misinformation

White Noise, Damn Lies, Deep Fakes and What Really Scares Craig Silverman

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Craig Silverman had been digging into unhappy facts for years. But back in 2015, he came out with a report which would foretell the misinformation tsunami which would soon arrive. Tanya Pampalone, GIJN’s managing editor, caught up with Silverman, who is now the Toronto-based media editor for BuzzFeed News, to talk more about disinformation, as well as white noise, Hurricane Sandy, the Arab Spring, his first blog and what it is like to be the most depressing person in the room.

Human Trafficking & Migration

Tips for Working in Bahrain

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Full guide here. العربية | বাংলা

Media Environment
The Bahraini constitution guarantees  freedom of expression and the press, excluding opinions that undermine the fundamental beliefs of Islam or the “unity of the people” and those that promote “discord or sectarianism.” However, the Law of Press, Printing and Publishing of 2002 is used to restrict free speech.; Law 47/2002 includes 17 categories of offenses, three of which allow for prison sentences. The freedom of expression climate in Bahrain has changed significantly since 2011, when protests influenced by the “Arab Spring” started taking place. The Bahraini authorities responded by prosecuting journalists and critics that covered political events or reflected the voices of protesters and voices of dissent.

Freedom of Expression

Against the Odds, Investigative Journalism Persists in Middle East

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In the past year, a group of Arab journalists has been working secretly in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Algeria, and Yemen as part of a global network of investigative reporters mining the so called “Panama Papers.” They found that some Arab strongmen and their business partners are linked to offshore companies and bank accounts. What’s astonishing about this story is not that Arab dictators are going offshore to hide their wealth and evade sanctions. It’s that a community of Arab journalists is continuing to do investigative reporting in a region where there is increasingly little tolerance for accountability of any kind.

Conferences

“Arab Media: The Battle for Independence” — 7th ARIJ Conference Comes to Amman

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GIJN member Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ) will host its seventh annual forum for Arab investigative journalists in Amman in December. The conference, whose theme is “Arab Media: The Battle for Independence,” will feature 30 + panels and trainings with speakers like Sy Hersh, Marwan Muashar, Tim Sebastian, and more.

Freedom of Information

Media’s Arab Spring Turns to Winter

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Let me tell you how I think it will go from here. Free speech – always a lonely and sickly child in the Arab world – is already back in intensive care throughout the region.

Street protests will gradually die out. Dissenters will continue to be arrested and given harsh sentences. Sustained government propaganda will convince any waverers that political stability and economic prosperity are far more important than personal freedoms, rule of law, universal human rights, and democratic values.

Despite the wishful thinking of the crowds, the final chapter of the Arab Spring is being written: it is about over.