Culture news Charlie Hebdo enrages Iran again with new cartoons deemed offensive France is facing fresh rage from Tehran after Charlie Hebdo published images depicting Iran's Supreme Leader in cartoons considered vulgar by Tehran. 05/01/2023
Culture news London Arabic bookshop set to close after nearly 45 years The Middle Eastern specialist bookshop stands for freedom of thought and expression as well as cultural diversity. 20/12/2022
USA Twitter CEO Musk says he will reinstate suspended journalist accounts Elon Musk has lifted the suspensions of the Twitter accounts of several journalists he had banned a day earlier, after the second poll he conducted on the topic went against his preferred outcome. 17/12/2022
Tech News Twitter reinstates banned journalists after Elon Musk online vote There had been an outcry from the EU and United Nations over freedom of speech concerns when Elon Musk suspended accounts of several journalists. 17/12/2022
Tech News UN slams Twitter’s move to ban journalists as EU threatens sanctions The United Nations says it's "very disturbed" by Twitter’s suspension of several journalists, and warns of a "dangerous precedent". 16/12/2022
Culture news 11 men convicted of cyber harassing French singer Eddy de Pretto The Paris Criminal Court ruled that it's unlawful to engage in "digital lynching" of a person whose public commitments and sexual orientation have had the misfortune of offending certain extremists. 13/12/2022
Culture news CULTURE RE-VIEW: A look back at this day in history On 6 December 1933, federal judge John M. Woolsey ruled that Ulysses by James Joyce was not obscene. 06/12/2022
World News More countries are moving towards authoritarianism - report A new report by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) finds that more countries are moving towards authoritarianism as democracy erodes worldwide. 30/11/2022
Health news Twitter stops enforcing COVID misinformation policy Public health experts and social media researchers warn the change could fuel a spike in misleading claims about COVID-19 and vaccines. 30/11/2022
World News Journalists and protestors continue to be silenced in Russia, says Amnesty International A new report reveals that Russian authorities have developed a "sophisticated system of restrictions and severe reprisals to crush public protests". 24/11/2022
Culture news Meloni vs Saviano: The fight to save freedom of speech in Italy Far-right Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni is aiming at famed anti-mafia journalist Roberto Saviano for his criticism of her immigration policies. 17/11/2022
Food and Drink Turkey arrests union head for calling bread-eating societies "stupid" Cihan Kolivar, chairman for the Union for Bread Producers in Turkey, had been speaking to the Haberturk news channel about the rising price of bread in the country. 09/11/2022
Tech News Will users ditch Twitter for Mastodon after Musk's takeover? While conservative and right-wing users celebrate Musk’s takeover, liberals discuss ways to boycott and ditch Twitter. 28/10/2022
Tech News Why does Musk want Twitter? It may have something to do with your data Researchers and rights groups are concerned about the amount of data Elon Musk’s Twitter buyout will allow him and how far he will take free speech. 28/10/2022
Tech News Russia fines TikTok over LGBT material, Twitch over Ukraine content The fines mark the latest step in Moscow's long-running dispute with Big Tech. 04/10/2022
Culture news Latvia's Centre for Contemporary Art is supporting a revolution What role does art have in defending free speech and freedom of expression? Latvia's Survival Kit, the largest contemporary art show in the Baltics, explores that question through speech and sound. 01/10/2022
My Europe Series Why is there concern over free speech in aftermath of Queen's death? “I struggle to understand how holding up that sign could meet the threshold for a breach of the peace, and any subsequent prosecution on that basis would clearly bring into play serious concerns about fundamental human rights.” 13/09/2022
World News Russian journalist Ivan Safranov sentenced to 22 years in jail A court in Moscow jailed Russian journalist Ivan Safranov to 22 years in a maximum security prison after finding him guilty of treason in a trial many see as politically motivated 05/09/2022
Europe News Brussels takes Hungary to court on anti-LGBT law and Klubrádió The two legal cases concern freedom of speech and remain unresolved after more than one year. 15/07/2022
Tech News Musk threatens to walk away from Twitter deal over fake accounts The billionaire’s lawyers accuse Twitter of breaching its obligations by withholding data on its spam and fake accounts. 06/06/2022