Reply #8: who is there to defend indie media journalists?

[nashville_brook]

this raises an interesting question -- how vulnerable is the independent media to being silenced thru legal harassment?



i'm sure Truthout is no slouch when it comes to legal representation, BUT it's got to be less than what a good-sized daily can bring to bear.

http://www.cpj.org/

check this out:

Internet fuels rise in number of jailed journalists
CPJ census also finds more held without charge or due process

New York, December 7, 2006—The number of journalists jailed worldwide for their work increased for the second consecutive year, and one in three is now an Internet blogger, online editor, or Web-based reporter, according to an analysis by the Committee to Protect Journalists. CPJ’s annual worldwide census found 134 journalists imprisoned on December 1, an increase of nine from the 2005 tally. China, Cuba, Eritrea, and Ethiopia were the top four jailers among the 24 nations who imprisoned journalists. Read detailed accounts of each imprisoned journalist. Print reporters, editors, and photographers continue to make up the largest professional category, with 67 cases in 2006, but Internet journalists are a growing segment of the census and now constitute the second largest category, with 49 cases. The number of imprisoned journalists whose work appeared primarily on the Web, via e-mail, or in another electronic form has increased each year since CPJ recorded the first jailed Internet writer in its 1997 census. >>