Radio Free Asia’s Post

Charming as always. And so diplomatic https://lnkd.in/gQ-rH4tr

Silence is not an option..

In my latest for The Guardian on #WorldPressFreedomDay2024 we focus on journalists facing repression even in exile. From Iran to Haiti, hostile states continue to attack press freedom. #IranInternational

Will the sloppiness, political expediency, or hypocrisy of some candidates cost #Republicans hotly contested Congressional seats in key swing districts in November during #elections2024? I am quoted in Alexandria Jacobson's Raw Story article about the #GOP candidate Rob Bresnahan Jr. in PA who is following Vivek Ramaswamy's example in railing against #China at political rallies, while purchasing political merchandise from #China-linked companies. Bad optics aren't only a problem for their political future; they also send a #stratcom message to #China that US politicians are not serious about countering #China's hegemony. #elections #politics #Republicans #Democrats #humanrights #Humanrightsviolations #economy #freetrade #nationalsecurity #security #military #defense #trade #investments #informationwarfare #propaganda #disinformation #foreignpolicy #foreignaffairs #diplomacy #geopolitcs

November 2nd and 3rd is the United Nations 🇺🇳 International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalist. 117 journalists were killed in 2020-2021. - In 2020 and 2021, Latin America and the Caribbean accounted for 38% of killings, followed by Asia and the Pacific with 32% of killings. -Only 14 percent of cases of crimes against journalists are currently considered judicially resolved. - From this statistic👆🏽only 1 out of 10 cases will result in a conviction. - In 2021, the percentage of women among all journalists killed almost doubled, rising to 11% from 6% the previous year. https://lnkd.in/ep9MJHWC

Dan Abrams Reports on “Journalists” Who Also Are Terrorists Watch this segment by Dan Abrams reporting on how some people who purport to be journalists also are terrorists for Hamas and other terrorist organizations. While Abrams’ report shares multiple instances of journalists/terrorists, this particular segment includes details about someone named Mohamed Washah who was a Hamas commander while also “reporting” for the Qatari owned Al Jazeera. How convenient that Al Jazeera did not respond to Abrams’ calls for commentary on this story. As Abrams reports, people acting in such dual capacities leads to inflated numbers of civilian/journalist deaths (i.e., false reporting) when these terrorists are killed, it places genuine journalists in greater danger, and it allows terrorists to promote their propaganda through allegedly “legitimate” media channels, among other harms. Abrams further shows how the promotion of propoganda is not limited to the people who are both terrorist and “journalist” but by Al Jazeera and even some American media outlets generally (using as an example reporting on journalist deaths in Gaza while ignoring the fact that certain so-called journalists who have been killed also are terrorists), as well as the Committee to Protect Journalists (“CPJ”). Once again, there is irony in the many false accusations made against Jews/Israel. One of the favorites of Jew haters is that Jews/Zionists control the media and promote “Zionist propoganda.” As we have now seen, it is actually terrorists that have been planted in different media outlets who promote terrorist propaganda under the false guise that they are legitimate journalists. Yet another example of how/why people should be skeptical of reporting that portrays Israel in a negative light. https://lnkd.in/ejBiC8m2

The International Press Institute (IPI) today joins its partner organisations in the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) in launching our joint report on the most serious challenges facing press freedom in Bosnia and Herzegovina following a recent fact-finding mission. The report warns that media freedom in the country is in decline against a backdrop of new restrictive laws, hostile rhetoric and denigration of journalists by public officials, and ongoing systemic challenges to the independence of public service media.

As we claim objectivity and a free press in the US and in the West, we conveniently forget that we are deeply vulnerable to our own biases, dominant narratives, and entrenched stereotypes and beliefs about one set of people versus another. During the reporting on the #BlackLivesMatter protests of 2020 we learned how deeply ingrained anti-black stereotypes are in US media and most US institutions, from the courts to police to academia. Now we are seeing the same kinds of stereotypes about #Palestinians who are routinely portrayed as #Terrorists deserving of the most vicious punishment. The remarkable act of #SouthAfrica challenging #Israel in the ICJ on charges of genocide against the people of Gaza and the even more sobering judgment delivered by the court, was all but obliterated by a tacit Western media agreement to cover the claim made by Israel one day after the judgment. The allegations about a total of 7 UNRWA staff have led to massive disruptions in funding to a key agency that protects the rights and lives of innocent people who are already refugees. This story on CNN should be reason for serious reflection about the way all Western media is covering the ongoing genocide, war crimes, and the tragic humanitarian crisis at an unprecedented scale in #Gaza today. #Palestine