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CPJ Insider: July 2023 edition
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CPJ held a press conference outside the prison where Georgian journalist Nika Gvaramia was held. CPJ staff (Deputy Emergencies Director Kerry Paterson, second from left, Emergencies Director Lucy Westcott, third from left) were joined by one of his lawyers, Tamta Muradashvili (left), and his wife, Sofia Liluashvili (right). (CPJ)
CPJ travels to Poland and Georgia to meet with exiled journalists and demand release of Nika Gvaramia ahead of pardon
CPJ's Emergencies team was on the ground in Warsaw, Poland, and Tbilisi, Georgia, in June meeting with exiled journalists and calling for the immediate release of journalist Nika Gvaramia, the only Georgian journalist on CPJ’s prison census. CPJ recently announced Gvaramia as an awardee for this year's International Press Freedom Awards, and he was granted a presidential pardon days after CPJ’s visit. Learn more »
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 CPJ to honor brave international journalists
CPJ has announced the names of the four extraordinary journalists who will receive the organization’s 2023 International Press Freedom Awards. Learn more »
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 CPJ welcomes new staff to support our strategic plan
CPJ is excited to be joined by two new colleagues–Cassandra Barragan as our new grants officer and Casey Bauer as our new major gifts officer. In their roles, they will provide critical support to the Development team, engaging with partners and supporters as we aim to meet our objectives for our 2023 - 2025 strategic plan. Learn more »
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 Released journalist Aleksandr Lapshin visits CPJ HQ
CPJ was visited by Israeli journalist Aleksandr Lapshin in June. Originally from Russia, the popular blogger was detained in Belarus in December 2016 at the request of the Azerbaijani authorities and extradited to Azerbaijan. Learn more »
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Must-read
CPJ’s Robert Mahoney looks at the lasting legacy of China’s “COVID crackdown” on the press, including a look at the many journalists, bloggers, and writers who faced detentions and imprisonment following their reporting from Wuhan at the beginning of the pandemic. Many of those early reports were vital to gaining information about what was truly happening, despite China’s efforts to censor its failures. “This approach of denial, obfuscation, and lies proved to be a disaster for the planet,” Mahoney writes.
CPJ's Lucy Westcott notes a sharp increase–more than 227%—in exiled journalists we have assisted over the last three years, an increase that reflects a sharp rise in the number of journalists fleeing their home countries in places like Afghanistan, Iran, and Nicaragua. "Supporting journalists in exile—whether through direct financial assistance, advocating for safe refuge, or shining a light on their stories to help the public to understand why they needed to flee—remains a crucial focus of CPJ’s work," Westcott writes.
CPJ launched its new report, “Ecuador on edge: Political paralysis and spiking crime pose new threats to press freedom.” Documenting a worrying increase in attacks on journalists, including death threats, assaults, and the use of explosive devices, CPJ noted a chilling effect among journalists in the country. Following meetings earlier this year with the government of President Guillermo Lasso, CPJ is recommending his administration work to improve press freedom and “guarantee the safe return of journalists who were forced to flee because of death threats.”
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CPJ in the news
“Georgian president pardons country's only jailed journalist,” Voice of America
“One year after their deaths, their work must go on,” The Guardian
“Free press advocates slam 'blatantly unconstitutional' conviction of North Carolina reporters,” Common Dreams
“Their reports about a woman’s death set off a revolt. Iran put them on trial,” The New York Times
“An Iowa meteorologist's climate change coverage led to a death threat. He's now resigning,” USA Today
“Guatemala sentences renowned journalist José Rubén Zamora to six years in money laundering case,” The Associated Press
“Media watchdogs demand Kosovo authorities investigate recent violence against ethnic Albanian journalists,” Arab News
“In defense of journalists,” The Hill
“Commentary: Is Mexico’s president a threat to democracy?” The Los Angeles Times
“Journalists caught in the crossfire of Sudan's conflict,” The New Arab
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