Featured stories about Freedom of Speech
Stories about Freedom of Speech
6 March 2016
Twitter Reports Massive Increase in Russian Government's Content Removal Requests
In the second half of 2015 Russian government agencies submitted 1,735 requests to remove content from Twitter—more than 25 times the number submitted in the first half of 2015.
4 March 2016
Why Russian Television Said Nothing When a Nanny Beheaded a Four-Year-Old Girl
After the horrific murder of a little girl in Moscow, national television said nothing for 24 hours. That gave Internet users plenty of time to debate what the silence meant.
3 March 2016
Graphic Artists Launch Online Poster Campaign to ‘Free the Media’ in Malaysia
"We feel that the time has come for Malaysians to demand for media and internet freedom in light of the latest assault on freedom of speech in Malaysia."
2 March 2016
Russian Parents Can Now Get Text Message Alerts if Their Kids Search for ISIS Online
A new software system promises to alert Russian parents about their children's interest in extremist themes and groups like ISIS based on their social media activity.
1 March 2016
China Silences Outspoken Tycoon and Other Celebrities on Social Media
The Cyberspace Administration of China has accused the outspoken real estate tycoon Ren Zhiqiang of publishing “illegal messages with a negative impact.” But he's not alone.
29 February 2016
Can Goodwill Gestures Help End Burundi's Political Crisis?
Two blocked radios are permitted back on the air, arrest warrants were lifted and some prisoners to be freed -- yet many remain unconvinced about the government's good intentions.
Ukraine's Eurovision 2016 Entry Is About Stalin’s Repressions. Russia Isn't Thrilled.
Ukraine’s entry for the Eurovision 2016 music contest is a song about the deportation of the Crimean Tatars by the Stalin regime. So why are Russian officials upset?
Macedonian Court Rejects Appeal by Activist Sentenced for Defaming Pro-Government TV Host
Five years after the case first began, Macedonia's judiciary has finally rejected an appeal by an activist convicted defaming a pro-government television show host.
28 February 2016
Saudi Arabia Sentences Twitter User to 10 Years in Prison and 2,000 Lashes for Apostasy
Saudi Arabia has sentenced a Twitter user to 10 years in prison in addition to 2,000 lashes for publishing 600 tweets "which spread atheism" online.
The Malaysian Insider News Website Blocked by Authorities for Posting ‘Unverified’ Report on Government Corruption
"Such unilateral action could also be construed as an attempt to intimidate the media against running critical news reports."
27 February 2016
Anti-Extremism Police in Yakutia, Russia, Say They Have Ways of Finding You on WhatsApp
WhatsApp messenger is hugely popular in Yakutia—and the anti-extremist police force are on it.
26 February 2016
Journalists Find Themselves the Target of India's ‘Anti-National’ Narrative
"As goons in black robes rampaged through the Delhi court house where Kanhaiya Kumar is being tried, they assaulted journalists not just on day one, but then once again..."
25 February 2016
Prize-Winning Novelist's Facebook ‘Joke About White Guys’ Is Gone—and Back—in Less Than 24 Hours
Facebook's notorious "Community Standards" strike again. The victim in question: popular Jamaican novelist Marlon James.
Ukrainian Court Equates Social Network Profile With Mainstream Media
The social media pages containing "calls to overthrow authorities" were determined by the court to be "mass media" because they were public and accessible to an unlimited number of people.
UN Human Rights Official Pulls No Punches in Assessment of Hungary
After a nine-day visit, UN Special Rapporteur Michel Forst highlighted the disheartening conditions human rights activists face in Hungary.
24 February 2016
Egyptian Writer Ahmed Naji Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for His ‘Sexually Explicit’ Novel
Egyptian novelist Ahmed Naji has been sentenced to two years in prison for publishing a chapter of his "sexually explicit" novel in a magazine.
23 February 2016
China Won't Broadcast the Hong Kong Film Awards Because of Dystopian Nominee ‘Ten Years’
"What is so fearful about this film? The film has portrayed different thoughts and perspectives; this can be a starting point for communication and understanding."
Journalist Hit With Defamation Suit From Timor Leste's Prime Minister Over Corruption Reporting
It's the second time the journalist has faced legal action accusing defamation. This time, it's over his reporting on alleged irregularities in a computer equipment project in the Finance Ministry.
22 February 2016
Anabel Flores Becomes Yet Another Journalist From Mexico’s Veracruz to Be Killed
The murder of Anabel Flores adds to the distressing statistics which prove that Mexico is the most dangerous country in Latin America to practice journalism.
Hard Labor for Woman Who Reposted Online Criticism of Russia's Actions in Ukraine
A Russian court found Vologzheninova guilty of "discrediting the political order" and of "inciting enmity" by reposting or liking online material critical of Russia’s actions in Crimea and in Donbas.
