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Russia Steps up Crackdown on Digital Freedoms

  • International Bar Association
  • Ruth Green

A new Russian law – which came into effect in September – punishes online searches for what the government labels ‘extremist content’. But while the Kremlin has published a list of more than 5,000 banned websites, there’s still little clarity surrounding the law’s implementation and what makes the designated content ‘extremist’.

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For Russians Like Me, Silencing Jimmy Kimmel Looks Familiar

  • The Moscow Times
  • Andrei Soldatov

The removal from the air of a second American comedian since President Donald Trump was elected in the United States should send chills down the spine of every journalist who worked in Moscow in the early 2000s. That was how President Vladimir Putin began consolidating his power — by attacking mainstream media, starting with television and, notably, TV comedians.

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After Roadside Violence in Islamabad, Siddiqui Fled to France

  • Vanity Fair
  • Liam Scott

Several years ago, the Pakistani journalist Taha Siddiqui believed his greatest risk was being killed by his country’s military. Things have changed. “Now the threat is just a drunk person,” he says lightly, “which is easier to manage.” It’s a Friday evening in July in Paris, and Siddiqui’s bar, The Dissident Club, is about to open.

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Enhancing Protection of Journalists Under Political Pressure

  • OSCE
  • Arzu Kurtuluş

In an increasingly hostile global environment for independent journalism, journalists under severe political pressure (JUSPP) represent the most vulnerable segment of the media landscape in the OSCE region. In the context of this report, JUSPP are defined as journalists and other media professionals who face systematic threats and persecution from state or non-state actors due to their reporting and dissemination of information.

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Sudan’s Journalists Are Being Silenced: By Bullets, Exile, and Fear

  • Al Jazeera Media Institute
  • Nalova Akua

Journalist Hassan Ahmed Berkia hasn’t returned to Sudan since the start of the civil war pitting the leader of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. Hassan was on a visit in the United Arab Emirates when the war broke out on April 15, 2023.

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MFRR Monitoring Report: 709 Attacks on Media Freedom

  • European Federation of Journalists

This Monitoring Report takes stock of the press freedom situation in 36 EU Member States and candidate countries during the first six months of 2025. Between January and June, the Mapping Media Freedom database documented 709 press freedom violations, affecting 1249 media workers or entities.

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Can Russian Media in Exile Survive Moscow’s Information War?

  • Presseclub Concordia
  • Mirjana Tomić

Conversation with Galina Timchenko and Ivan Kolpakov, co-founders of Meduza, CEO and editor-in-chief respectively. Meduza is one of the most important independent media outlets outside of Russia, about Russia, and for Russia, published in Russian and in English.

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Media Maker Sees a “War of Attrition” on Exile Media

  • Der Standard

Galina Timchenko and Ivan Kolpakov from the exile outlet Meduza describe their struggle to keep the independent media platform alive amid heavy internet blocks in Russia and growing financial pressure. Timchenko calls it a “war of attrition” waged by the Kremlin against free media.

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‘Journalism in Exile Has Been Somewhat Romanticized’

  • Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN)
  • Rowan Philip

Having previously exposed abuses such as illegal mining and drug trafficking as a reporter for El Universal, Joseph Poliszuk has since led a trailblazing and courageous team as co-founder of Venezuela’s pioneering investigative journalism outlet Armando.info.

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Europe Puts Energy Deals Over Human Rights – Once Again

  • The European Correspondent
  • Orkhan Mammad

Meydan TV is one of the few independent media organisations broadcasting in Azerbaijan. With the newsroom in exile in Berlin, the team focuses on bringing the country’s corruption and sensitive human rights issues to light. Meydan’s editor-in-chief takes you through the newsroom’s darkest days, and how the EU failed to protect its interests.

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Turning Training into Revenue for Exiled Media

  • International Journalists’ Network (IJNet)
  • José J. Nieves

In an era when traditional journalism revenues are dwindling, many exiled media outlets are rediscovering the pedagogical power of their craft — and transforming it into educational products with financial potential.

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Exiled Journalists: Free Speech, Resettlement & Advocacy

  • The Good Men Project
  • Scott Douglas Jacobsen

Said Najib Asil, founder of the Free Speech Centre and former head of Current Affairs at TOLOnews, shares his journey from leading Afghan media to supporting exiled journalists worldwide. In this interview, he discusses advocacy, training, and the urgent needs of displaced media workers facing professional, economic, and mental health challenges.

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New “Bonjourno” Podcast Episode: Exiled Journalism

  • Medium Magazin
  • Olivia Samnick

In 2015, over a million people from Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq sought safety in Germany, including journalists. This movement reshaped politics, society, and journalism, raising new challenges. The latest “Bonjourno” podcast episode explores the experiences and challenges of exile journalism in this context.

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How Independent Journalism Overcomes Censorship in Exile

  • Confidencial

With all civil liberties stripped away in Nicaragua, independent journalism in exile has become the last stronghold of freedom to investigate and report the truth. Earlier this month, for International Journalists’ Day (September 8), we shared a special feature on Nicaraguan journalism that has resisted and overcome censorship in Nicaragua for more than seven years.

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Kyrgyzstan’s Preemptive Assault on Investigative Journalism

  • OCCRP
  • Eldiyar Arykbaev

In Kyrgyzstan, authorities are no longer just reacting to stories — they are trying to stop them before they are told, dismantling entire newsrooms and effectively criminalizing journalism. This week, four former employees of Kyrgyzstan’s leading investigative newsroom, Kloop, went on trial in Bishkek, accused of conspiring to “incite mass unrest.”

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Products as a Sustainability Path for Exile Media

  • International Journalists’ Network (IJNet)
  • José J. Nieves

In contexts of exile and censorship, several independent media outlets have turned to creating original products — leveraging their brand identity, analytical expertise, or connection to specific audiences.

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The Internet Coup

  • Inter Seclab

The report examines how China is exporting its model of internet control via Geedge Networks, a company tied to the Mesalab lab. Geedge supplies surveillance and censorship tools to countries like Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Ethiopia, and Myanmar, enabling real-time monitoring and traffic control. Leaked documents reveal how these systems mirror China’s Great Firewall and are used both domestically (e.g., Xinjiang) and abroad.

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