UK government finally responds to
murder of Lyra McKee

It has taken the British government more than a year to write 133 words in response to the murder of journalist Lyra McKee, who died covering riots in the Creggan area of Derry in April 2019.

The government has now officially responded to four alerts that Index and others reported to the Council of Europe's platform to promote the protection of journalism and the safety of journalists. The other alerts the government has responded to are a plot to attack a journalist on The Irish News, threats made to NI journalist Leona O'Neill and impunity for the 2001 murder of journalist Martin O'Hagan.      

A colourful map for dark times 

We knew that some repressive regimes would take advantage of the Covid-19 crisis to increase their attacks on journalists but we were shocked by just how widespread this has been. It has even spread to countries where the media is relatively free.

Explore the latest incidents reported on our media freedom map.

Coming soon: Exclusive report on legal attacks on journalists

On 1 June, we will publish a detailed new report on the laws being used across Europe to stop investigative journalism being published or broadcast.

This exclusive research will look in detail at which laws are being used to silence the media across the EU, Norway and the UK. It is the first in a series of reports to be published over the next year on this subject to help journalists fight this insidious threat to their work, and alert the public to what is going on.