The situation of press freedom on the American continent continues to face threats ranging from violence against journalists to the use of legal mechanisms, the adoption of restrictive laws and cyber attacks.
In an editorial published on Oct. 16, the team at Cuban journalism site Periodismo de Barrio offered details about their detentions on Oct. 11 and 12 in the eastern province of Guantánamo where they had gone to cover the effects of Hurricane Matthew. They also addressed some criticisms of their work.
Javier Duarte de Ochoa, governor of Veracruz, Mexico who has been the subject of widespread criticism for the high levels of violence against journalists in his state, has resigned from his position as he faces unrelated corruption charges.
Judicial decisions on freedom of expression and access to information of the highest courts of 16 Latin American countries are available for free consultation now that the Freedom of Expression Case Law online database in Spanish is available.
At least 10 Cuban journalists were detained while covering the effects of Hurricane Matthew in the town of Baracoa in the eastern province of Guantámo on the morning of Oct. 13, according to news site Cubanet.
A Bolivian judge shelved legal proceedings against journalist Humberto Vacaflor that were started after President Evo Morales filed a case against the journalist for criminal defamation.
At the request of the prosecution, a criminal court in Bogotá, Colombia agreed to terminate the investigation for injuria (defamation) against journalist Juan Esteban Mejía Upegui, according to newspaper El Espectador.
A number of journalistic associations in Bolivia have protested against the creation of the documentary “El Cártel de la Mentira” (The Cartel of Lies), which was ordered by the Ministry of the President, led by Juan Ramón Quintana.
Carlos Fernando Chamorro, director of Nicaraguan magazine Confidencial, said his country’s Army is spying on his publication and employees.
The detentions of at least two community journalists and attacks on at least two other reporters covering evictions from a favela in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, have generated criticisms against the Military Police in this city who are accused of violating freedom of expression.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) released a special report surveying the changing media landscape in Cuba and the obstacles still standing in the way of press freedom.
With the goal of producing an investigative report and a public information database, Peruvian investigative journalism site Ojo Público and international organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF for its acronym in French) have launched a project to monitor ownership of the most important media outlets in the Andean country.