Our weekly round-up of public service media related stories and headlines from around the world.
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ANGOLA: New Media Law Threatens Free Speech
Human Rights Watch: President Should Return Measure to Parliament for Revision
BENIN: Four broadcast media closed arbitrarily in Benin
Reporters Without Borders
CONGO: UN rights expert criticizes clampdown on media in Congo
The Washington Post: A U.N. expert on freedom of expression on Thursday accused the Congolese government of violating international human rights law with moves like jamming radio broadcasts and arresting journalists.
EGYPT: In Egypt, journalism is a crime
Middle East Eye: Campaigners say ‘journalism is not a crime’ in Egypt, but the real crime is how state propaganda has become a stand-in for actual journalism.
EGYPT: ‘People talk as they please’ Sisi says in comments on Egypt’s press freedom record
Committee to Protect Journalists
ETHIOPIA: Ethiopia partially restores mobile internet after 2 month shutdown
Africa News: The blockage was connected with anti-government protests that broke out largely in the Amhara and Oromia regions.
MOROCCO: Morocco broadcaster apologises after advising women to hide bruises
BBC News: A Moroccan TV channel has apologised after broadcasting a show advising women how to hide signs of domestic violence using make-up.
NORTH SUDAN: Day 3 of Sudan Civil Disobedience – More Newspapers Seized
Via All Africa: The civil disobedience campaign in Khartoum entered its third day with four newspapers less in the kiosks.
RWANDA: Experts call for establishment of a media fund
The New Times: Media issues in Rwanda are no longer to do with “access to information” but rather “how to make money and build capacity of journalists.”
BANGLADESH: Using cartoons to help save lives
BBC Media Action: Harnessing the power of media to help people be better prepared.
INDIA: Instituting a Constitutional Press Council Will Help the Indian Media Do Its Job
The Wire: The media is meant to report the truth, but the structure and vested interests of the Indian press have stopped that from happening.
JAPAN: NHK is experimenting with one-minute documentaries for social media
Journalism.co.uk: To bring its documentaries to younger audiences, Japan’s national broadcaster is breaking away from its traditional formats.
MALAYSIA: Malaysiakini Under Fire
Media Power Monitor: Malaysia’s embattled government has already offed most of the critical journalistic outlets in Malaysia. Now, it has a new target.
PAKISTAN: Govt authoring legislation for safety and security of journalists’
The News: Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Maryam Aurangzeb has said the present government has commenced the process for authoring legislation for safety and security of journalists.
TAIWAN: Taiwan bags 7 wins at 2016 Asian Television Awards
Focus Taiwan: Taiwanese contestants brought home seven trophies at the 2016 Asian Television Awards in Singapore Friday, six of which went to Public Television Service (PTS).
TAJIKISTAN: Tajikistan suspends accreditation of six radio journalists
Committee to Protects Journalists: Tajik authorities should immediately reinstate the accreditation of six radio journalists suspended following a broadcaster’s refusal to remove a story from its website.
AUSTRALIA: ABC asks for help to stamp out bias
The Australian: The ABC is seeking outside input on its news production to help them assess whether they are “elitist” and could do more to promote public service principles, as new managing director Michelle Guthrie continues to reshape the organisation.
AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND: News Corp buys Sky News in Australia and New Zealand from Seven and Nine
The Sydney Morning Herald: News Corporation has fully acquired Australian News Channel, which produces Sky News in Australia and New Zealand.
FIJI: Parliamentary justice committee in heated debate over news media decree
Pacific Media Centre: The committee was hearing submissions on the draft Information Bill from human rights advocate Peter Waqavonovono.
NEW ZEALAND: Editors seek rethink on media merger plan rejection over plurality
Pacific Media Centre: Thirty-three of New Zealand’s most senior editors have urged the Commerce Commission to rethink its plan to reject the proposed NZME-Fairfax merger.
NEW ZEALAND: Institutional investors now dominate media company ownership
Scoop Independent News
NEW ZEALAND: Political reporters in limbo
Radio New Zealand: Expensive new buildings for Parliament were unveiled this week, just after most of the nation’s political journalists walked out of their earthquake-prone offices. Is the fourth estate getting second class treatment?
FINLAND: Finnish PM Sipila caught up in press freedom row
BBC News: Finland’s Prime Minister Juha Sipila has denied allegations that he tried to suppress coverage of allegations against him and his family.
GERMANY: German public broadcasters ARD & ZDF shut out of 2018-24 Olympics
Deutsche Welle: Germany’s public broadcasters ARD and ZDF will not provide live coverage of the Olympic Games for the first time in years. This came after talks with the primary rights holder broke down over the price it was demanding.
IRELAND: Online viewing licence fee loophole may be closed
The Irish Times: Law may be changed to future-proof public media funding beyond ‘traditional’ TV set.
ITALY: Italian TV licensing restructuring a “great success”
Advanced Television: Back on July 1st the Italian government revised its TV licensing system. It lowered the annual fee from €113 to €100 and legislated that the fee had to be collected through the electricity or gas utility bills.
ITALY: Rai, 2017 will be all about cuts: lower license fees and new rules for advertising (Italian)
Sicilia Informazioni
NORWAY: Shame: a Scandi TV sensation for the social media generation
The Guardian: The Norwegian teen drama is updated in real time on Instagram and has already gained a cult UK following.
ROMANIA: Romania’s Quiet, Sophisticated Media Crackdown
Forbes
SWEDEN: Sweden threatens action to stop Facebook ‘hate and lies’
The Local: Sweden could impose legal obligations on Facebook as a last resort if the social network does not crack down on hate speech and fake news, the culture and democracy minister has threatened.
SWITZERLAND: swissinfo.ch spared additional budget cuts
SwissInfo.ch: Parliament has rejected additional cuts in the budget of the international offer of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC), including the multilingual platform swissinfo.ch.
UK: BBC looks to license technology behind myBBC
Broadcast: The BBC is looking to recover some of the £75m it has spent developing its personalisation platform myBBC, by selling it to other broadcasters.
UK: Who on Earth would want to be BBC chair now?
The Guardian: The mighty new corporation board needs a big player to run it. But who will take such a high-stress job on Mrs May’s austerity wages?
UKRAINE: Ukraine is on the brink of media freedom, but oligarchs are set to put a stop to it
The Independent: TV is the main source of information for 84 per cent of Ukrainians. But according to a Council of Europe poll, 90 per cent of Ukrainians don’t know what a public broadcaster is. Among oligarch-dominated media, an independent broadcaster could be a breakthrough for transparency and trust in politics.
WESTERN BALKANS: Unchecked Attacks on Media
Human Rights Watch: Journalists across the Western Balkans face a hostile environment that impedes their ability to do critical reporting.
GENERAL: 2016 News Xchange Concludes With Call For More Constructive Journalism
EBU: Constructive journalism is the answer to regain audience trust in the mainstream media, news professionals were told on the second and final day of News Xchange in Copenhagen.
GENERAL: 25 years of the EU’s MEDIA programme
European Commission: Questions & Answers.
EBU: Public service media (PSM) organizations need copyright licensing systems which allow them to respond to citizens’ expectations in the EU Digital Single Market.
GENERAL: Public service broadcasting: when the status quo won’t do
LSE Media Policy Project: Public service media across Europe are facing new commercial and political challenges, writes Des Freedman.
Knight Center: Journalism in the Americas
BRAZIL: Brazilian judge revokes authorization to access journalist’s telephone records
Knight Center: Journalism in the Americas: A Såo Paulo court recently ruled that investigators could access Matais’ telephone records. The decision was related to a series of reports written by the journalist in Folha de S. Paulo newspaper in 2012.
HONDURAS: Journalism in Honduras Trapped in Violence
Inter Press Service: It was in the wee hours of the morning on October 19 when journalist Ricardo Matute, from Corporación Televicentro’s morning newscast, was out on the beat in San Pedro Sula, one of the most violent cities in Honduras.
JAMAICA: Journalists Take Part in Workshop on Climate Change
Jamaica Information Service: Journalists and communication specialists from across the region participated in a media workshop on climate change at the University of the West Indies Regional Headquarters at Mona, on November 29.
PARAGUAY: Controversial new Paraguay DTH service licensed
Advanced Television
BAHRAIN: Sports journalist jailed for three months in Bahrain over a tweet
The Guardian: He is alleged to have defamed Islam, but did his arrest have more to do with an open letter on Facebook urging an end to restrictions on freedom?
ISRAEL: Gaza media official: Israeli violations against journalists should be exposed
Middle East Monitor: The head of the media office in the Gaza Strip, Salameh Maarouf, has called for Israel’s crimes and aggressions against journalists in the occupied Palestinian territories to be internationalised.
QATAR: Blocking of Doha News website ‘an outright attack’ on media freedom
Amnesty International
SAUDI ARABIA: Saudi Arabia bans journalist from writing, media appearances after Trump remarks
Middle East Eye
TURKEY: Turkish Justice Ministry ‘cannot determine’ number of arrested journalists
Hurriyet Daily News: It is not possible to determine the number of journalists currently under arrest in Turkey, Turkey’s Justice Ministry has stated in response to a lawmaker’s written questionnaire.
CANADA: CBC right to ask for $400M in additional funding, executive Heather Conway says on Metro Morning
CBC News: Critics have blasted plan, saying CBC should be dismantled rather than invested in.
CANADA: CBC/Radio Canada asks for $400M in increased government funding to go ad-free
CBC News: Public broadcaster wants to move to a funding model similar to U.K.’s BBC.
USA: Journalism and diversity under the Trump presidency
Current: When Reveal interviews a neo-Nazi like “alt-right” founding father Richard Spencer, is public media giving a platform to hate? Or is it shining a disinfecting light on a movement that has multiplied in the shadows?
USA: Knight Foundation provides $455,000 for nonprofit news
Current
USA: NPR Has Not Changed Its Policy on Live Interviews
NPR: There have been some questions and misunderstandings about when NPR News conducts interviews live and when we tape them.
Fake news: an insidious trend that’s fast becoming a global problem
The Guardian: With fake online news dominating discussions after the US election, Guardian correspondents explain how it is distorting politics around the world.
Journalists Hang Tough in Face of Backlash Against Panama Papers Reporting
ICIJ: Reporters have faced consequences both in nations where media crackdowns are common and also in nations with reputations for high levels of press freedom.
UNESCO: This publication examines the crucial challenges of balancing the fundamental rights of privacy and freedom of expression, and the related value of transparency, in an online context.
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All PSM Weekly stories are provided for interest and their relevance to public service media issues, they do not necessarily reflect the views of the Public Media Alliance.
All headlines are sourced from their original story.
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Header image: On The Air. Credits: Alan Levine/Creative Commons
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