Featured stories about Media
Stories about Media
22 May 2020
From counterterrorism to counter-COVID-19, governments use crises to impose continuous states of emergency in the Middle East
Fighting terrorism used to be the umbrella under which states of emergency were justified in the Middle East. Now, COVID 19 serves as a new justification for sweeping powers.
In Tunisia, women stand on the frontlines of targeted hate speech online
In Tunisia, an uprising toppled leadership and lead to revolution in 2011. Since then, digital space has witnessed heated debates about politics and society — including attacks against women activists and...
19 May 2020
In Algeria, online repression targets Amazigh protesters active in Hirak movement
In Algeria, the Amazigh people are often associated with France, Algeria's former colonial power. Racial slurs online accuse this group of being separatists who threaten "national unity."
18 May 2020
Women journalists in Uganda carry ‘double burden’ with online attacks and harassment
Women journalists in Uganda carry the double burden of gender-based abuse online and potential threats related to political reporting. These threats have led women journalists to withdraw from public discourse.
15 May 2020
In Burundi, four journalists jailed for months await appeal
The four jailed journalists with Iwacu were accused of threatening state security on the basis of a WhatsApp message sent as a dry joke while reporting on a rebel attack.
12 May 2020
In Bangladesh, criticism of government response to the COVID-19 pandemic is risky
"Would it be wrong if someone says that the authorities in Bangladesh, equipped with Digital Security Act, launched a crackdown on those critical to the government?"
7 May 2020
After disappearing for 53 days, Bangladeshi journalist is found and sent to jail
Fifty-three days after his abduction in from of his office in Dhaka, Bangladesh, photojournalist Shafiqul Islam Kajol was found alive in Benapole, near the border of Bangladesh with India.
4 May 2020
Baloch journalist found dead in Sweden
In recent months, several Pakistani activists and bloggers living in Europe have claimed to have been targeted for speaking up against human rights violations in Pakistan.
28 April 2020
Setbacks for freedom of expression as Tunisia fights COVID-19
Two bloggers have been arrested for accusing local authorities of corruption in relation to aid distribution, while a journalist who criticized the health minister faced insults online.
15 April 2020
Malaysia orders ‘stern action’ against media misreporting government statements on COVID-19
"Resorting to censorship, especially in its extreme form, in a time of crisis reflects the insecurity of the government of the day."
