In what has been characterized as a “blow to the media,” the Supreme Court of Justice of El Salvador declared unconstitutional a section of the penal code that exempted media, reporters, editors and owners from legal responsibility for defamation. According to the ruling, the law violated the principle of equality, reported El Mundo and El Faro.
The Association of Argentine Journalistic Entities (ADEPA) said in its annual report that President Cristina Fernández's government acts as if journalism is "an enemy” and warned that pressure on the media from the authorities is degrading freedom of expression.
The chain Radio France Internationale (RFI) came out in defense of its correspondent in Caracas, Venezuela, journalist Andreína Flores, whom President Hugo Chavez during a press conference accused of being ignorant and wanting to manipulate information, reported El Universal.
The Rio de Janeiro-based newspaper Extra carried a front-page image of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as the King of Hearts to make fun of his recent remarks against the media.
Senators said they will approve without any changes the controversial anti-racism law proposed by Bolivian President Evo Morales, reported La Razón. The document was approved by the lower house already, and is under discussion in the senate.
Almost two years after crossing the border from Mexico, journalist Jorge Luis Aguirre was granted asylum in the United States, reported La Jornada. The editor of the news site LaPolaka.com had gone into exile after receiving threats when he went to the funeral of slain reporter Armando Rodríguez in Ciudad Juárez. At the time, Aguirre was warned that he was next.
The Electoral Court in Mato Grosso state issued an injunction against the state’s largest media company, Gazeta, preventing it from publishing stories that say acting Federal Deputy and current Senate candidate Carlos Abicalil (PT) supports decriminalizing abortion, A Gazeta and Folha de S. Paulo report. The ruling would fine the paper A Gazeta and the TV station Canal 10 more than $58,000 if they fail to comply.
According to Perfil, the legal offensive by the government against the country’s most prolific dailies has taken a new step, as it prepares to open criminal charges against the owner and director of Clárin Group, Ernestina Herrera de Noble and Héctor Magnetto, respectively, and the director of La Nación, Bartolomé Mitre. They are accused of being direct accomplices in crimes against humanity during the Argentine dictatorship (1976-1983).
The legal debate on the line between protecting the privacy of youth and supporting free expression was temporarily decided on the side of the former, when the Chamber for Minors in the capital city of San Salvador upheld the ruling against José Roberto Dutriz, the president of La Prensa Gráfica, for publishing the name and photos of a minor that was charged in the public killing of another youth in March, El Mundo and ElSalvador.com report.
The National Newspaper Association (ANJ), the Brazilian Association of Radio and Television Broadcasters, and the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB) condemned statements by President Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva that he will “ defeat the papers and magazines that behave as if they were political parties,” O Globo reports.
Just days before the Venezuelan parliamentary elections, representatives from the opposition Democratic Unity Coalition filed a complaint with the National Electoral Board (CNE) alleging that President Hugo Chavez was abusing the media by using them to campaign for candidates supportive of Chavez's party, reported El Universal.
After media and journalism groups strongly criticized the anti-racism bill that passed the Chamber of Deputies last week, the Senate has invited journalists to discuss the issue today (Sept. 16), Los Tiempos reports.