Journalists

Opposition slams exclusion of women journalists from Afghan FM presser

The opposition on Saturday termed the absence of female journalists from a press conference of visiting Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi "unacceptable" and an "insult to women", and said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's silence in the face of such discrimination exposes the "emptiness" of his slogans on 'Nari Shakti'. The Indian Women's Press Corps (IWPC) said the act was "highly discriminatory" and urged the government to take the matter up with the Afghan Embassy to ensure that such gender- based exclusion in media briefings does not occur in the future. Earlier, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack on Modi over the absence of female journalists from the presser, saying by allowing "exclusion" of women scribes from a public forum, the prime minister is telling every woman in India that he is "too weak to stand up for them". In a post on X, Gandhi said, "Mr Modi, when you allow the exclusion of women journalists from a public forum, you are telling ..

Gaza becomes 'news graveyard' as journalists die bringing war to the world

Minutes after journalists gathered outside a Gaza hospital to survey the damage of an Israeli strike, Ibrahim Qannan pointed his camera up at the battered building as the others climbed its external stairs. Then Qannan watched in horror while broadcasting live as a second strike killed the friends and colleagues he knew so well. We live side by side with death, Qannan, a correspondent for the Cairo-based Al-Ghad TV said in an interview. I still cannot believe that five of our colleagues were struck in front of me on camera and I try to hold up and look strong to carry the message. May no one feel such feelings. They are painful feelings. The deaths of the five journalists in the August 25 strikes on Nasser Hospital add to a toll of nearly 200 news workers killed by Israeli forces while working to bring Gaza's story to the world. Those killed in the attack, which left a total of 22 people dead, included Mariam Dagga, 33, a visual journalist who freelanced for The Associated Press

India calls killing of journalists in Gaza 'shocking, deeply regrettable'

Among the journalists killed were Al Jazeera's Mohammad Salama, Reuters cameraman Hussam al-Masri, and Mariam Abu Daqqa, a freelance journalist working for AP at the time

AP freelancer among 4 journos killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza hospital

Israeli strikes on a hospital in southern Gaza killed four journalists on Monday, including a freelancer who worked for The Associated Press, according to health officials. Mariam Dagga, 33, a visual journalist, freelanced for the AP during the war, as well as other news outlets. The AP said in a statement that it was shocked and saddened to learn of Dagga's death, along with those of other journalists. Two missiles hit Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, medical officials said. In all, 19 people were killed, according to Zaher al-Waheidi, head of the Gaza Health Ministry's records department. The Israel-Hamas war has been one of the bloodiest conflicts for media workers, with at least 192 journalists killed in Gaza in the 22-month conflict, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Comparatively, 18 journalists have been killed so far in Russia's war in Ukraine, according to the CPJ. Dagga, who has a 12-year-old son who was evacuated from Gaza earlier in the war, frequently .

IDF attack kills 5 journalists in Gaza tent; Israel alleges Hamas link

The deceased journalists included two Al Jazeera correspondents, Anas al-Sharif and Mohammed Qreiqeh, along with camera operators Ibrahim Zaher and Mohammed Noufal, the outlet reported

Bihar govt hikes monthly pension of retired journos by ₹9K ahead of polls

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday announced an increase in the pension of retired journalists under the 'Bihar Patrakar Samman' scheme by Rs 9,000 per month. Now, all eligible retired journalists, registered with the Bihar government, will receive Rs 15,000 per month instead of the earlier monthly emolument of Rs 6,000. The decision comes ahead of assembly polls scheduled later this year. Announcing this decision, the CM, in a post on X on Saturday, wrote: "I am pleased to inform that under the 'Bihar Patrakar Samman' pension scheme, instructions have been given to provide a monthly pension of Rs 15,000 instead of Rs 6,000 to all eligible journalists." Additionally, in the event of the death of a journalist receiving pension under the scheme, instructions have been given to provide their dependent/spouse with a lifetime monthly pension of Rs 10,000 instead of the earlier amount of Rs 3,000, he wrote. "Journalists play a crucial role in democracy. They are the fourth pillar of

Washington Post probes hacking attempts on journalists' email accounts

The attack was first reported by the Wall Street Journal, which cited unnamed sources as saying the hack was potentially the work of a foreign government

Court rules Trump can exclude journalists from Oval Office, Air Force One

In a 2-1 ruling, the DC Circuit Court paused a judge's order that let AP rejoin the rotating press pool covering Trump's daily movements, siding with the administration's access limits

Salvador court convicts 3 ex-army officers in 1982 killing of 4 journalists

Three former Salvadoran officers were convicted by a five-person jury late Tuesday for the 1982 killings of four Dutch journalists during the Central American nation's civil war. A jury made up of five women convicted the three men of murder in a lightning trial that began Tuesday morning in the northern city of Chalatenango, said Oscar Perez, lawyer for the Foundation Comunicandonos that represented the victims. Perez said prosecutors requested 15-year prison sentences for all three. Convicted were former Defence Minister Gen. Jose Guillermo Garcia, 91, former treasury police director Col. Francisco Moran, 93, and Col. Mario Adalberto Reyes Mena, 85, who was the former army commander of the Fourth Infantry Brigade in Chalatenango. Garcia and Moran are under police guard at a private hospital in San Salvador, while Reyes Mena lives in the United States. In March, El Salvador's Supreme Court ordered that the extradition process be started to bring him back. The Dutch TV journalists

Ashwini Vaishnaw meets editors, urges to report responsibly amid conflict

Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Friday underscored the importance of factual and responsible reporting, particularly when India is engaged in a military standoff with Pakistan. Vaishnaw interacted with senior editors from the print media and urged them to refrain from relying on unverified sources for information related to the conflict. The minister also advised the electronic media to refrain from live coverage or real-time reporting of defence operations and movement of security forces. He asked the mediapersons to strictly adhere to the advisory issued by the Union information and broadcasting ministry. Vaishnaw made it clear that the action taken by the Indian Armed Forces was against terrorism and not any country or community. India and Pakistan are engaged in a military standoff after the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam on April 22. The Indian Armed Forces launched strikes on nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmi

US DOJ to resume subpoenas for journalists in leaks crackdown: Pam Bondi

The US Justice Department is poised to crack down on leaks of information to the news media, authorising prosecutors to issue subpoenas to news organisations as part of leak investigations, serve search warrants when appropriate and force journalists to testify about their sources. New regulations, announced by Attorney General Pam Bondi in a memo to the workforce obtained by AP on Friday, rescind a Biden administration policy that protected journalists from having their phone records secretly seized during leak investigations -- a practice long decried by news organisations and press freedom groups. The new regulations assert that news organisations must respond to subpoenas "when authorised at the appropriate level of the Department of Justice" and also allow for prosecutors to use court orders and search warrants to "compel production of information and testimony by and relating to the news media". The memo says members of the press are "presumptively entitled to advance notice o

Crackdown in Belarus sends dozens of independent journalists to prisons

Journalist Ksenia Lutskina served only half of her eight-year prison sentence in Belarus after being convicted of conspiracy to overthrow the government. She was pardoned after she kept fainting in her cell from a brain tumor diagnosed during pretrial detention. I was literally brought to the penal colony in a wheelchair, and I realized that journalism has really turned into a life-threatening profession in Belarus, she told The Associated Press in Vilnius, Lithuania, where she lives. Lutskina was one of dozens of journalists imprisoned in Belarus, where many face beatings, poor medical care and the inability to contact lawyers or relatives, according to activists and former inmates. She compared the prisons to those from the Soviet era. The group Reporters Without Borders says Belarus is Europe's leading jailer of journalists. At least 40 are serving long prison sentences, according to the Belarusian Association of Journalists. Lutskina had quit her job making documentaries for ..

AP journalists cleared to return to White House after court ruling

A federal judge ordered the White House on Tuesday to restore The Associated Press' full access to cover presidential events, ruling on a case that touched at the heart of the First Amendment and affirming that the government cannot punish the news organisation for the content of its speech. US District Judge Trevor N McFadden, an appointee of President Donald Trump, ruled that the government can't retaliate against the AP's decision not to follow Trump's executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico. The decision handed the AP a major victory at a time the White House has been challenging the press on several levels. "Under the First Amendment, if the Government opens its doors to some journalists be it to the Oval Office, the East Room, or elsewher it cannot then shut those doors to other journalists because of their viewpoints," McFadden wrote. "The Constitution requires no less." It was unclear whether the White House would move immediately to put McFadden's ruling into effect.

Trump cuts spark deportation fears among foreign journalists in US media

After hiding in Thailand for seven years, two Cambodian journalists arrived in the United States last year on work visas, aiming to keep providing people in their Southeast Asian homeland with objective, factual news through Radio Free Asia. But Vuthy Tha and Hour Hum now say their jobs and legal status in the US are at risk after President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order gutting the government-run US Agency for Global Media. The agency funds Radio Free Asia and other outlets tasked with delivering uncensored information to parts of the world under authoritarian rule and often without a free press of their own. It fell out of sky, Vuthy, a single father of two small children, said through a translator about the Trump administration's decision, which he says threatens to upend his life. I am very regretful that our listeners cannot receive the accurate news, Hour said, also through a translator. Both men said they're worried about providing for their families and bei

Journalist's work fortifies foundation of democracy: Ex-CJI Chandrachud

"Attention has emerged as tangible asset in 21st century, a new intellectual property," Chandrachud said in his the keynote address at 25th BS-Seema Nazareth Award for Excellence in Journalism, 2024

Scribe held for 'derogatory' comments against Maharashtra minister's aide

Police have arrested a journalist with a local news channel for allegedly making derogatory remarks against an aide of Maharashtra minister Jaykumar Gore, and also booked him in a case of attempt to extort Rs 5 crore from the minister, officials said on Monday. The Satara police arrested Tushar Kharat, the editor of Lay Bhari, a local YouTube channel, from Mumbai on Sunday, they said. Some opposition leaders recently demanded Gore's resignation over allegations of him harassing a woman and sending objectionable photos to her. The state rural development minister has dismissed the charges. Last week, Gore submitted breach of privilege notices against Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut, NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar and Tushar Kharat, accusing them of defaming him. Gore last week said the court acquitted him of all charges in 2019 and directed that the material be destroyed. The BJP minister had said his image was maligned by raking up an old issue. "BJP's social media co-ordinator and Gore'

WH restricts AP access to Air Force One as 'Gulf of America' rift deepens

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich said the administration would seek to replace its reporters with those from other outlets in the Oval Office and on the presidential plane

Journalists anticipate renewed hostility toward work under new Trump govt

For the press heading into a second Trump administration, there's a balancing act between being prepared and being fearful. The return to power of Donald Trump, who has called journalists enemies and talked about retribution against those he feels have wronged him, has news executives nervous. Perceived threats are numerous: lawsuits of every sort, efforts to unmask anonymous sources, physical danger and intimidation, attacks on public media and libel protections, day-to-day demonisation. In a closely-watched case settled over the weekend, ABC chose to settle a defamation lawsuit brought by the president-elect over an inaccurate statement made by George Stephanopoulos by agreeing to pay $15 million toward Trump's presidential library. The news media is heading into this next administration with its eyes open, said Bruce Brown, executive director of the Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press. Some challenges to the free press may be overt, some may be more subtle, Brown sa

Taliban detained journos over 250 times in Afghanistan since takeover: UN

In a reply accompanying the report, the Taliban-led foreign ministry denied having arrested that number of journalists and added that those arrested had committed a crime

SC quashes Telangana's preferential land allotment to 'privileged' class

In a significant judgment, the Supreme Court on Monday quashed the government orders facilitating preferential land allotments to MPs, MLAs, bureaucrats, judges and journalists within the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation limits, saying the distribution of state largesse was "capricious" and "irrational". A bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta held the policy to be "unreasonable, arbitrary, discriminatory", and violative of Article 14 (right to equality) of the Constitution. "The allocation of land at basic rates to select privileged groups reflects a 'capricious' and 'irrational' approach. This is a classic case of executive action steeped in arbitrariness, but clothed in the guise of legitimacy, by stating that the ostensible purpose of the policy was to allot land to 'deserving sections of society'," the verdict said. Shorn of pretence, this policy of the state government, is an abuse of power meant to cater exclusively to the affluent ...