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Unfreedom Monitor
The Unfreedom Monitor is a project to analyze, document, and report on the growing use of digital communications technology to advance authoritarian governance around the world.
Latest stories
In Georgia, veteran journalist sentenced to 3.5 years in jail
Gvaramia was first charged in 2020 with abuse of power, embezzling property at Rustavi 2, commercial bribery, and forging documents. He was found not guilty on the last three counts.
Podcast: The state of press freedom
This week, we head to China, India, Colombia, Indonesia and Serbia to hear from journalists and researchers about what challenges the media faces in those countries.
Not Yet Uhuru: Surveillance, censorship and data practices in the new Tanzania
Internet censorship in Tanzania has taken on a rather oppressive turn in the last five years, with media suppression taking the lead.Internet censorship in Tanzania has taken on a rather oppressive turn in the last five years, with media suppression taking the lead.
Pakistan drops 12 points on World Press Freedom Index 2022
A report by Pakistani rights organization Freedom Network reveals that journalists in Pakistan were subjected to violence, legal cases, abductions, detentions and threats last year, mostly from the state actors.
Does Indonesia have a healthy free press? Not according to West Papua
This World Press Freedom Day, we review the human rights violations, free speech barriers, and media abuses in Papua, which has been annexed by Indonesia for almost 60 years.
Press freedom is marked by fear and insecurity in Mozambique
Among festive messages and recognition of the work done by journalists, the day was marked by a moment of consternation, due to the difficult situation in the local media.
What does Elon Musk's Twitter purchase mean for Venezuelan Twitter?
Twitter will change now that Elon Musk is its new owner. Will it change the way Venezuelans, inside and outside of the country, shape the political conversation?
Nothing new in the ‘New Kazakhstan’ as attacks on social media freedom continue
As the world marks World Free Press Day, the government of Kazakhstan enacts a law restricting social media freedom in a country where media are under control of state authorities.
In Azerbaijan, the state of media freedom is dismal, experts say
When at least four journalists remain behind bars, independent and opposition websites are blocked, and censorship prevails in Azerbaijan, there is little cause for celebration on this day.
For acclaimed journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov, winning a Nobel Peace Prize offers no protection
For Filipino journalist Maria Ressa and Russian editor Dmitry Muratov, winning the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize has not provided protection from their attackers and state threats as they continue their investigations.
World Press Freedom Day in the Caribbean is a mixed bag
'The environment within which journalists in the Caribbean operate is becoming increasingly perilous.'
The Western Balkans will need unity and cooperation across society to overcome press freedom challenges
Independent media in the Western Balkans face disinformation campaigns, hate speech, physical attacks, threats, low income, poor economic status, divisions, self-censorship and job insecurity.
News that’s fit to print
On World Press Freedom Day 2022, the spotlight is on the media’s important role as defenders of information integrity, especially in times of crisis.
China: Weibo’s new location tag exposes the whereabouts of users, opinion leaders and tiny pinks
Despite privacy concerns, the location data has unexpectedly exposed the whereabouts of pro-government opinion leaders and patriotic trolls.
Malaysian writer faces blasphemy probe for Facebook post
"Uthaya Sankar SB’s arrest for his social media post highlights the limits of free expression in Malaysia on issues such as religion."
In Turkey a journalist is arrested for covering an alleged hacking of a government database
The arrest comes after Haskoloğlu reported on an alleged hacking of a government database.
Weaponising the law: Zimbabwe’s new frontier in digital rights repression
2022 will provide ample opportunity to monitor the government response to electoral challenges, and whether includes the use of internet shutdowns and laws to clampdown on activists, opposition leaders and independent media.
Abuse, arrests, and harassment: How environmental activists fare in Vietnam
"Harassment, intimidation, and imprisonment are just some of the tactics Vietnam uses to silence environmental activists."
Despite what we think, the press does not live in a free paradise in Ecuador
It is necessary to question the notion that the media have full and free space to act, without threats, in Ecuador.
Technology: a problem or a solution in Myanmar’s revolution?
Myanmar has faced surveillance and censorship in its digital spaces since it opened the internet to the public in the early 2000s.
