice operators are under protection (Spanish) 

La Prensa: Until July 30th, at least 151 human rights defenders, 29 journalists, 25 social communicators and 18 justice operators were in protective measures for different reasons, especially aggressions and threats to their physical integrity. 

MEXICO: Mexico tightens its belt, and the press feels the squeeze

Aljazeera: AMLO’s plan to cut more than 50 percent of government media advertising comes amid mounting concerns over press freedom.

MEXICO: Team behind Netflix series ‘Tijuana’ aims to create global awareness of dangers faced by independent journalists in Mexico

Knight Centre: Mexico is one of the deadliest countries in the world for journalists with at least ten professionals killed this year alone. For many journalists in the country, especially those outside of Mexico City, physical and psychological dangers are a constant for the job.

NICARAGUA: Nicaragua: A crackdown in four parts

CPJ: When protests erupted in Nicaragua in April last year, it was clear from the beginning that the country’s media landscape would be a battleground. One day into the unrest, the government ordered cable providers to cut the signals of at least five TV channels.

PANAMA: Historic achievements in 70 years of the Panama Journalists Union (Spanish) 

La Prensa Latina: Trade Union secretary general Filemón Medina remembers seven decades of the of the Trade Union of Journalists of Panama (SPP) which contributed greatly to the establishment of the School of Journalism in the 60’s as well as the mandatory minimum wage for journalists. 

VENEZUELA: Venezuelan authorities detain Wilmer Quintana for Facebook posts under anti-hate law

CPJ: Quintana was arrested for several posts published on his personal Facebook page alleging corruption in the provision of public services in Guárico state, according to a local press freedom group and news reports.

IRAN: Iran detains freelance photographer and culture reporter Nooshin Jafari

CPJ: Iranian authorities arrestedNooshin Jafari, a photojournalist and culture reporter, outside her home in Tehran on August 3 as she was on her way to work. 

IRAN: Kurdish-Iranian Detained On Australia’s Manus Island Wins Biography Prize

RFERL: The journalist, who fled Iran in 2013 under fear of persecution, composed the book one text message at the time from the immigration-detention center on Manus Island. It was translated from Persian into English by a friend.

IRAN: Journalism in Iran nears extinction (Paywall)

The Washington Post: Authorities in Iran are preemptively tightening the reins on media outlets.

ISRAEL: Producer of Israeli Reality TV Show Apologizes for Planting Gun in Palestinian Home

Haaretz: Ram Landes, owner of Koda Productions, took responsibility and said the team ‘got carried away’ when planted an M-16 rifle in a East Jerusalem home during the filming of the show.

LEBANON: Lebanon newspaper goes black to raise alarm over political crisis

Arab News: A prominent Lebanese daily Thursday appeared on newsstands with a black front page in the second such protest by a local paper in less than a year over the country’s lingering political crisis.

PALESTINE: 38 attacks against media freedoms in Palestine during July

MENAFN: July 2019 has witnessed a rise in the number of attacks against media freedoms in Palestine, compared to June, while Facebook continued closing more pages and accounts for news agencies and journalists claiming ‘violation of Facebook criteria’.

TURKEY: Turkey bans independent news sites in latest move to silence opposition

Al Monitor: Independent journalist Hayri Tunc first noticed his news site Gazete Fersude was blocked on July 18. It was one of several news sites founded to fill a coverage gap left by the shuttering of nearly 200 news outlets since a 2016 coup attempt in Turkey.

REGIONAL: Stories From Arab Female Reporters In ‘Our Women On The Ground (Listen) 

Public Radio East: Often when we hear or read stories from the Middle East, the reporting is from the perspective of Western journalists, and often they’re men. But when journalist Zahra Hankir was working in the region during the Arab Spring, she followed reporters who, like her, were women from the Middle East.

CANADA: Canadian and Chinese journalists both have visa problems when dealing with opposing governments (Paywall)

The Globe and Mail: A Chinese reporter seeking an extension of his stay in Canada and a Canadian journalist who applied for a visa in China are both facing extremely long delays in approvals from each other’s governments.

CANADA: Future leaders’ debates will be broadcast in Aboriginal languages (French)

Radio-Canada: The leaders’ debates will be broadcast in indigenous languages, assured the commission responsible for organizing both events. A first in the political history of the country.

CANADA: Ottawa invests $ 14.6 million in new Francophone content delivery platform (French)

Le Devoir: As an offensive to the proliferation of content on the Web, the federal government will announce Wednesday a $ 14.6 million investment over five years for the creation of a French-language digital platform called TV5Monde Plus.

CANADA: News that’s safe to use: Researchers aim to track information during campaign

CBC News: Digital Democracy Project survey finds Canadians more likely to be uninformed than misinformed about policy

CANADA: Through the Years

CBC/Radio-Canada: Explore the history of CBC/Radio-Canada as it celebrates its 87th year. 

US: Citing changing priorities, NPR will eliminate some newsroom jobs (Paywall)

Current: NPR will cut newsroom positions this fall as part of a restructuring that will shift resources to the network’s newsmagazines and investigative and original journalism, NPR’s news chief announced Tuesday.

US: CPJ, RCFP file lawsuit seeking documents in leak investigation

CPJ: Yesterday, the Committee to Protect Journalists and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press (RCFP) filed a lawsuit against the United States government seeking to obtain documents concerning steps taken by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to investigate leakers and to identify journalists’ sources.

US: In St. Louis, a ‘Mini J School’ makes public radio listeners advocates for real news (Paywall)

Current: Washington University’s popular Mini-Medical School gave Shelley Kerley and Jeff Bewley an idea.

US: Judge orders US government agencies to release files related to Khashoggi killing

Press Gazette: A US judge has ordered federal government agencies to hand over thousands of documents related to the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, who died in Turkey last year.

US: Respecting Listeners, Interviewees — And Staff (Opinion)

NPR: Public media is built on a foundation of what I’d call basic decency. NPR’s ethics handbook promises it will hold its journalists to the same high standards that it holds public officials and others it reports on…

US: The Trump administration is suppressing climate science (Opinion)

CJR: As I reported for CJR last year, the EPA also moved to cut its funding of the Bay Journal, a newspaper established under the Clean Water Act to report on environmental issues in the Chesapeake Bay. 

8 resources for detecting mis- and disinformation

IJNET: According to News Co/Lab research, more than one-third of people surveyed could not identify a fake headline.

Broadcast can compete against SVOD says ABC chief

Digital TV Europe: ABC Entertainment boss Karey Burke has defended broadcast television’s unique ability to market and support new programming, drawing a direct comparison to churn-heavy streaming platforms.  

Covering Mass Shootings: Resources for Journalists

Dart Center: ​Mass shootings challenge the skill, capacity and ethics of news professionals. Below please find tip sheets and other resources for journalists covering these tragedies.

Facebook reportedly in talks with news publishers to offer ‘millions’ for content

The Guardian: The Wall Street Journal reported that the tech company was offering news executives as much as $3m a year to license stories.

Free speech and privacy on the wane across the world

The Guardian: Nearly half the world’s people are living in countries where their freedom of speech and right to privacy are being eroded, researchers have found

Investigative journalism YouTube outlet Point is raising money for a misinformation-themed video game based on real-life stories

Nieman Lab: The investigative online journalism startup Point… is running a Kickstarter to launch Misinformer, “a text based, detective-style mobile game that puts the player in the position of citizen journalist who has to crack a major misinformation-based conspiracy before an upcoming election.”

Lost in translation: subtitles and dubbing help viewers, but can also cause problems

The Conversation: Mexican director Alfonso Cuarón’s masterpiece Roma was greeted with critical acclaim and three Oscars at the 2019 Academy Awards. But, even as Cuarón was basking in the spotlight, he was outraged at the way Netflix had decided to subtitle the film for Spaniards.

Not a good sign for the freedom of the press (German) 

Süddeutsche Zeitung: The entry of the investment company KKR at Springer-Verlag is alarming. For faster profit is compatible with sustainability and journalistic quality.