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National Press Club decries death penalty for Egyptian journalists
The National Press Club expressed deep concern Monday over the Egyptian government's decision to uphold death penalties for three journalists. On June 18, a Cairo court confirmed Egypt's Grand Mufti had upheld the May 7 verdicts for the three journalists who had been accused of passing state secrets to Qatar. The reporters affected are: Ibrahim Helal, former director of news at Al Jazeera's Arabic channel; Alaa Sablan, a former Al Jazeera correspondent; and Asmaa Alkhatib, a journalist with the pro-Muslim Brotherhood Rassd News Network. All three journalists were given the death penalty in…
Type: News
National Press Club lauds congressional action on transparency
The National Press Club president congratulated Congress Tuesday for sending the president legislation aimed at making the federal government more transparent. The bill, which would strengthen the Freedom of Information Act, is known as the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016. The Senate passed the bill in March and the House approved it Monday, sending it to the president's desk for him to sign into law. The measure would place the burden on federal agencies to justify withholding information instead of on the requester to justify release. It would require that disclosure of data be timely,…
Type: News
National Press Club Mourns Loss of National Public Radio Employees in Afghanistan
In the wake of the deaths Sunday in Afghanistan of a National Public Radio photographer and his translator, the National Press Club offered condolences to NPR staffers and the families of those killed. The photographer, David Gilkey, and his Afghan translator, Zabihullah Tamanna, were killed on assignment in southern Afghanistan. They were traveling with an Afghan army unit when the convoy came under fire, NPR said. Their vehicle was struck by shell fire, and the two perished. Gilkey was an award-winning photographer who took on dangerous assignments in Iraq, Afghanistan, Haiti and throughout…
Type: News
National Press Club Decries Philippine President-Elect’s Dangerous Rhetoric
The National Press Club condemned recent statements by the president-elect of the Philippines that journalists could be targeted for assassination. “Just because you’re a journalist, you are not exempted from assassination, if you’re a son of a bitch,” Rodrigo Duterte was reported as saying at a May 31 news conference in Davao, where he is mayor. Duterte has advocated vigilante justice and capital punishment for certain crimes. His comments appeared to suggest that journalists who are deemed to have committed capital crimes should not be exempt from such retribution. “We don't presume to…
Type: News
National Press Club Alarmed by Growing Press Crackdown in Egypt
The National Press Club on Wednesday voiced alarm over deteriorating press freedom conditions in Egypt following this week's arrest of the head of the country's journalists' union. Egyptian Press Syndicate head Yahia Galash and two board members, Gamal Abdel Raheem and Khaled Elbashy, were detained by security forces on Sunday, questioned for 13 hours and then charged on Monday with illegally harboring suspects and publishing false news, according to news reports. The charges stem from a May 1 incident when the press syndicate's Cairo headquarters was raided by police and two Egyptian…
Type: News
National Press Club President: What Does Donald Trump Have Against the Constitution?
The National Press Club president expressed alarm on Tuesday about Donald Trump’s dangerous attitude toward the First Amendment. At a press conference earlier in the day, Trump had said “the press should be ashamed of themselves” for investigating his fundraising for veterans. Trump at one point called an ABC News reporter a “sleaze.” “You know my opinion of the media,” Trump said, “it’s very low.” Two days before, Trump had told a crowd on the National Mall that reporters are “liars” and “lowlifes.” Trump had previously called for making it easier for public figures to sue news…
Type: News
Press Club Welcomes Azeri Reporter’s Release From Jail
The National Press Club on Wednesday applauded the Supreme Court of Azerbaijan’s decision to order the release of award-winning journalist Khadija Ismayilova. Ismayilova has been imprisoned for a year and a half on charges widely seen as retaliation for her investigative reporting into the finances of the country's ruling family. She is expected to be freed Wednesday. A reporter for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Ismayilova gained domestic and international attention for her exposes on corruption tied to Azeri President Ilham Aliyev's family. Ismayilova is a 2015 recipient of the National…
Type: News
NPC Press Freedom year in review, 2015
The National Press Club has never been more outspoken in defending journalists under fire and pushing for greater transparency—both in the United States and globally. Jason Rezaian has been a focus of our work since his arrest more than 500 days ago. We have issued numerous statements to protest his continued detention; his mistreatment and isolation during captivity; the secrecy surrounding all his judicial proceedings; and his unfair trial, conviction and sentencing. Our many activities in support of Rezaian in 2015 included: putting in the Club’s lobby in February a petition urging Jason’s…
Type: News
Watch Jason Rezaian press freedom readings right now
The National Press Club is reading Jason Rezaian articles for 24 consecutive hours today to draw attention to the Washington Post reporter's 500 days of detention in Iran. The event began at 7 a.m. today (Friday) and will continue until 7 a.m. Saturday. You can watch right now by clicking here. Members can also watch the readings live at the Bloomberg Room in the Club during normal operating hours. The schedule of Club members and journalists who will read is: 7a-8a: John Hughes, Bloomberg (President of the National Press Club) 8a-9a: John Donnelly, CQ, (Chair of NPC Press Freedom…
Type: News
Club to read Rezaian articles for 24 hours to mark 500 days of detention in Iran
The National Press Club will draw attention to Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian's 500 days of wrongful detention in Iran by publicly reading his stories for a 24-hour period beginning at 7 a.m. Friday, Dec. 4. The reading, which will occur in the Club's Bloomberg Room, will be open to the public and webcast on the Club's home page, press.org. During the 24-hour period the Club will also raise awareness of some of the other journalists being wrongly held, including Khadija Ismayilova and Austin Tice. “Jason is a gifted journalist and I can't think of a better way to draw attention to his…
Type: News