Potential prosecution of Dan Oakes illustrates urgent need for Media Freedom Act The ABC has revealed the AFP’s recommendation regarding the Afghan Files story is for the Commonwealth DPP to consider charging journalist Dan Oakes for his role in the leak. ABC’s Managing Director David Anderson said in a statement “The Afghan Files is factual and important reporting which exposed…
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After announcements in May that News Corp would shut more than 100 local and regional papers, this week spells the last printing week for many of them. Ownership diversity and access to local news are both important aspects of a healthy and free press, so the AJF is hoping this switch to digital will be one that is invigorating, rather…
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The Atlantic: This Is How Democracy Dies The Atlantic published an article in the wake of the court's decision that found Maria Ressa guilty of cyber-libel 'for an article she did not write, edit, or supervise, of a crime that hadn’t even existed when the story was published.' The piece explains the subtle but constant whittling away of…
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In response to the cyber-libel court case in which Maria Ressa has been found guilty, AJF’s Peter Greste can be quoted as saying the following: “This ruling sets an extraordinarily damaging precedent for press freedom in the Asia–Pacific region, and the world. “To suggest there was no political pressure in this case would be incredibly naïve. The Philippine government…
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AJF joins the CPJ in condemning the targeting of journalists in the US riots The Alliance for Journalists’ Freedom stands in solidarity with our US colleagues. The targeting of journalists covering the demonstrations across the US is an extraordinary step backwards for their democracy, and global democracy. The Committee to Protect Journalists have released the following statement. We stand…
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27th May 2020 Media Release: Smethurst should not have been charged in the first place The Alliance for Journalists’ Freedom welcomes the decision by the Australian Federal Police to drop charges against Newscorp journalist Annika Smethurst. The announcement though, coming more than a year after the raids, underscores the need for unambiguous protections for press freedom in Australian law.…
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This week News Corp's Michael Miller has announced a cut of as many as 100 titles and hundreds of jobs in a bid to move to digital-only production to aid the financial security of the company, which has been suffering in the wake of lost advertising revenue. This is a great loss for communities where the local paper is often…
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The media industry has been through enormous upheaval due to Covid-19, in part because it was underway before the virus. This recent SMH piece details the closures of multiple media mastheads in Australia. The signs are grim: the closure of AAP; the continuing diminishment of local news in regional areas and the lack of a sustainable funding model for public…
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View the letter and list of signatories here.The Alliance for Journalists’ Freedom has gathered a group of top media organisations in the region, press freedom experts and journalists to call on the Duterte Government of the Philippines to re-open the ABS-CBN network and ensure press freedom in the country moving forward. The network is a critical service for the filipino…
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On World Press Freedom Day, we've brought together some of Australia's best journos. This is their message. #WPFD2020 #PressFreedom
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