The National Press Club

Freedom of the Press

1. National Press Club hosts Feb. 14 panel to assess repression of expression in Mideast

   The NPC's Press Freedom Committee hosts a panel to examine the latest Mideast trends on repression of expression on Tuesday, Feb. 14 at 9:30am in the National Press Club’s Fourth Estate Restaurant. More than a year ago, uprisings in several Mideast countries triggered what has come to be called the Arab Spring. But when it comes to freedom of the press and the Internet, it has been a chilling period in many parts of the region. Reporters and citizens have been spied on, beaten, imprisoned and even killed merely for telling the truth about what is happening in their countries.

2. Attorney details backlash against photojournalists

   A “perfect storm” of repression has raged against photojournalists in the United States in recent years, according to an accomplished news photographer who has become an attorney representing his former colleagues.

3. National Press Club condemns assault on press in Ecuador

   National Press Club President Mark Hamrick expressed outrage Friday about the president of Ecuador’s systematic and relentless attacks on the press. Angry over a piece that was critical of him, the Ecuadoran president Rafael Correa has won court rulings-- under questionable circumstances-- that could result in the shuttering of one of Latin America’s most esteemed newspapers and the imprisonment of its journalists.

4. Club plea for imprisoned Ethiopian journalist published in New York Review of Books

   National Press Club President Mark Hamrick joined with other journalism leaders to urge Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to take action against Ethiopia for imprisoning a journalist. Hamrick is one of five people who signed a letter published in the current issue of The New York Review of Books on behalf of Ethiopian journalist Eskinder Nega.

5. National Press Club calls on India to investigate attacks on reporters

   The National Press Club called on Nov. 28 for the Indian government to investigate charges that reporters were beaten in Indian-controlled Kashmir and to prevent such attacks from happening again. The Associated Press reported that four journalists were beaten while covering a protest in that region on Nov. 25. One of them, Umar Meraj, an AP cameraman, said he was attacked with rifle butts, batons, fists and kicks. The AP said local journalists and non-governmental organizations have repeatedly reported harassment and assaults by police in the territory.

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