AFGHANISTAN: AFJC reports escalating violations of media freedoms during fourth year of Taliban rule

Ifex: The Afghanistan Journalists Center recorded at least 190 press freedom violations over the past year highlighting a pattern of intensified media repression.

---

AFGHANISTAN: #IFJBlog: Silenced but Unbroken: The Struggle of Women Journalists in Taliban-Controlled Afghanistan

IFJ: Four years after the fall of Kabul, Afghanistan’s women journalists face draconian restrictions, threats, and intimidation, with many forced into exile, yet against censorship and erasure they continue to fight for their voices to be heard, writes an anonymous Afghan journalist.

---

AZERBAIJAN: Azerbaijan, Romania seek closer cooperation in media

Azertec: Azerbaijan’s Media Development Agency hosted a meeting with the participation of Azerbaijani Ambassador to Romania Gudsi Osmanov and a visiting delegation led by Cristian Augustin Niculescu-Țâgârlaș, Chair of the Romanian Senate’s Committee on Culture and Media, and member of the Romania-Azerbaijan interparliamentary friendship group.

---

BANGLADESH: Veteran journalist found dead after government intimidation

IFJ: The body of veteran journalist Bibhuranjan Sarkar has been recovered in the Meghna River in Munshiganj District, central Bangladesh, after the journalist was subject to recurring intimidation by local authorities.

---

BHUTAN: AI Meets Governance: Bhutan Civil Servants Trained in AI and Media & Information Literacy

UNESCO: Bhutan has taken a major step in its digital transformation journey as UNESCO and the Bhutan Media Foundation (BMF) teamed up to train civil servants in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Media and Information Literacy (MIL).

---

BHUTAN: Report calls for major reforms to strengthen Bhutan’s media landscape

Kuensel: The Journalists’ Association of Bhutan’s Media Perception Index paints a broadly positive picture of the media landscape in the country while highlighting urgent areas for reform.

---

CAMBODIA & THAILAND: A fierce war of words keeps Thailand and Cambodia on edge

BBC News: The guns along the forested Thai-Cambodian border have been silent for three weeks now.

---

CHINA: 120 journalists attend China’s media exchange programme

Peoples Gazette: Participants were drawn from regions in the Global South, including Africa, Oceania, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Asia.

---

CHINA: China’s streaming companies gain on Netflix in Southeast Asia

Nikkei Asia: Platforms iQiyi, Tencent grow market shares with low fees and localized content.

---

HONG KONG: Hong Kong Denies Visa Renewal for Senior Bloomberg Journalist

The New York Times: The unexplained decision raises new concerns about the erosion of press freedom in a city transformed by Beijing’s national security law.

---

INDIA: Journalists targeted, reporting restricted in ethnic conflict in Indian state of Manipur

RSF: Journalism is now a dangerous activity in Manipur, a small state in India’s northeast that has been torn by ethnic conflict for the past two years.

---

INDONESIA: Screens, streams, and scrolls:​ State of the Indonesia’s media consumption in 2025​

YouGov: Indonesia’s appetite for content is more diverse and fast-moving than ever. From binge-worthy on-demand TV to the rising influence of podcasts, residents are consuming media in ways that are constantly evolving.

---

JAPAN: Top Japan News Outlets Sue AI Startup Perplexity for Copyright Violations (Paywall)

Bloomberg

---

KAZAKHSTAN: Press freedom group urges Kazakhstan to end ban on Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Jurist: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) called on the Kazakh government Monday to reinstate accreditation for 16 journalists from the US-funded broadcaster Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). This comes ahead of the outlet’s pending appeal hearing.

---

MALDIVES: CPJ urges Maldives president to reject ‘regressive’ media bill

CPJ: Maldives president Mohamed Muizzu should reject a bill that was recently introduced in the country’s parliament that would dismantle press freedom and place the media under government control, the second such bill in a year after earlier attempts failed, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday.

---

MALDIVES: The battle for control over Maldives media

Maldives Independent: Proposed law could replace self-regulation and state control.

---

NEPAL: Command and Control

Nepali Times: Nepal’s government is moving to muzzle the media ahead of the 2027 elections.

---

NEPAL: PSB Nepal Chairperson Dr Bista elected AIBD Vice President  

Radio Nepal Online: Executive Chairperson of Public Service Broadcasting Nepal, Dr. Mahendra Bahadur Bista has been elected Vice President of the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) at its 23rd General Assembly in Phuket, Thailand.

---

SOUTH KOREA: Young and now: KBS Symphony brings Gen-Z energy to classical stage

Korea Herald: Once seen as formal and old-fashioned, classical music in Korea is drawing younger fans through YouTube, social media and fresh programming. The buzzword “classic-hip” captures the shift — classical is now “today’s music.”

---

SRI LANKA: Meta trains Sri Lanka Govt media officials

Newswire: US multinational technology company, Meta Platforms, Inc., has launched a Digital Government Day program to upskill media secretaries and representatives of state media institutions. 

---

THAILAND: The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) assessed Thai PBS’s “morality and transparency” and received a “passing” score of 94.37 (Press release – Thai)

Thai PBS: The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) has released the results of its 2025 assessment of “morality and transparency” for government agencies. Thai PBS received a “passing” score of 94.37, exceeding the national average and the average of other government agencies.

---

TIMOR-LESTE: Timor-Leste drops contentious clause in amendment to media law

UCA: President José Ramos-Horta warns against making laws that kill press freedom.

---

VIETNAM: Journalist issued arrest warrant for anti-state propaganda

IFJ: Hanoi police have issued a special arrest warrant for independent journalist Doan Bao Chau, who is currently in hiding, accusing him of allegedly disseminating anti-state propaganda.

AUSTRALIA: ABC announces Bonner Committee Scholarship recipients for 2025 (Press release)

ABC: The ABC congratulates the recipients of the 2025 Bonner Committee scholarships, Bridget Caldwell-Bright and Peter Green.

---

AUSTRALIA: ABC appoints Head of Indigenous Audio (Press release)

ABC: The ABC is pleased to announce the appointment of Solua Middleton as Head of Indigenous Audio.

---

AUSTRALIA: ABC defence correspondent Andrew Greene quits after failure to disclose junket

The Guardian: Resignation comes after Media Watch revealed a German defence company bidding for an Australian contract paid for him to visit its shipyards.

---

AUSTRALIA: Australian sports media is compounding the AFL’s homophobia problem

The Conversation: The AFL is facing a monumental stress test in its efforts to tackle homophobia, with one of the league’s biggest stars facing a season-ending suspension on the eve of the finals series.

---

AUSTRALIA: Got a podcast idea? SBS Audio opens annual pitch season (Press release)

SBS: Three-time Australian Podcast Publisher of the Year, SBS, invites the public to submit stories – in any language – to boost its collection of award-winning podcasts which champion Australia’s diverse and original storytelling.

---

AUSTRALIA: Government stands by funding rules barring youth justice organisations from speaking to media

ABC: The Queensland government has stood by its guidelines restricting government funded youth justice organisations from speaking to the media, saying such agreements are standard practice. Opposition youth justice spokeswoman Di Farmer says the restrictions amount to a “media gag”.

---

AUSTRALIA: Queensland urged to use TikTok and ‘trusted influencers’ to combat misinformation during natural disasters

The Guardian: A reliance on politicians and lack of government content on TikTok during recent cyclones allowed misinformation to flourish, academic says

---

AUSTRALIA: Respected journalist Dan Bourchier has been announced as NITV’s new general manager

NITV: The 25-year veteran of news and broadcasting has returned to the fold, 15 years after starting at the Indigenous broadcaster as a reporter.

---

AUSTRALIA: Statement on Acting Managing Director arrangements at SBS (Press release)

SBS: The SBS Board of Directors has today confirmed it will appoint Jane Palfreyman, SBS Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer, as SBS Acting Managing Director, while it conducts a global search for a new Managing Director.

---

NEW ZEALAND: ‘Hurtful’, ‘distressing’: Some RNZ staff fuming over scathing internal review (Paywall)

New Zealand Herald: Some RNZ staff are fuming over a scathing independent review and blunt assessment of their radio work, with their union describing it “hurtful” and “distressing” – and saying it is unhappy about the “pretty poor” way it has been handled.

---

NEW ZEALAND: Live radio ratings increase a springboard for RNZ’s plans for audio (Press release)

RNZ: RNZ’s latest radio ratings show a small but promising increase in RNZ National’s audience.

---

NEW ZEALAND: Next steps for RNZ in ever-changing media landscape (Blog) 

RNZ: The biggest challenge for all media organisations is adapting to ever-changing audience habits and needs.

---

NEW ZEALAND: Monopod: on the Sky-NZ Rugby deal, RNZ’s radio challenges and the Substack exodus (Listen) 

The Spinoff: Duncan Greive goes solo to dig into the Sky-NZ Rugby deal, the recent report into RNZ National and the exodus of writers from Substack.

---

NEW ZEALAND: NZ film, TV industry weighs pros and cons of Artificial Intelligence

RNZ: Despite fears it may threaten the industry’s very existence, Artificial Intelligence has quickly become a commonly used tool in film and television production.

---

NEW ZEALAND: TVNZ launching pay-TV with exclusive FIFA World Cup rights

Stuff: TVNZ will be launching a pay-TV service starting with the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

---

VANUATU: BBC Media Action donates premium gear to strengthen Vanuatu Media reporting

Daily Post: Vanuatu’s media industry has received a boost with the donation of premium photo and video equipment aimed at strengthening the work of local journalists in news reporting.

ALBANIA: After the closure of the media, the Rama Government is criticized for arbitrariness and violation of freedom of information 

KOHA: The actions of the authorities in Albania have caused many media outlets to remain outside the premises where they previously operated.

---

ALBANIA: Media freedom groups write to authorities over Focus Media Group obstruction

IPI: Alarm raised over non compliance with a recent decision by court in Tirana

---

AUSTRIA: After anti-Semitic posting: ORF terminates employment relationship with editor (German) 

Der Standard: ORF Director General described the choice of words as “completely unacceptable” and apologized on behalf of the company.

---

AUSTRIA: Pro-Palestine activists invaded ORF center (German) 

Die Presse: There was a disruption in front of the newsroom. At no time were people or live broadcasts at risk. ORF is tightening its security measures.

---

CYPRUS & TURKEY: EU concerned over ‘attempts to undermine freedom of expression’ in northern Cyprus

Cyprus Mail: European Commission executive vice president for cohesion Raffaele Fito on Wednesday said the European Union “views with concern attempts to undermine freedom of expression and media pluralism in the Turkish Cypriot community”.

---

DENMARK: Comics ARE reading: New campaign challenges prejudices about ‘real’ literature (Press release – Danish) 

DR: DR and partners in ‘Alle ord tæller’ are focusing on comics as an important part of children’s reading lives with the new campaign.

---

FRANCE: Public broadcasting: Radio France and France Télévisions under pressure on the eve of the start of the school year (French) 

Entrevue: The start of the school year promises to be turbulent in public broadcasting. At Radio France, an indefinite strike notice filed by a joint union (CFDT, CGT, FO, SNJ, SUD, UNSA) threatens to disrupt broadcasts starting Monday, August 25.

---

FRANCE: Unlimited strike at Radio France: unions target various reforms (French) 

RFI: Listeners to the various radio stations of the Radio France group were treated to the famous special “strike” music playlists on August 25, notably on France Inter, France Culture and on the local stations now called Ici. A notice of indefinite strike was filed by the CFDT, CGT, FO, SNJ, SUD and UNSA unions to protest the reforms sought by the group’s boss, Sibyle Veil.

---

FRANCE & RUSSIA: France ‘dismayed’ over Russia’s ban on Reporters Without Borders

RFI: The French government has condemned Moscow’s latest move against independent voices after Russia banned Reporters Without Borders, adding the press freedom NGO to its list of “undesirable organisations”.

---

GEORGIA: The Council of Europe’s “Platform for the Safety of Journalists” has raised the alarm on 6 Georgian organizations (Georgian) 

Publika: The Council of Europe’s Platform for the Safety of Journalists has raised an alarm on 6 Georgian organizations. The platform’s alarm was based on a statement made by 6 Georgian public organizations on August 11 that they had received a notification from the Anti-Corruption Bureau about an inspection.

---

GEORGIA: “The public broadcaster has fallen under government control”: Georgian journalist Joseph Katsitadze testifies to GPB’s loss of independence 

RSF: In a video for Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Georgian journalist Joseph Katsitadze testifies to the subordination of the Georgian Public Broadcaster (GPB), his former employer, to the authorities.

---

GERMANY: ARD establishes games network (Press release – German) 

ARD: ARD is focusing on increased collaboration among its broadcasters in the development of computer games. To this end, it has established a games network, as the broadcaster announced at the start of the Gamescom computer games trade fair in Cologne.

---

GERMANY: Broadcasting reform occupies state parliament committee (German) 

SR.info: Public broadcasting is to be reformed. This requires the approval of the state parliaments. The Media Committee of the Saarland State Parliament has heard from representatives of various media outlets.

---

NORWAY: NRK’s ​​teletext is no longer available (Norwegian) 

Aftenposten: As announced, NRK shut down its teletext service effective Wednesday. The media house has explained this as technical errors and extensive maintenance.

---

SERBIA: Attacks on journalists reach unprecedented levels amidst ongoing anti-government protests

IPI: Journalists covering recent clashes face violence from police and government supporters while reporting

---

SPAIN: The Balearic public television is testing a new director, linked to the People’s Party (PP). (Spanish) 

InfoLibre: IB3 journalists denounced the “notorious political significance” of the head of the regional media.

---

SWEDEN: SR’s CEO on journalists in Gaza: “Our eyes and ears on the ground are being silenced” (Listen – Swedish) 

SR: Gaza is described as the most dangerous place in the world for journalists. Just yesterday, five journalists were killed in an Israeli attack on a hospital, and several others were injured.

---

UK: BBC and North East Screen launch first-of-its-kind Digital Accelerator for Indie Producers in the North East (Press release) 

BBC: Announced at the Edinburgh TV Festival 2025, this is the BBC’s first-ever digital-focused accelerator – representing the largest investment of its kind in the North East’s digital screen sector.

---

UK: Half a Million Stories: Why the Local Democracy Reporting Service Matters More Than Ever (Press release) 

BBC: This month (August 2025) the BBC’s Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) has quietly passed a remarkable milestone reaching 500,000 stories published by LDRS reporters for use by more than 1,100 commercial news sector titles.

---

UK: Protect BBC’s independence in case of Farage government, ex-news head urges

The Guardian: The BBC must be given complete political independence in case Nigel Farage enters government, its former director of news has said.

---

REGIONAL: #IFJBlog: The state of media and journalism in the EU: Time for a makeover? (Blog) 

IFJ: The Media Pluralism Monitor (MPM) is a holistic tool that measures media pluralism and media freedom in EU member states and in candidate countries. The latest report for 2025 was published in June, summarizing the environment in which the EU media sphere finds itself in.

IRAN: UN experts criticize Iran’s continued repression of journalists

Jurist: UN experts expressed concern on Thursday over continued and escalating threats against journalists with London-based Iran International.

---

ISRAEL & PALESTINE: UK among 27 countries to demand press given immediate access to Gaza

The Guardian: Germany, Australia and Ukraine also sign statement calling on Israel to end block on international media access.

---

PALESTINE: At least 15 killed, including four journalists, in Israeli strikes on Gaza’s Nasser hospital

France24: At least 15 people were killed, including four journalists, in Israeli air strikes Monday on Gaza’s Nasser Hospital, Palestinian health officials said.

---

PALESTINE: How German media outlets helped pave the way for Israel’s murder of journalists in Gaza (Opinion) (13 August) 

The Guardian: In the run-up to this week’s deadly attacks, stories linking Palestinian reporters to Hamas gained currency. What followed seemed inevitable.

---

TURKEY: Merzifon reacts to the attack on Evrensel: Evrensel will not be silenced, it cannot be silenced (Turkish) 

Evrensel: The armed attack on the Izmir office of our newspaper, Evrensel, was also protested in Merzifon. The statement emphasized the importance of solidarity with the newspaper.

CANADA: Radio-Canada news growing in all its formats (Press release – French) 

Radio Canada: Radio-Canada’s news is having a landmark year in 2025. Listenership growth is reaching record highs on ICI RDI, on the radio, and across all of its digital platforms. Francophones across the country are reiterating their trust in the public broadcaster and confirming the need to get their news from both local and national sources.

---

US: Foundations Commit $36.5 Million in Emergency Funding to Protect Public Media in Vulnerable Communities 

Knight Foundation: The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Pivotal, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Ford Foundation, the Schmidt Family Foundation and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation today announced that they will commit nearly $37 million to provide immediate relief to public media stations at risk of closure following federal funding cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB).

---

US: How WGCU is navigating recent federal and state funding cuts

WGCU: While there have been calls to end federal funding for Public Broadcasting in this country over the decades since the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967 created the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, setting the stage for the creation of NPR and PBS, those efforts never came to fruition, until now.

---

US: Katrina and the Press, Twenty Years On

CJR: Race, climate, and the media legacy of an “unnatural” disaster.

---

US: Mississippi’s onerous new social platform law (and the threat of big fines) has led Bluesky to block its users in the state

Nieman Labs: It’s only the latest instance of the state’s centuries-long effort to make life difficult for “outside influences.”

---

US: Public Broadcast Cuts Hit Rural Areas, Revealing a Political Shift

The New York Times: Threatened by the president with political retribution, Republicans agreed to defund public broadcasting, imperiling a lifeline of communication in rural Alaska.

---

US: South Dakota Public Broadcasting to reduce workforce by 25%

Current: South Dakota Public Broadcasting is laying off 25% of its workforce in a downsizing that will affect its public affairs programming and education services.

---

US: The scramble to keep public media afloat

POLITICO: With local public media stations on the brink of collapse following President Donald Trump’s successful push to strip federal funding, one group announced plans Tuesday to raise tens of millions of dollars in a bid to keep local newsrooms alive.

---

US: What Will the Next Era of Public Media Look Like? 

CJR: After the demise of CPB, the industry has an opportunity to build more creative models for public support.

---

US: Why public media must rethink assumptions shaped by CPB funding

Current: Public media existed before federal funding, and it will continue to exist in this third, evolving era. But it will be different. Losing federal funding is a huge immediate challenge but may not be the biggest one.

A Blueprint for a Sustainable Media Ecosystem: Lessons from the Journalism Value Project

Journalism Funders Forum: Independent journalism in Europe faces mounting financial and political threats, but a new wave of mission-driven outlets is fighting back. The Journalism Value Project explored how independent media can survive and thrive, offering practical solutions and a vision for a healthy ecosystem.

---

I Tested How Well AI Tools Work for Journalism

CJR: Some tools were sufficient for summarizing meetings. For research, the results were a disaster.

---

Mediawatch: AI and a last ditch bid for media to claw back online revenue

RNZ: At the dawn of the internet, mainstream commercial media faced two choices: protect the copyright on its content and put up paywalls – or get with the programme and put its journalism on the World Wide Web for free.Egged on by tech commentators projecting big audience growth and new rivers of digital ad money, most picked path two. We all know what happened next.

---

News Publishers Shift AI Licensing Focus to Usage-Based Deals (Paywall)

Theinformation: Publishers that have struck deals to license their content to Al firms for training large language models are now discussing internally-and in at least one case, with Al firms-whether they can get paid based on how often Al businesses use their content in answers to consumer questions. That would be a drastic change from the flat-fee terms firms like OpenAI have agreed to in licensing deals with publishers so far, potentially jacking up what Al firms would have to pay.

---

News Subscriptions Should Be Subsidized

CJR: Eighty-three percent of the country doesn’t have a single media subscription. Readership assistance programs can help them.

---

Substack’s new in-app payments frustrate publishers: “One option is terrible for us, the other is terrible for our readers”

journalism.co.uk: The newsletter platform’s latest update means that Apple users will have to purchase subscriptions via the Apple Store at inflated prices, and publishers will see delayed payouts. But it also undermines one of the platform’s core selling points: migration of mailing lists.

---

Thirteen Journalists on How They Are Rethinking Ethics 

CJR: We asked newsroom leaders and ethicists what they’re keeping or changing in an era of Trump, “fake news,” AI, and industry decline.

---

What’s behind the TikTok accounts using AI-generated versions of real Latino journalists?

NBC News: The accounts point to the challenge of stopping or controlling the surge in fake images and misinformation targeting Spanish speakers in the U.S. as AI technology advances.