New York Daily News announced it will shrink its editorial team down from 250 to forty employees in an effort to transform into a “digitally focused” breaking news platform. Trump considering revoking security clearances from former officials who have criticized him. Tronc’s decision to cut the Daily News staff comes amid growing concerns that coverage on New York City’s courts, cops, and local communities are underserved. Trump falsely attacked the Washington Post and Amazon on Twitter allegedly over a Supreme Court decision regarding sales taxes last month. -Suzanne Nossel, Chief Executive Officer

 

The most pressing threats and notable goings-on in free expression today

U.S.

Trump ‘Looking Into’ Revoking Security Clearances of Former Officials Critical of Him
Trump is considering revoking the security clearances of former intelligence officials who have criticized him and have been the targets of some of his relentless attacks. “If he chooses to do it for political reasons… it’s an abuse of the system.”
HUFFINGTON POST

Tronc Slashes ‘New York Daily News’ Staff By Half
The newspaper publishing company Tronc has moved to slash the New York Daily News newsroom, announcing cuts of 50 percent to the paper’s editorial staff, according to an internal memo obtained by NPR and other news outlets.
NPR

Daily News Cuts Drive Fears New York City’s Becoming ‘Local News Desert’
Tronc’s decision to cut the Daily News newsroom in half comes amid growing concerns that New York City is underserved when it comes to covering courts, cops and local communities. “This is about this city. This is about this institution.”
POLITICO

Trump Levels False Attacks Against The Post and Amazon in a Pair of Tweets
Trump used his Twitter account to make false and misleading attacks against The Washington Post and Amazon, apparently referring to a Supreme Court decision that will allow state governments to compel retailers to collect sales tax revenue.
WASHINGTON POST

The Rise of Artistic Censorship on College Campuses Should Worry the American Public
“Artistic freedom protects high and low art alike. But at a number of American universities, controversy has been acting as the curator, leading to the degradation of both freedom of speech and students’ ability to interact with challenging artwork.”
ARTSY

Global

Reuters Reporter Says Myanmar Police Planted ‘Secret’ Papers *PEN Case List
Wa Lone told a court that documents he is accused of breaking state secrets laws to obtain were planted by a police officer, who handed him papers he had not sought in order to entrap him. “The documents found…[were] to set us up and arrest us.”
REUTERS

HRCP Report Reveals Suppression of Media Freedom
The Human Right Commission of Pakistan revealed that many journalists over the past few months have complained of interference in their work. The HRCP report detailing media freedom in the country is expected to be published soon.
PAKISTAN TODAY

A Report on the 2018 IPI World Congress, Abuja, Nigeria
This year’s IPI World Congress aimed at affirming the indispensable role of quality media in strengthening democratic structures of open and inclusive societies, fighting corruption, and strengthening the rule of law.
ALL AFRICA

On WhatsApp, Fake News is Fast—and Can Be Fatal
At least two dozen people have been killed in mob lynchings in India. In Brazil, messages falsely claimed a government-mandated vaccine as dangerous. In Mexico, experts called WhatsApp the ugly underbelly of the country’s news environment.
WASHINGTON POST

Kerala CM: State Will Not Tolerate Attack on Freedom of Expression
As the controversy over the novel ‘Meesha’ rages on, for its alleged portrayal of Hindu women in bad light, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan has made it clear that the state government won’t tolerate any attack on freedom of expression.
INDIA TODAY

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