censorship

By Arzu Geybullayeva | (Globalvoices.org) | – – On April 16, Turks will head to polls to yay or nay constitutional amendments which have been approved by the 550 seat parliament where the majority of seats (317) belong to the ruling party of Justice and Development (AKP) under the control of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. […]

censorship

European journalists brand Turkey ‘biggest prison in the world’

contributors

By Herbert Vytiska | EurActiv.de | Translated By Samuel Morgan | EurActiv | – – Curbs on press freedom have been dramatically increased since the failed coup attempt against President Erdoğan. The Association of European Journalists (AEJ) has called on the European institutions to exert more pressure on Turkey, in face of further restrictions on […]

censorship

Turkey Is Shutting Down over 130 Media Outlets; Can Democracy Survive?

contributors

TeleSur | – – Erdogan’s political purge following the failed coup keeps on going, with the net ever widening. Turkey is shutting down over 100 media outlets and is purging over 1,000 military personnel, it was announced Wednesday as President Tayyip Erdogan’s government continues to tighten its grip on power after a failed military coup […]

censorship

Does billionaire-funded lawsuit against Gawker create playbook for punishing press?

contributors

By Clay Calvert | (The Conversation) | – – Word last week that Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel bankrolled wrestler Hulk Hogan’s invasion-of-privacy lawsuit against Gawker added a wrinkle to a case already featuring colorful characters and a US$140 million jury verdict. At a sensational and personal level, the story highlights the animus between PayPal […]

censorship

Egypt arrests Hundreds to Stop Protest, including Journalists, Lawyers

contributors

Human Rights Watch | – – (Beirut) – Egyptian security forces arrested at least 382 people in the days leading up to and during the dispersal of mostly peaceful protests on April 25, 2016. The protests followed a rare mass demonstration against President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo on April 15. Police arrested lawyers and […]

censorship

Berlin Pirate Party Leader Arrested for Erdogan Insult

contributors

TeleSur | – – Bruno Kramm was arrested while protesting against a German law allowing the prosecution of citizens for insulting foreign leaders. The head of Berlin’s Pirate Party branch has been jailed after protesting Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to the Pirate Party’s news agency, Pirate Times. Bruno Kramm was arrested in […]

censorship

Press Freedom in ‘Deep And Disturbing’ Decline in New Age of Propaganda

contributors

By RFE/RL | – – A leading journalism advocacy group says media freedom experienced a sharp decline around the world over the past year, citing increasing government restrictions in places like Turkey, Poland, Tajikistan, and Egypt. In its 2016 World Press Freedom Index released on April 20, Reporters Without Borders said that there had been […]

censorship

Turkey’s Pres. Erdogan demands Germany prosecute comedian over satirical poem

contributors

RT | (Video News Report) | – – “Turkey has made a formal request to the German government to prosecute a TV comedian over a crude poem about the Turkish President.” RT: “Erdogan demands Germany prosecute comedian over satirical poem”

Authoritarianism

Your Tax Dollars Enable Police Brutality Abroad: Egypt

contributors

By Chris Toensing | ( Otherwords.org) | – – Washington wants to loosen aid restrictions even as security forces crack down on innocent Egyptians. Ever since the Black Lives Matter movement exploded into the headlines, violence by American police officers has come under fire from activists and ordinary citizens alike. Less discussed, however, is how […]