Online journalists now jailed more often than other media

By Nate Anderson

If you think it's tough to be a blogger because your Google AdWords revenue has been in the toilet lately, the Committee to Protect Journalists wants to remind you that Internet journalist—including bloggers—can and do suffer much more around the world. According to the group's new report, Internet journalists now make up the largest single group of imprisoned journalists.

Of the 125 journalists imprisoned around the world for doing their jobs, 45 percent are "bloggers, Web-based reporters, or online editors." China continues its ten-year winning streak when it comes to tossing writers into jail, with Cuba, Burma, Eritrea, and Uzbekistan next in line.

The numbers are down slightly from December 2007, but CPJ notes that the arrests are hitting freelancers the hardest. Without the resources of a major media company behind them, lone bloggers and freelance writers often lack the resources to mount a vigorous defense when they are detained.

Data source: CPJ

"The image of the solitary blogger working at home in pajamas may be appealing, but when the knock comes on the door they are alone and vulnerable," said CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon. "All of us must stand up for their rights—from Internet companies to journalists and press freedom groups. The future of journalism is online and we are now in a battle with the enemies of press freedom who are using imprisonment to define the limits of public discourse."

The results of angering a regime can be severe; CPJ's complete capsule summaries of the detained journalists contain story after story of lives utterly changed by publishing information or opinion that displeased the government. In Burma, Nay Phone Latt wrote a blog of his own and ran several Internet cafes, but he irritated the Burmese ruling junta by publishing online caricatures of various generals. He was hauled away on January 29, tossed in jail, charged with "causing a public offense," and sentenced to 20 years and six months in jail during a closed trial.

The US makes the list, too, for its treatment of journalists in Iraq. According to CPJ, "US military authorities have jailed dozens of journalists in Iraq—some for days, others for months at a time—without charge or due process. No charges have ever been substantiated in these cases." This is the fifth straight year that America has made the list.

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