Death and rape threats, accusations of treason, disfiguring memes, bots and automated agents, “black” public relation firms and hacking – these are only some of the features of state-sponsored trolling that have been used by governments around the world in recent years to attack journalists and other critics online. This digital-age phenomenon was investigated in […]

In combination with its 800,000 monthly readers, the alt-right news site Parlamentní listy’s trademark blend of sensationalism, fake news and outlandish commentary has a major impact on Czech political discourse. President Miloš Zeman is an ally, leaking news their way and granting exclusive interviews. Meanwhile, studies show considerable overlap between news narratives on the site […]

Since the attempted coup of July 16, 2016, civil society and the legal landscape in Turkey have been drastically altered by the issuing of hundreds of so-called “non-governmental decrees” under Turkey’s state of emergency, which ends today.

Zimbabwe is preparing for its first general election after Robert Mugabe’s 37-year regime ended last year. As the poll date of July 30 nears, the safety of journalists is fast crumbling in the country. Last week, the country’s journalists sounded the alarm, after Zimbabwe Defence Forces’ (ZDF) director of public relations, Colonel Overson Mugwisi, attacked […]