Pity those of us who monitor the ups and downs of China’s popular microblog platform, Sina Weibo. For every story its users spread in defiance of local censorship, there follows a clampdown.

Whether it’s the latest strike against rumors, or real name registration, or newly banned keywords, there’s always another restriction in the works as the service struggles to keep a lid on sensitive conversations without driving away its user base. “China tightens grip on social media,” we might report, as the Financial Times did in April. And last October. (The U.K.-based newspaper also noted China’s grip tightening on lawyers in March.) It’s not that these headlines are misleading. They simply show how difficult it is to illustrate the grip that always tightens, but never quite suffocates.

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Blog: Chinese microblog regulates, suspends users–again

CPJ’s new analysis identifies Eritrea, North Korea, Syria, Iran as worst

Originally posted here:
10 Most Censored Countries

News of blind legal activist Chen Guangcheng has been censored for months. International news reports of his escape last week from incarceration in his home in Linyi, Shandong–apparently to U.S. protection, although his whereabouts remain unclear–has only intensified that censorship. That is unlikely to stop discussion among those familiar with Chen’s case.

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Blog: Blind lawyer spurs news blackout in China

CPJ’s 2012 Impunity Index spotlights countries
where journalists are slain and killers go free

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Getting Away With Murder

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China – Statement by the Liu Xiaobo Support Committee and Amnesty International France

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Empowering independent media: U.S. efforts to foster a free press and an open Internet

Monday and Tuesday more than a hundred Tibetan-Americans and Tibet-supporters will convene in Washington, DC to raise Tibet with their Senators and Representatives. With a few clicks you can help amplify their message today. Please join us and send a message to Capitol Hill that constituents across the country care about Tibet.

Every message counts! Please send one today—and encourage your friends and family to do so as well by tweeting about #TibetLobbyDay and posting this on Facebook.

To send the letter to your Congressional Representative and Your Senators CLICK HERE.

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SAMPLE LETTER

Members of Congress,

I write to thank you and your colleagues in Congress for a record of leadership on Tibetan issues and a commitment to provide programmatic and political support for Tibetans in exile and in Tibet.

Tibet is in crisis today. The Tibetan people are taking great risks to speak out for freedom and the return of the Dalai Lama. In response, Chinese security forces have imposed virtual martial law in many Tibetan areas, imposed a communications blackout, and blocked foreign journalists from reporting on the situation. It is vital that Congress and the international community help give Tibetans a voice.

Tibetan-Americans and Tibet supporters live in communities across the country. We recognize that the Chinese government has a well-funded and sophisticated lobby operation in Washington, D.C. But we are empowered by the unflinching courage of six million Tibetans who struggle against Chinese oppression every day and by the leadership of His Holiness the Dalai Lama whose life’s work is the advancement of non-violence, human-dignity and a just solution for Tibet.

Congressional leaders from Speaker Boehner to Senator Feinstein have stood next to His Holiness the Dalai Lama and pledged their solidarity with the Tibetan cause, and Presidents Obama and Bush have publicly supported the Dalai Lama’s approach.

At this time of crisis, concerted Congressional action will signal to Tibetans and Chinese that the world is listening.

You can show your support for Tibet by:
1. (Senate) Cosponsor S. Res. 356, calling on the Chinese government to end its crackdown and address the legitimate grievances of the Tibetan people.
>> Bipartisan resolution (Feinstein-McCain-Lieberman) urges Chinese officials to end repressive policies targeting Tibetans and allow unrestricted access to foreign journalists and diplomats to Tibet.

2. Preserve Voice of America Tibetan radio broadcasting, and sustain funding for other Tibet support programs in the Foreign Operations Appropriations bill.
>> VOA radio, proposed for elimination, offers perhaps the only uncensored source of world news in Tibet, due to the Chinese government’s severe restrictions on media.
>> The other small but indispensable investments in Tibetan communities support the Dalai Lama’s vision of preserving the Tibetan identity until a political solution is achieved.

3. Update the Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 to respond to new developments in Tibet and within the Tibetan exile community.
>> New legislation should (a) articulate a relationship with the democratically-elected Central Tibetan Administration, (b) take a clear position that the reincarnation/succession of the Dalai Lama is up to him and the Tibetan people, not the Chinese government, (c) require the State Department to establish a consulate in Lhasa, Tibet, (d) urge a multi-lateral approach to resolving the Tibet issue and (e) include objection to forced resettlement of Tibetan nomads in “Tibet Project Principles.”

4. Advocate on behalf of Tibetan political prisoners, including Dhondup Wangchen, Lobsang Tenzin, Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, Runggye Adak, Norzin Wangmo and Gendun Choekyi Nyima (Panchen Lama).
>> See www.savetibet.org for more information

5. (House) Cosponsor immigration legislation, H.R. 699 to provide 3,000 immigrant visas to qualified Tibetans over a 3-year period.
>> This bill (Sensenbrenner-George Miller), would further the Dalai Lama’s goal of helping preserve Tibetan culture in exile. Immigrants would be easily absorbed by established Tibetan-American communities.

Thank you for your support for Tibet.

Sincerely,

[ NAME ]

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Russia – Draft electoral law provision threatens freedom of expression

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Russia – Human Rights Watch calls for an end to intimidation of activists, media as election nears

Beijing-based blogger Woeser reported on her website Invisible Tibet today that she has been confined to her residence by Beijing public security officers who are stationed outside her home. Woeser, an outspoken critic of Chinese government policies in Tibet, has recently written about a series of recent self-immolations among monks and arrests
of writers in western China.

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Russia – Wave of attempts to intimidate independent media in run-up to presidential election

Technology has democratized news publishing, rattling regimes that see their survival dependent on control of information. Video footage of repression from Burma to Syria to Egypt dramatically illustrates the benefits of Internet platforms and social media. Yet the Arab uprisings of 2011 also demonstrate the urgent need for providers and users of digital tools to understand the dangers of deploying them in repressive nations. As threats to online journalists grow in scope and frequency, they also underscore CPJ’s mandate to be a truly global organization. More journalists need CPJ’s help than ever before.

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Attacks on the Press in 2011: Preface

Trade and the Internet are turning us into global citizens, but the news we need to ensure accountability is often stopped at national borders. China is ramping up censorship, Iran is jailing dozens of journalists, and Turkey is using nationalist laws to stifle critical reporting. In Mexico criminals are dictating the news, while in Pakistan shadowy agents are attacking investigative reporters. Attacks on the Press analyzes press conditions and documents new dangers in dozens of countries worldwide.

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Attacks on the Press in 2011

How does one negotiate the choice to stay and report potentially dangerous news, rather than take a less risky assignment, leave the profession, or flee the country? The recipients of the 2011 International Press Freedom Awards explain. By Kristin Jones

Originally posted here:
Attacks on the Press in 2011: Profiles in Freedom

The global rate of unpunished murders remains stubbornly high at just below 90 percent. Senior officials in the most dangerous countries are finally acknowledging the problem — the first step in what will be a long, hard battle. By Elisabeth Witchel

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Attacks on the Press in 2011: Fighting Impunity

Legislation for Internet security can quickly turn into a weapon against the free press. Cybercrime laws are intended to extend existing penal codes to the online world, but they can easily be broadened to criminalize standard journalistic practices. By Danny O’Brien

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Attacks on the Press in 2011: Regulating the Internet

Even as trade and new systems of communication turn us into global citizens, the information we need to ensure accountability often stops at national borders. New platforms like social media are valuable tools, but the battle against censorship is hardly over. By Joel Simon

Excerpt from:
Attacks on the Press in 2011: The Global Citizen

The much-publicized assault on Lara Logan put the danger of sexual violence for journalists into the spotlight for the first time. As a result, there is more open discussion between reporters and news managers, but still too few preventative steps. By Lauren Wolfe

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Attacks on the Press in 2011: The Changing Views on Sexual Assault

The danger of covering violent street protests has become a significant risk for journalists, alongside combat and targeted killings. Sexual assault, organized crime, and digital vulnerability are also hazards. The security industry is struggling to keep up. By Frank Smyth

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Attacks on the Press in 2011: Evolution in Journalist Security

Analyses and data chart press freedom conditions throughout the region. Mohamed Keita examines the false choice between development and press freedom, while Tom Rhodes probes an unsolved murder in Kenya that reverberates worldwide.

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Attacks on the Press in 2011: Africa

The Mexican president promised to protect a besieged press corps with a federal protection program, a special prosecutor and new legislation making anti-press violence a federal crime. But Felipe Calderón Hinojosa has failed at nearly every turn. By Mike O’Connor

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Attacks on the Press in 2011: In Mexico, Silence or Death Remains the Choice

In some Latin American countries, state-owned media are used not only for propaganda but as platforms to smear critics, including journalists. Some elected leaders have even invested in large multimedia holdings to further their agendas. By Carlos Lauría

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Attacks on the Press in 2011: State Media As Anti-Media Tool

Analyses and data chart press freedom conditions throughout the region. Carlos Lauría describes the rise of state media as a powerful propaganda tool. Mike O’Connor exposes Mexico’s failed efforts to combat deadly violence against the press.

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Attacks on the Press in 2011: Americas

This video companion to Attacks on the Press recounts the story of Mexican journalist Javier Valdez Cárdenas, who works in one of the world’s most dangerous places. (3:26)

Read the Attacks on the Press 2011 country profile on Mexico.

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Attacks on the Press in 2011: Working in Peril

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CPJ urges Kazakhstan to stop repressing media

The Russian blogosphere erupted with comments today following an announcement
that the board of directors of the iconic radio station, Ekho Moskvy, will be changed. The timing of the development–weeks before presidential elections–and the potential consequences for Ekho’s editorial policy threw listeners into a frenzy of worry and speculation.

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Blog: Ekho Moskvy board shuffled ahead of Russian election

Last
week, Twitter provoked a fierce debate online when it announced a new capability–and related policy–to hide tweets on a country-specific basis. By building this feature into its website’s basic code, Twitter said it hoped to offer a more tailored response to legal demands to remove tweets globally. The company will inform users if any tweet they see has been obscured, and provide a record of all demands to remove content with the U.S.-based site chillingeffects.org.

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CPJ Internet Channel: Can selective blocking pre-empt wider censorship?

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Kazakhstan – Make rights key to good relations, says Human Rights Watch

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Kazakhstan – Twenty-nine IFEX members call for release of independent newspaper editor

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United States – Censored, prosecuted and on terror list, filmmaker denied First Amendment rights

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Belarus – Partner organization targeted by state TV hate propaganda

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Twitter and internet freedom: distinguish democracies from dictatorships

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Russia and the West: why democracy threatens Putin

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Russia – Office of opposition newspaper destroyed in firebomb attack

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Russia – Independent newspaper suspends publication in response to pressure