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28 journalists attacked with pepper spray in Guatemala

Media outlets in Guatemala protested against authorities for the pepper spray attacks that 28 journalists suffered in two occasions while trying to interview Roberto Barreda -- the son of former Chief Justice Beatriz de León -- who is accused of the disappearance and murder of his wife Cristina Siekavizza in 2011, Cerigua reported.

Transparency grows in Brazil but stalls in Argentina, Austin Forum panelists say

Journalists in Argentina are calling for a law that grants them true access to public information and ensures that state agencies comply with information requests, said Juan Carlos Simo, a member of the Argentine Journalist’s Forum (FOPEA)

Chile’s transparency law stands out as an investigative tool; in Uruguay, bureaucracy hinders its implementation

Chilean journalist Claudia Urquieta from the online newspaper El Mostrador highlighted the importance of Chile’s transparency law as an investigative tool during the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas’ 11th Austin Forum

Venezuelan authorities detained U.S. correspondent for almost 48 hours

U.S. journalist Jim Wyss recounted his detainment for almost 48 hours by the Venezuelan authorities in an article published on Tuesday, Nov. 12.

Five years after the killing of Mexican journalist, federal authorities say killer may be already dead

Five years after the killing of Mexican journalist Armando Rodríguez “El Choco,” the federal authorities that recently took over the investigation are now saying that his alleged killer could already be dead, newspaper El Diario de Juárez reported.

11th Austin Forum: culture of secrecy, lack of training are the biggest obstacles to transparency in the Americas

The biggest obstacles to transparency in Latin America and the Caribbean are the region’s enduring culture of secrecy, the infrequent use of right-to-information laws and the lack of training on how to use them effectively

In Bolivia, journalists criticize access to information bill; in Peru, transparency law is not used enough

For Bolivian investigative journalist Raúl Peñaranda, a columnist and former director of the independent newspaper Página Siete, access to information in his country is extremely limited.

Jamaica fully abolishes criminal defamation, an unprecedented legislative action in the Caribbean

The Jamaican Parliament passed a bill on Nov. 5 that fully abolishes criminal defamation within the nation. The move is unprecedented in the Caribbean, where international and local organizations have pressured the region's governments to draft similar legislation.

Director of controversial documentary receives new death threats, blames Mexico City judge

Roberto Hernández, the Mexican director of the controversial documentary “Presunto Culpable,” reported on Monday having received new death threats and is accusing the president of Mexico City's Court of Justice, Edgar Elías Azar, of being behind them, Aristegui Noticias reported. 

Transparency laws present professional, institutional challenges in Mexico, Guatemala and Nicaragua

After decades of a culture of virtually impenetrable secrecy within the Mexican government, in 2002 Mexico passed the Federal Access to Information and Personal Data Protection Act. Since then, it has become an often-cited model of how other governments should draft their own transparency laws.

Plenty of work remains to fulfill promise of transparency laws, says National Security Archive’s Tom Blanton

It’s been almost 40 years since Tom Blanton filed his first public information request. Since then, Blanton, the current director of the nonprofit National Security Archive, has become a leading authority in access to information and been directly involved in the release of tens of thousands of documents declassified by the U.S. government.

Producers of Mexican documentary on court corruption sued for $2 billion in damages

Roberto Hernández and Layda Negrete, the producers of the Mexican documentary “Presumed Guilty,” are facing three different civil lawsuits for over two billion dollars in the Superior Court of Justice in Mexico City (TSJDF).