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Twitter announces that it will hide certain tweets from conversation threads in a bid to counter trolling. Senate expected to vote today on a resolution to overturn the FCC’s decision to repeal net neutrality. Student activists and survivors of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School turn their efforts to youth voter registration and turnout. Writers and artists launch campaign for imprisoned poet and painter Liu Xia, held under illegal house arrest since 2010. -Anoosh Gasparian, External Relations Coordinator

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

U.S.

Twitter Will Start Hiding Tweets that “Detract from the Conversation”
Twitter will begin hiding tweets from certain accounts in conversations and search results. However, critics are worried about censorship, as once the software decides a user is “detract[ing] from the conversation”, all of their tweets will be censored.
SLATE

Net Neutrality is Getting a Big Vote in the Senate Today. Here’s What to Expect.
Today, the Senate is expected to vote on a resolution that aims to undo a sweeping act of deregulation undertaken last year by the FCC, and issue a rebuke to the Trump administration, which supported the FCC’s move.
WASHINGTON POST

Parkland Survivor Aims to Boost ‘Unacceptable’ Youth Vote Turnout
Instead of going to college this fall, Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school senior Ryan Deitsch will focus on turning out the youth vote in November’s midterm elections in hopes of a fresh push for stricter gun control laws.
GUARDIAN

Liu Xia: Paul Auster and JM Coetzee Lead Renewed Calls for Chinese Poet’s Release
Chinese authorities insist Chinese poet and artist Liu Xia “enjoys all freedoms in accordance with the law”, but supporters say she has been severely restricted and lives under strict surveillance. “If I can’t leave, I’ll die in my home.”
GUARDIAN

 
Global

‘They Went to Execute Him’: Fourth Mexican Journalist Killed So Far in 2018
Radio news host Juan Carlos Huerta was shot dead on the first anniversary of reporter Javier Valdez’s murder. Four journalists have been murdered in Mexico and two of those killings are confirmed to have happened because of the reporters’ work.
GUARDIAN

The Fate of Press Freedom in India Over the Years
The drop in India’s press freedom ranking has been linked to the encouragement of self-censorship during a period of heightened nationalism. Media outlets are the “targets of violence by soldiers acting with the central government’s tacit consent”.
WIRE

Security Guards Attack Chinese Women for ‘Wearing Rainbow Badges’ at LGBT Event in Beijing
Beijing security guards assaulted two Chinese women for wearing LGBT badges. “Wearing a rainbow badge is illegal to me… [and] the homosexuals, have distorted sexual orientation,” said a district property management employee.
INDEPENDENT

Beijing Police Release Hong Kong Journalist After He was Detained Covering Hearing of Human Rights Lawyer Xie Yanyi
Chui Chun-ming, a cameraman for Now TV, was released at 1pm after being hauled away while trying to cover a hearing involving a human rights lawyer. “[An officer] insisted I was wrong and told me to admit it… [or I] lose my press pass,” Chui said.
SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST

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