Safety
The Day of Killed Journalists
Turkey commemorated the 13th Day of Killed Journalists on Monday. 62 journalists have been killed in the country to date. To mark the day, journalists gathered at the grave of the first victim, Hasan Fehmi, the editor of Serbesti newspaper, who was killed in 1909, “We expect the facilities for journalists to be developed, and […]
Sri Lanka government to investigate journalists
The Sri Lankan government has appointed a Parliamentary Select Committee to investigate the work of journalists "who have been contributing articles detrimental to the interests of Sri Lanka to foreign Non Governmental Organizations", according to Sri Lanka Defence Spokesman Minister Keheliya Rambukwella. Government will reveal names of those Sri Lankan journalists in about a fortnight, […]
Freelance journalist missing in Zimbabwe
Kudzai Musengi, a freelance journalist based in Gweru, is missing according to an alert issued by the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA-Zimbabwe) today. Musengi failed to return home after normal working hours on 31 March and family and colleagues have not been able to contact him. MISA-Zimbabwe strongly appeals to the authorities and law […]
77 names added to wall of fallen journalists
The names of 62 journalists killed in 2008 and 15 killed in previous years have been added to a memorial wall at the Newseum in Washington D.C. that honours journalists killed doing the job of journalism. Iraq and Mexico were the deadliest places for journalists last year. 13 names from Iraq were added to the […]
Beverly Giesbrecht ransom offer rejected
A ransom offered to the Taliban kidnappers of Beverly Giesbrecht has reportedly been rejected according to a report on the Globe & Mail newspaper. Giesbrecht, a Canadian freelance journalist who also goes by the name of Khadija Abdul Qahaar, was kidnapped four months ago in the border area between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The kidnappers […]
Somali journalist jailed for two years
Ayanle Jama Feyte, an online journalist working for the Lassqorey website who was arrested on March 26, has reportedly been jailed for two years by a court in Bossaso in the Puntland region of Somalia. He is charged with defamation under the “criminal code defamation to state administrative bodies” after he allegedly published a series […]
Journalist shot dead in Rawalpindi
Raja Asad Hameed, a senior reporter with the English Language daily The Nation in Pakistan, was shot dead last night in Rawalpindi, Unidentified armed men on Thursday night killed Raja Asad Hameed, senior reporter of a local English daily. The incident took place at 10pm, when the armed men came to Hameed’s house and rang […]
Insurance Without Borders from Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders announced an insurance plan for journalists working in war zones yesterday. The scheme, called Insurance Without Borders, is aimed at journalists who often travel at a moment’s notice. The insurance can be put into effect within 48 hours and does not require a medical questionnaire, To mark the anniversary of the War […]
The most dangerous places for journalists
Iraq, Sierra Leone and Somalia are the most dangerous place for journalists according to the 2009 Imupunity index released by the Committee to Protect Journalists today. However, the report entitled Getting Away With Murder 2009, highlights worrying trends in South Asia, particularly in Sri Lanka and Pakistan, “We’re distressed to see justice worsen in […]
U.S. journalists detained in North Korea
Two U.S. journalists working on North Korean border with China near the Yalu river, on the western border, have been detained by North Korean military officials. The South Korean television station YTN quoted government officials as saying the two journalists were warned to stop filiming by North Korean guards. When these warnings were ignored, the […]
Taliban threaten to kill Beverly Geisbrecht
According to reports coming out of Pakistan the Taliban have threatened to kill Beverly Geisbrecht, the Canadian freelance journalist kidnapped in November 2008, if ransom demands are not met by March 30. Earlier this month a ransom demand of $375,000 was reportedly made. In a video taped message sent to the Miranshah Press Club earlier […]
The BBC “failed” Kate Peyton
Kate Peyton was gunned down outside the Sahafi hotel in Mogadishu in November, 2005. An inquest into her death was held in November, 2008. Charles Peyton, the brother of Kate, has asked us to publish this from him. The views contained below do not represent those of the Frontline Club, The BBC failed my sister, […]
$375,000 ransom demand for Beverly Giesbrecht
The Globe & Mail reports that a ransom demand of $375,000 has been made by the Taliban kidnappers of Beverly Giesbrecht who has been held hostage since November 2008. The paper says the demand came during an interview with a man calling himself Qari on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border who said only money would secure her […]
Philippine press attacks
In the latest attack on a journalist in the Philippines, Ronaldo Doong was attacked by two armed men while travelling on a highway in Colorado village in Digos City in the southern Philippines on Saturday. The brodcast journalist, who works for University of Mindanao’s Radyo Ukay, sustained bruises and cuts during the assault. The attackers […]
22 attacks on journalists in Cambodia
A report by the Club of Cambodian Journalists (CCJ) catalogues a series of 22 attacks against journalists in the south-east Asian country between 2008-2009. In addition the report slates unethical practices among journalists including bribery and corruption and those pretending to be journalists who are not, The press release urges the Ministry of Information to […]
Broke without fixers
Jonathan Miller writes about the "secret weapon" of television news on the Channel 4 World News blog. He’s talking about the fixers he’s worked with in the DRC, Zimbabwe, Gaza, Pakistan, Serbia and Sudan. "When fixers deliver," Miller says, "We make good telly," Fixers are all-too-often the unsung heros of our business. They work long […]
Tamil editor abducted in Sri Lanka
Nadesapillai Vithyatharan, a senior Sri Lankan newspaper editor, was abducted by armed men in police uniform this morning, according to the Tamil Eelam News Services. The editor of both the Uthayan newspaper in Jaffna and the Colombo based Sudar Oli was attending the funeral of a friend on the Galle Road in Colombo when the […]
Working as a journalist in Iraq
The excellent Alive in Baghdad talks to Hassan Fadhel Allah al-Hussaini, the editor of the Rayat al-Arab newspaper, at his office in Baghdad. He talks about his newspaper, the assasination of former colleague Saad Mehdi Shalash, press freedom and the "miracle" of working life in Baghdad. Click the video above to play the interview, "All […]
The Kenji Nagai Award
The Kenji Nagai Award for Journalism was announced at the Burma Media Conference in Chiang Mai, Thailand this week. The Burma Media Association created the award to honour the Japanese video journalist who was killed on the streets of Rangoon by a Burmese soldier during the saffron revolution of September, 2007. The inaugral award goes […]
Kidnapped journalist on video
A videotape of Beverly Giesbrecht, a freelance journalist who was kidnapped almost three months ago in the Afghanistan/Pakistan border region, surfaced on Monday according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. The reporter, who also goes by the name of Khadija Abdul Qahaar and publishes Jihad Unspun, was kidnapped in November, 2008 in the Bannu district of […]
Six months and counting
Six months ago today the first reports came in of the kidnap of Canadian freelance journalist Amanda Lindhout, freelance photographer Nigel Brennan and their fixers and driver. The team were reportedly abducted just outside Mogadishu. The fixer and driver were subsequently released, but Lindhout and Brennan remain hostage. A ransom demand of $100,000 was recently […]
Kidnapped in Somalia
CNN International talk to Colin Freeman and José Cendón about their kidnap ordeal in Somalia. The duo were kidnapped on November 26, 2008 and held for some six weeks. The pair don’t appear to have feared for their lives and seem remarkedly relaxed about their experience, although it seems unlikely they’ll be heading back to […]
Attacks on the Press
The Committee to protect journalists launched Attacks on the Press 2008 today. The CPJ will be holding a press conference at the United Nations later to publicize the report. You can watch the livestream on the UN website at 9.30am EST Tuesday 10 February. Taking part will be, Joel Simon, CPJ Executive Director, Paul Steiger, […]
No Colombian journalists killed in 2008
According to the Foundation for Liberty and Freedom of the Press (FLIP), no Colombian journalists were killed in 2008 for the first time in 23 years, A total of 130 journalists were killed in Colombia in the past 30 years. The organisation notes that Colombian journalists are still regularly threatened by terrorist organisations. FLIP reports […]
Somalia kidnap row
Daud Abdi Daud, the General Secretary of the Somali Journalists Rights Agency (SOJRA), defends the report earlier this week of a possible escape attempt by kidnap victims Amanda Lindhout and Nigel Brennan. The report was quickly dismissed by the Paris-based Reporters without borders, "I think [Reporters without borders] mean somebody in France can be more […]
Somalia kidnap victims tried to escape
There’s an unconfirmed report circulating that kidnapped journalists Amanda Lindhout and Nigel Brennan tried to escape their Somali captors late last month. The allegation comes from a "prominent Somali contact for western journalists" Daud Abdi Daud, Executive Director of Somali Journalists Rights Agency says the pair, in his words, "came close to being killed" on […]
Salam al-Dosaki shot dead in Mosul
Salam al-Dosaki, a journalist with the al-Hadba newspaper in Mosul, Iraq, was shot dead by a policeman on Thursday afternoon, 5 February according to Reuters, Mohammed Yunis Mohammed, a Mosul policeman, had been drinking when he approached the home of neighbour Salam al-Dosaki, a journalist with the local al-Hadba newspaper, police said. An argument ensued […]
Unemployed in Tehran
Issa Saharkhiz talks about the difficulties of working as a journalist in Tehran to NPR. Or in his case, of not working. Saharkhiz tells NPR that every paper he’s ever worked on has been closed. Most recently, the Iranian authorities closed two popular publications he ran; the Daily Economic News and a monthly magazine called […]
Said Tahlil Ahmed shot dead in Somalia
Said Tahlil Ahmed, the director of HornAfrik Radio, was shot dead this afternoon by three gunmen near Bakara market in Mogadishu according to the National Union of Somali Journalists. “This is a outrageous and appalling assassination” said Omar Faruk Osman, NUSOJ Secretary General. “Said Tahlil Ahmed was assassinated because of his strong and professional commitment […]
IFJ report on media staff killed in 2008
The International Federation of Journalists released its annual report today on the number of media workers killed during 2008. While the numbers fell in 2008, there has been a spate of killings since the beginning of 2009, “The welcome relief brought about by the decline in the killings of journalists in 2008 has been shot […]