Troll Farms and Threats: One Journalist’s Resilience in the Face of an Online Smear Campaign
Warning: Contains descriptions of gender based violence and harassment. Troll Farms and Threats After posting a Twitter (now X) response that was taken out of context and widely circulated by far-right groups as anti-Hindu, S*, a journalist in India, was suddenly inundated with thousands of violent threats online, targeting her and her family. Different news […]
UN Rapporteurs Call for Protection of Brazilian Journalist Schirlei Alves
UN Rapporteurs Call for Protection of Brazilian Journalist Schirlei Alves Amid Defamation Charges Stemming from Rape Trial Coverage A letter dispatched by UN rapporteurs to the Brazilian Government calls for protective measures for women journalists covering cases of sexual crimes. The letter also denounces the conviction of Brazilian investigative journalist and women’s rights defender, Schirlei […]
Paola Ugaz and the judicial harassment of journalists in Peru
Paola Ugaz is an award-winning Peruvian investigative journalist. In 2015, she co-authored – with Pedro Salinas – a book entitled Mitad Monjes, Mitad Soldados (Half-Monks, Half Soldiers). The book uncovers an alleged pattern of sexual, physical, and psychological abuse within the Sodalitium Christianae Vitae, a Peruvian Catholic organisation. Paola Ugaz has since faced numerous lawsuits […]
LGBTQ+ Journalism: Freedom of Expression, Online Violence & Censorship
Online violence against LGBTQ+ journalists Online violence is a pervasive and growing problem across the media sector. As such, it has become a new frontline in the battle to ensure the safety of journalists. Not only does online violence take an enormous psychological and physical toll on journalists, it limits the information that we as […]
[NOW CLOSED] Call for Applications: East Africa Women Litigation Surgery
23 to 25 August 2022, Nairobi, Kenya Media Defence is calling for applications from women lawyers based in Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda to participate in a forthcoming litigation surgery on the right to freedom of expression and digital rights, with particular focus on online violence against journalists. This litigation surgery will be […]
Gendered Violence: International Women’s Day Webinar
To mark International Women’s Day, we hosted a webinar on the 8th March 2022. Together with the International Women’s Media Foundation (the IWMF), we discussed the gendered violence women journalists face around the world, and the resources and tools available to support them. The Context On 25 May 2000, investigative reporter Jineth Bedoya Lima travelled […]
Claudia Duque: Fighting State Surveillance in Colombia
“I ask myself every day whether I’m able to continue with all of this. But I have never doubted that this is my profession and what I want to do.” Claudia Duque, interviewed by Nicolas Guzman 2019 for DW.com. The courageous and passionate Claudia Duque is an award-winning Colombian journalist who, along with her daughter, […]
Fatu Camara: A Gambian trailblazer
Journalist Impact: Interview with Fatu Camara Fatou Camara (otherwise known as Fatu) is an impressive journalist. Working under a dictator, she established Gambia’s first talk show, which quickly became the most watched show in the country. In 2013, she was detained by the Gambian Security Agency. Following her release, she fled to Senegal and has […]
Gulnara Mehdiyeva: Championing LGBTQIA+ and Women’s Rights in Azerbaijan
Media Defence has filed an application to the European Court on behalf of Gulnara Mehdiyeva. To read the blog summarising the case, click here. The Azeri campaign against journalists The context in which Gulnara Mehdiyeva works is a difficult one. Azerbaijan is one of the most restrictive environments for freedom of expression in the world. […]
Media Defence Files Application to the European Court on behalf of LGBTI/Women’s Rights Activist, Gulnara Mehdiyeva, Subject to Serious Cyberattack
Summary Media Defence has filed an application to the European Court of Human Rights on behalf of journalist and activist Gulnara Mehdiyeva, who reports on LGBTI and women’s rights issues in Azerbaijan. Ms Mehdiyeva was subject to a serious cyberattack, in which a hacker gained access to her email and social media accounts, after she […]
World Press Freedom Day 2021: Media Defence Reflects on Current Trends Threatening Media Freedom
The last 12 months have brought into sharp focus the extent to which media freedom is under threat. At Media Defence we see these challenges on a daily basis. In the last year, we have seen them accelerate due to the pandemic, with unscrupulous regimes introducing oppressive legal measures under the guise of tackling disinformation, […]
International Women’s Day: Celebrating Inspiring Women Journalists and Lawyers
This International Women’s Day, Media Defence wants to celebrate the talented and courageous women who promote freedom of expression around the world, despite the risks they face. According to the Reuters Institute for Journalism, women substantially outnumber men in journalism training, and enter the profession in greater numbers. Despite this, women are under-represented in nearly […]