INDEX EVENTS
18 July New World (Dis)Order: What do Turkey, Russia and Brazil tell us about freedom and rights?
Index, in partnership with the European Council on Foreign Relations, is holding a timely debate on the shifting world order and its impact on rights and freedoms. The event will also launch the latest issue of Index on Censorship magazine, including a special report on the multipolar world.
(More information)

CHINA
Censoring the News Before It Happens
Every day in China, hundreds of messages are sent from government offices to website editors around the country that say things like, “Report on the new provincial budget tomorrow, but do not feature it on the front page, make no comparisons to earlier budgets, list no links, and say nothing that might raise questions”; “Downplay stories on Kim Jung-un’s facelift”; and “Allow stories on Deputy Mayor Zhang’s embezzlement but omit the comment boxes.” Why, one might ask, do censors not play it safe and immediately block anything that comes anywhere near offending Beijing? Why the modulation and the fine-tuning?
(New York Review of Books)

EGYPT
Egypt, the military and the media: Worse yet to come?
After the fall of Egypt’s Islamist president this month, security officials shut down media linked to the Muslim Brotherhood. With a history of biased media and an increasingly divided nation, the future Egypt looks grim. Shahira Amin reports
(Index on Censorship)

GLOBAL
Fine words on open government don’t match actions
From America to Azerbaijan, leaders have pledged themselves to a new era of openness and transparency. So why are whistleblowers and journalists still punished, asks Mike Harris
(Index on Censorship)

GHANA
Freedom of Speech and the Supreme Court of Ghana
Not long ago a great Katakyie by the name of Ken Kuranchie was incarcerated for standing for what he believes in i.e. Freedom of Speech! He was summarily convicted by the Supreme Court for daring to question some of the judgments of the Justices and going on to criticize the basis upon which some of the decisions in the august court were made.
(Ghana Web)

INDIA
Is India about to gets its own PRISM?
Two surveillance entities are being set up to monitor Indian citizens’ communications, Mahima Kaul writes
(Index on Censorship)

TUNISIA
Gobvernment should create jobs, not regulate religious behavior
The number of believers in Tunisia seems to increase dramatically during the month of Ramadan and decrease suddenly afterwards. It is as if praying is limited to this particular part of the year, when even those who are normally heavy smokers or drinkers become outraged when they see their fellow sinners engaging in such activities. Official policies seek to reinforce this yearly change in behavior, but the government must realize that instilling religious morals must not take priority over ensuring the welfare of its people.
(Tunisia Live

UNITED KINGDOM
Freedom of speech is not freedom to spin
Free speech does not imply the freedom to mislead. We want our media to be free, but also honest and reliable.
(The Conversation)

UNITED STATES
Arch Insurance Group launches libel insurance for bloggers
Arch Insurance Group is launching a new insurance program that will protect bloggers against libel and copyright infringement lawsuits.
(New York Business Journal)

University of Alabama at center of free speech debate
A pro-abortion rights student organization at the University of Alabama and a civil liberties group have asked the university to re-evaluate its grounds-use policy, arguing that it is contradictory and unconstitutional.
(Tuscaloosa News)

SEC Finally Permits Free Speech for Hedge Funds, VCs, and Entrepreneurs
Today is finally the day that the Securities and Exchange Commission — one year and three months after it was instructed to do so by the bipartisan Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act signed by President Obama — lifted the ban on advertising and communication to and from hedge funds and the private equity and venture capital community. Lifting these archaic rules is a victory for entrepreneurs, all types of investors, and, most importantly, the First Amendment.
(Open Market)

FROM INDEX ON CENSORSHIP MAGAZINE
Global view: Who has freedom of expression?
Freedom of expression is a universal, fundamental human right. But who actually has access to free expression? Index CEO Kirsty Hughes looks at the evidence.
(Index on Censorship)

Global view: Who has freedom of expression?
Freedom of expression is a universal, fundamental human right. But who actually has access to free expression? Index CEO Kirsty Hughes looks at the evidence.
(Index on Censorship)

The multipolar challenge to free expression
As emerging markets command influence on the international stage, Saul Estrin and Kirsty Hughes look at the impact on economics, politics and human rights.
(Index on Censorship)

News in monochrome: Journalism in India
The media’s infatuation with a single narrative is drowning out the country’s diversity, giving way to sensationalist reporting and “paid for” news. But, says Bharat Bhushan, moves towards regulation could have a chilling effect too
(Index on Censorship)

Censorship: The problem child of Burma’s dictatorship
Writer and artist Htoo Lyin Myo gives his personal account of working under government censorship in Burma
(Index on Censorship)

Previous Free Expression in the News posts
July 10 | July 9 | July 8 | July 5 | July 4 | July 3 | July 2 | July 1 | June 28 | June 27