After Venezuela's withdrawal from the American Convention on Human Rights on Sep. 10, Venezuelans are now unable to take cases pertaining to freedom of expression violations, among others, to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, said Ariel E. Dulitzky, former assistant executive secretary at the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and a leading expert in the inter-American human rights system, in a recent interview with the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas.
The current shortage of newsprint in Venezuela has caused a crisis among print publications that is hurting regional newspapers the most. According to El País, at least three regional dailies have been forced to suspend their operations since early August due to the lack of printing paper. Some of the affected newspapers have circulated for decades, like El Sol, in the city of Maturín, in the state of Monagas, and Antorcha, in El Tigre, in the state of Anzoátegui.
The recent surge of legal actions against private media outlets in Venezuela has caught the attention of several journalism organizations, who have described them as attacks on freedom of expression.
Leocenis García, editor and director of the Venezuelan news media group 6to Poder, was charged and held at a military base on August 1 for alleged money laundering, reported Spanish news agency EFE.
The recent departure at least 11 journalists from Venezuelan broadcaster Globovisión has raised questions about the plurality of the media in the country. TV hosts Gladys Rodríguez, Román Lozinski, María Elena Lavaud, Roberto Giusti, María Isabel Párraga and Mary Montes, for instance, resigned a few days after the departure of well-known journalist Leopoldo Castillo, host of the TV show "Aló Ciudadano," news site America Economía reported.
In an article posted on July 30, the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) stated its "concern" over the "abrupt economic measures against the country's journalists and news-media companies" implemented by the Venezuelan government.
Venezuela's attorney general is seeking to freeze the assets of the daily El Nacional's executive editor.
Eduardo Ponte, El Nacional's interactive content and social media manager, said his tech support and programming team were unable to detect any intrusion to their servers or interruption to the site's service.
The prohibition of the press from entering and covering the Venezuelan legislative body, which began a new session in February of this year. The situation, widely criticized by various organizations, is symptomatic of the tense state in which the country's media finds itself, even two months after elections put President Nicolás Maduro into power.
On Wednesday, June 5, former President Hugo Chávez posthumously received the National Journalism Award Simón Bolívar, reported newspaper El Universal. Even though the award's jury celebrated Chávez for his "role in fighting lies and mediatic manipulation," the relationship between the former president and the country's private media outlets was always tense.
An explosive was thrown in front of Venezuelan newspaper Panorama's building on May 27, reported the site La Patilla. No one was hurt and there were no damages.
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro accused CNN en Español of inciting a coup d'etat in the country, reported newspaper El Universal. Maduro made the accusation during a speech broadcasted on Monday through TV channel Venezolana de Televisión (VTV).