The president of Panama, Ricardo Martinelli, offered asylum to Ecuadoran journalist Carlos Pérez Barriga, one of the owners of the El Universo newspaper who, along with his two brothers, was just sentenced to three years in prison and $40 million in fines for defaming Ecuadoran President Rafael Correa, according to the non-governmental organization Fundamedios. Martinelli made the announcement via his Twitter account on Thursday, Feb. 16.
A racist headline and offensive commentary about Asian-American basketball Player Jeremy Lin have resulted in the firing of an ESPN employee and the suspension of an anchor, ESPN itself reported on Sunday, Feb. 19. The personnel actions follow apologies the sports cable network issued on Saturday, Feb. 18.
After speaking with the victim's friends and relatives, investigators into the death of Brazilian journalist Paulo Roberto Cardoso Rodrigues have found stronger evidence that the reporter was killed because of his journalistic activities, explained the news website Midiamax. Paraguayan reporter Cándido Figueiredo said he was warned by the Brazilian police of a plan to kill the journalist, known as Paulo Rocaro, because of his coverage of drug trafficking on the border between the two nations.
Two Argentine journalists were threatened at gunpoint on Monday, Feb. 13, in La Plata, in the province of Buenos Aires, reported the Argentine Journalism Forum (FOPEA in Spanish).
Twelve Mexican soccer teams announced that they would prevent reporters from a Mexican sports newspaper from entering their stadiums, reported the magazine Proceso on Saturday, Feb. 18.
Congressional legislators in Guatemala passed a measure preventing press access to closed door sessions, reported the newspaper elPeriódico.
The Mexican newspaper El Buen Tono published images and a video from the armed attack the daily suffered more than three months ago, reported the newspaper Milenio on Wednesday, Feb. 15.
The Brazilian news website Congresso em Foco was acquitted of defamation in the first of one of many lawsuits brought against the site, which published a series of reports on the existence of salaries higher than the constitutional ceiling for politicians, authorities and civil servants in the executive, legislative and judiciary branches, reported the Forum for the Right to Access Public Information.
A mayoral candidate in Honolulu is trying to get a reporter he doesn't like thrown off the campaign trail, reported the Honolulu Civil Beat.
The U.S. media industry still is dominated by men, according to a new study released by the Women’s Media Center. While 73.5 percent of journalism and mass communications graduates in 2011 were women, the proportion of women working in media continues to decline, explained MediaBistro.
In an article titled "Will the land grabbers win?" and published Saturday, Feb. 11, the editor of the Brazilian newspaper Jornal Pessoal, Lúcio Flávio Pinto, reported that the Supreme Court denied his appeal to a lawsuit filed by one of country´s largest construction companies and ordered the journalist to pay roughly $4,600 in moral damages, according to the website Socioambiental.
The National Chamber of the Radio and TV Industry (CIRT in Spanish), which represents the majority of the radio and TV companies in Mexico, announced that it would appeal to international bodies to denounce the current electoral law, which limits freedom of expression and press freedom, reported the newspaper El Universal.