Media Defence

10/10/2026

Journalists regularly face threats and harassment; they experience and cover traumatic stories and events as part of their work, and many have no support to deal with the impact.

For World Mental Health Day, we have put together a list of resources for journalists who are struggling. It includes therapy funding for freelancers, self-help guides and support services available in several languages. Links below:

https://rorypecktrust.org/get-help/therapy/psychological-support/

https://www.iwmf.org/mental-health-guide/

https://gcjt.org/topic/self-care-peer-support

https://www.mentalhealthreuters.com/

Illustration by Valeria Reverdo via Unsplash

09/10/2026

Four years after Dom Phillips and Bruno Pereira were killed in the Javari Valley, a prize in their names drew more than 900 entries from across Brazil. 🌿

ARTIGO 19 has now gathered the eighteen winning entries in one place, including work on the Yanomami, the Maxakali people’s restoration of the Atlantic Forest, Ashaninka territorial governance and the impacts of the climate crisis in the Amazon.

Two of the six categories are reserved for work by Indigenous people and members of traditional communities.

Environmental reporting remains one of the most dangerous beats, particularly in the Amazon. With Brazil heading to a runoff on 25 October, the already limited protections these journalists rely on remain vulnerable.

Media Defence has supported Dom and Bruno’s legal cases since 2023.

Media Defence has been supporting Dom and Bruno’s legal cases through our strategic litigation programme since 2023.

Explore the eighteen winning entries here: https://artigo19.org/concurso-dom-e-bruno/

08/10/2026

Ya está disponible la nueva edición de “Libertad de Prensa en el Foco”, nuestro boletín sobre América Latina.

En este número, analizamos el caso de Jineth Bedoya contra Colombia. La sentencia de la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos de 2021 responsabilizó al Estado, no solo por no haber impedido su secuestro y tortura, sino también por haber creado las condiciones que propician esa violencia. Además, estableció estándares vinculantes para la protección de las mujeres periodistas.

Recordamos a Sara Mendiola Landeros, directora ejecutiva de Propuesta Cívica y reconocida defensora de periodistas en México, quien falleció el 5 de septiembre.

Además, el periodista chileno Mauricio Weibel conversa con Media Defence sobre los seis años de proceso judicial tras la intervención ilegal de sus comunicaciones por parte de la inteligencia militar chilena. El proceso culminó con la condena del juez y del general responsables.

Completan esta edición las novedades de nuestras organizaciones aliadas en la región y un resumen de noticias de Iberoamérica.

Lee el boletín completo y suscríbete: https://bit.ly/4j6QZVb

08/10/2026

Our latest newsletter is out.

In this edition, the second instalment of Breaking Ground, our Impact Series, follows Jineth Bedoya's case against Colombia. The 2021 Inter-American Court judgment held the state responsible not only for failing to prevent her abduction and torture, but for creating the conditions in which such violence thrives, setting binding standards for the protection of women journalists.

We remember the life and work of Sara Mendiola Landeros, Executive Director of our partner Propuesta Cívica and one of Mexico's foremost legal advocates for journalists, who passed away on 5 September.

Also inside: an update on Paola Ugaz's legal defence in Peru, highlights from the Campaign for Free Expression's 2026 Annual Report, news from our partners, and details of our online workshop at GIJN's IJ Week, "Legal Rights for Journalists: Filming Authorities", with our own Marta Cabrera on 27 October.

Read the full newsletter and subscribe: https://bit.ly/4oBpzpt

03/10/2026

As Brazil heads to the polls this Sunday, CDJor monitoring recorded 4,400 online attacks against journalists and media outlets in just two weeks of campaigning, a 67.3% increase on the previous fortnight. ICL Notícias columnist Juliana Dal Piva was the most-targeted journalist on X, facing misogynistic abuse and incitement to violence following her reporting, alongside an electoral court injunction against her work. Women journalists continue to bear a disproportionate share of these attacks.
Read more via ICL Notícias (in Portuguese): https://bit.ly/4yoPwy7

Juliana joined us earlier this year for our live discussion "Backlash Without Borders: Women Investigating Power", where she spoke about the gendered backlash faced by women journalists investigating powerful actors. Watch back on our website: https://bit.ly/4ynzSTG

Juliana Dal Piva foi a jornalista mais atacada no X na segunda quinzena da campanha, segundo levantamento da CDJor.

30/09/2026

How are courts responding to the use of spyware against journalists and civil society, and what can we learn from comparing jurisdictions?

At the Forum on Internet Freedom in Africa, our own Marta Cabrera, Legal Consultant at Media Defence, will moderate Spyware on Trial: A Comparative Discussion Across Jurisdictions. She will be joined by Gregory Gondwe (Platform for Investigative Journalism), Professor Pete Fussey (University of Southampton) and Edmond Babalanda (ALP East Africa).

Join us tomorrow, 3:00–4:30 PM, at Barracuda.

See the full agenda: https://bit.ly/3VHW7VU

28/09/2026

Last chance to register. Starting at 13:30 BST today.

Disconnected Justice: The Non-Implementation of Internet Shutdown Judgments, with Access Now.

https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_FxJrL9vmQC2uZz9IlfJo2Q

To mark the International Day for Universal Access to Information on 28 September, we're hosting a webinar, in collaboration with Access Now, examining one of the starkest failures in that right: internet shutdowns.

Governments around the world continue to shut down the internet to silence dissent and control the flow of information, often with no legal basis, no public notice, and no warning. Over the past decade, courts across Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America have ruled that these shutdowns violate fundamental rights, yet implementation of these judgments remains sporadic or entirely absent.

Legal experts from across regions will come together to examine this implementation gap, sharing their experience litigating shutdown cases and exploring what has been attempted to close the distance between court judgments and practice on the ground.

Read more and register: https://bit.ly/3UEMWFi

23/09/2026

Governments worldwide continue to use internet shutdowns to silence dissent and control the flow of information. According to the Internet Society's Pulse tracker, 973 shutdowns have been recorded across 61 countries since 2019, with 10 shutdowns ongoing as of this month alone, and 71 recorded across nine countries in the past year, amounting to over 19,500 hours of lost connectivity.

Over the past decade, courts across Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America have ruled that internet shutdowns violate fundamental rights. Yet implementation of these judgments remains sporadic or entirely absent.

On 28 September, we are pleased to host "Disconnected Justice: The Non-Implementation of Internet Shutdown Judgments" in collaboration with AccessNow. The webinar brings together legal experts litigating these cases across regions to examine why the gap between legal standards and practice continues to widen.

Read more on our website: https://bit.ly/4yzw69m

18/09/2026

We are pleased to share that Yuri Marchenko, Senior Legal Officer at Media Defence, will speak at Breakwater Festival in Gdańsk on Friday, 25 September, from 14:30–15:30 (Workshop Room 5, European Solidarity Centre).

The panel, "Privacy Law vs. the Press: How Data Protection Is Being Weaponised to Bury Stories," examines how data protection law is increasingly turned against journalists across Europe and beyond. Bad-faith litigants invoke privacy rights to suppress reporting, while the GDPR's journalistic exemption has been applied so unevenly that protection can depend entirely on where a story is published.

Yuri will be joined by Beatrix Vissy, Head of Anti-SLAPP Litigation and Advocacy at the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union, to map these threats.

Read more here: https://bit.ly/4dlnD1s
See you in Gdańsk.

17/09/2026

Journalists routinely face legal and physical risks when filming police, military personnel, or agencies such as ICE in the course of their work. This session will provide practical guidance on the legal rights journalists hold in these situations, and concrete steps they can take to protect themselves.

For those attending GIJN this year, don’t miss this workshop held by our legal consultant Marta Cabrera: "Legal Rights for Journalists: Filming Authorities," on Tuesday, 27 October 2026, from 5:45–7:00 PM GMT.

We hope to see you there. More details here: https://bit.ly/3VBwZ31