2005-2014

Trust in the media apparently promotes health. A study of people from 29 Asian countries has shown that individuals with high levels of trust in the mass media tend to be healthier. A team of researchers led by Yasuharu Tokuda from St. Luke's International Hospital and Takashi Inoguchi from Chuo University, both in Tokyo, used data from a survey of 39,000 people to investigate the relationships...

The shocking murders of lawyer Stanislav Markelov and young journalist Anastasia Barburova on Monday brings Russia's human rights record to a new low, press freedom groups have said. The crime is compounded by the knowledge that Russia has a culture where impunity reigns and murderers are rarely brought to justice, ARTICLE 19 and Index on Censorship have said. Even in the case of a journalist as...

The Malawi High Court has declared that the decision by the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) to revoke Joy Radio's license was unconstitutional, ultra vires and unreasonable, effectively dismissing all cases that MACRA had brought against the private radio station. According to this ruling, it means there is no case between Joy Radio and MACRA, the Media Institute of Southern...

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) has expressed concern at the recent eviction of the Albanian newspaper TemA from its premises by Minister of Economical Affairs Genc Ruli. According to SEEMO, the Minister of Economical Affairs cancelled unilaterally and without any further notice the newspaper's 20-year-old contract for the premises. An unexpected police siege followed and the...

Zimbabwe's Retrenchment Board has ruled against the state-owned Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings' (ZBH) bid to retrench six of its journalists who were suspended in June 2008 on allegations of "acting in a manner inconsistent with the fulfillment of the implied conditions" of their contracts, the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) has reported. Monica Gavela, Patrice Makova, Garikai Chaunza...

Miguel Badillo Cruz, editor of Contralínea and Fortuna magazines, was arrested by police near his home in Mexico City on the morning of January 16, the Centro de Periodismo y Etica Publica (CEPET) has reported. The editor has been charged with "insult to authorities" (desacato) by a judge in Jalisco state. He is currently under "administrative arrest", having apparently been detained on a warrant...

The publisher of Vanuatu's Daily Post newspaper, Marc Neil-Jones, was recently attacked in the capital of Port Vila, according to Pacific Islands News Association (PINA). Radio New Zealand International reported that Neil-Jones sustained a broken nose and a black eye. Neil-Jones has filed an official complaint with the police and alleges that those involved are police officers who are employed at...

Abdumumin Sherkhonov, editor-in-chief of the Pazhvok (Echo) newspaper and a freelance reporter for Radio Ozodi (Tajik Service of Radio Liberty), was beaten up in the city of Kulyab, southern Tajikistan, on January 5, accordding to delayed reports. According to Sherkhonov, he was stopped by two young men when he was on his way to the newspaper's office. One of them, who identified himself as an...

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) has expressed concern at the efforts by the Orthodox Church in the Republic of Macedonia / Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to prevent certain media from properly carrying out their work. According SEEMO, TV Alfa, TV Sitel and the newspaper Vecer have received a notification stating that, as of January 2009, they will need the approval of the...

The International Press Freedom Mission has condemned a "culture of impunity and indifference" over killings and attacks on journalists in Sri Lanka. Since the beginning of the New Year, both the killing of a senior editor and the attack on the facilities of a popular independent TV channel have led to a total paralysis of the media community. Launching a new report, 'Media Under Fire: Press...