At the II National Meeting of Progressive Bloggers, held June 17-19 in Brasília, Brazilian ex-president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva criticized the press and thanked bloggers for their support during the electoral campaign that brought Dilma Rousseff to the presidency, according to Agência Estado.
Just as journalistic organizations in Ecuador and Paraguay are complaining about the use of laws against the press aimed at silencing journalistis, the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) released a statement expressing concern about the "deterioration of freedom of expression and press freedom on the American continent," reported La Prensa.
On the floor of the Brazilian Senate, legislators called for a vote “as soon as possible” on a constitutional amendment reestablishing the requirement to hold a media-related degree to practice journalism, Agência Senado reports.
The Supreme Court of Colombia ruled on May 25 that criminal defamation is constitutional, prompting criticism from freedom of expression advocates, Article 19 reports via IFEX.
Mexico's Federal Electoral Institute (IFE in Spanish) is considering a bill that would regulate the right of reply during the election campaign period that would effectively require the media to publish for free all of the responses of political parties and candidates who feel aggrieved by a news article, according to El Universal.
The Brazilian Association of Investigative Journalism (Abraji in Portuguese) laments the government's change of heart toward a proposed information access law.
After backlash from some government officials, Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff has changed her mind about a proposed information access law, and now supports the ability to keep official documents secret forever, reported Terra.
Several Latin American countries have recently adopted information access laws in order to promote government transparency and facilitate the public’s right to know. While the passage of such laws is certainly an important step, a new report notes that legal recognition does not mark the end to the fight for greater transparency, Sociedad Uruguaya reports.
The Science and Technology, Communication and Information Commission of the lower chamber of Congress in Brazil rejected a bill that would have specifically allowed the use of the Internet as an official outlet for publication of federal, state and local information, according to IDGNow.
Inspired by a common complaint that some topics journalists are ordered to cover go against their personal ethics, the Argentine Journalism Forum (FOPEA) has proposed a “conscience clause” to give them legal recourse to refuse, La Voz reports.