FOTP 2016 Acknowledgements

Donors

The Freedom of the Press report is made possible by the generous support of the Jyllands-Posten Foundation, the Hurford Foundation, the Lilly Endowment, the Stichting Democratie en Media, Free Press Unlimited, the Fritt Ord Foundation, the Reed Foundation, Kim G. Davis, Bette Bao Lord, and Ambassador Victor Ashe.

Research and Editorial Team

The following people were instrumental in the survey cycle: Elen Aghekyan, Hannah Buckley, Jennifer Dunham, Polina Kasparova, Bret Nelson, Shannon O’Toole, Arch Puddington, Sarah Repucci, Tyler Roylance, Robert Ruby, Amy Slipowitz, Vanessa Tucker, and Mykhaylo Yezhechenko.

Analysts

Abdullahi Tasiu Abubakar is a lecturer in the Department of Journalism at City University London. He received his PhD from the University of Westminster in London and was a visiting research fellow at the university’s Africa Media Centre. He has extensive experience in print, broadcast, and online journalism both in West Africa and in the United Kingdom. He has worked for the BBC World Service in Nigeria as the Abuja bureau editor, and in Britain as a producer. He is editor at large for the Nigeria-based Daily Trust and writes regularly for the BBC. His key interests are transnational audiences, public diplomacy, and media in Africa. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Fadil Aliriza is an independent journalist and analyst, and a frequent contributor to Democracy Lab. He is currently a senior fellow at the Legatum Institute’s Transitions Forum. He particularly focuses on the politics of Tunisia and Libya following the 2011 uprisings. He previously worked as an editor of international news at the Hurriyet Daily News in Istanbul, Turkey. He served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Mokhtar Awad is a research fellow at George Washington University’s Center for Cyber and Homeland Security. His work focuses on regional politics in the Middle East, with a special emphasis on emerging violent extremist organizations. He has published analyses and conducted field research on Islamist groups and political dynamics in Tunisia, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Egypt. Previously, he served as a research associate at the Center for American Progress and as a junior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Auksė Balčytienė is a professor of journalism at Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas, Lithuania, where she also serves as vice rector for the Department of Public Communications. Her main scholarly interests are international journalism and communication cultures, Central and Eastern European studies, and multilingual and multicultural journalism online. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Eloïse Bertrand is a PhD candidate in Politics and International Studies at the University of Warwick, focusing on opposition party politics in Burkina Faso and Uganda. She holds a master’s degree in African politics from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. She is cofounder of AREA Consulting, a company offering research, analysis, and evaluation services in and on sub-Saharan Africa, and has extensively contributed to Africa in Fact, African Arguments, the Africa Research Institute, and L’Afrique des Idées. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Aljaž Pengov Bitenc is a blogger, podcaster, and journalist based in Slovenia. He serves as editor-in-chief of Radio KAOS, a small multimedia radio station in Ljubljana, and is a two-time recipient of the Ljubljana Chamber of Commerce innovation award for developments in the media field. Previously, he worked on media empowerment of the Roma population in Slovenia. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Rossen Bossev is an award-winning investigative reporter and editor at Capital Weekly in Bulgaria, focusing on human rights, law enforcement, and the judiciary. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the Joseph Fourier University. He is the Bulgaria coauthor of Moving Stories, a report published by the Ethical Journalism Network, and is involved in reviewing media coverage of migration in the European Union and in 14 countries across the globe. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Lisa Brooten is an associate professor in the Department of Radio, Television, and Digital Media at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. Her research focuses on media reform and democratization; local and global social-movement media; community media; indigenous media; human rights; gender and militarization; and interpretive, critical research methods, particularly in Southeast Asia. Currently, she is completing a comparison of media reform efforts in Thailand, the Philippines, and Burma, funded in the initial stages by a 2008 Fulbright Research Fellowship. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Jason Brown is a media specialist with extensive experience reporting from and working in Oceania. He is currently the editor of the Pacific Freedom Forum, a media monitoring and free speech organization focused on the Pacific Islands and development partners. Previously, he was the editor of the Avaiki News Agency, an online platform based in the Cook Islands. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Sarah Cook is the manager of the production team for Freedom House’s China Media Bulletin, a biweekly news digest of press freedom developments related to China. She previously served as a research analyst at Freedom House and as assistant editor on three editions of the Freedom on the Net index, which assesses internet and digital media freedom around the world. She coedited the English version of Chinese attorney Gao Zhisheng’s memoir, A China More Just, and was a delegate to the UN Human Rights Commission for an organization working on religious freedom in China. She received a master’s degree in politics and a master of laws degree in public international law from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, where she was a Marshall Scholar. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

David de Dau is director of the Agency for Independent Media (AIM). He holds a master’s degree in Project Planning and Management from the Uganda Management Institute (UMI). He has worked as a journalist for a number of Sudanese newspapers, and is also a volunteer instructor in media and communication studies at the University of Juba. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Tanya Domi is an adjunct professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, an affiliate faculty member of the university’s Harriman Institute, and a fellow at the Emerging Democracies Institute. She primarily focuses on democracy and human rights in the Balkans. She holds a master’s degree in human rights from Columbia University and a bachelor’s degree from Central Michigan University. She served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Orion Donovan-Smith is a freelance writer based in Washington, DC, and has written for outlets including Foreign Policy. He has previously worked in the peacebuilding field in Burundi, and has conducted research on armed groups in Africa’s Great Lakes Region. He holds a bachelor’s degree in international studies from the University of Washington, where he focused on security and diplomacy in the Middle East and Africa. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Juan Carlos Donoso is director of the Survey Research Center of the University of Illinois at Springfield. Previously, he served as a research associate at the Pew Research Center, an associate professor of political science at Universidad San Francisco de Quito, and the country manager for Ecuador at the Latin American Public Opinion Project. He holds a PhD in political science from Vanderbilt University. He served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Matt J. Duffy studies journalism in the Arab world, with a focus on the government regulation of both traditional and digital media. His research has appeared in the Journal of Middle East Media, Middle East Media Educator, and the Journal of Mass Media Ethics. He teaches international communication law at Kennesaw State University, and serves as a fellow with the Center for International Media Education at Georgia State University. He published a book on media laws of the United Arab Emirates in 2014, is also a member of the board of directors for the Arab-U.S. Association for Communication Educators. He served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Harout Ekmanian is a journalist with extensive experience reporting from the Middle East and the South Caucasus. His work has been featured by Voice of America, Tagesspiegel, O Globo, Near East Quarterly, and other international publications, and he has worked in media and development in Armenia with several civil society organizations. Previously, he was trained as a lawyer in Syria, and was an O’Donnell Visiting Scholar in Global Studies at Whitman College and a fellow at the Institute for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University. He served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Golnaz Esfandiari is a senior correspondent with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and the editor of the popular Persian Letters blog. She focuses on political and social developments in Iran, and ties between Iran and the United States. Her work has appeared in and has been cited by major publications, including the New Yorker, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and Foreign Policy; she has also contributed to Freedom in the World. She served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Said Essoulami is president of the Morocco-based Centre for Media Freedom. He also serves as president of the Arab Freedom of Information Network and is a member of the Middle East Committee of the International Center for Journalists’ Knight International Journalism Fellowship program. Previously, he directed the Middle East and North Africa program at Article 19 in London. He has extensive research and advocacy experience in press freedom and access to information rights, particularly in the Arab states. He served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Ana Luiza Farias is a research analyst at ISS Governance, focusing on Latin America. She has a long career in journalism and communications, with experience in daily newspapers, press and public relations in the public sector, and corporate communications in the private sector. A former Fulbright fellow, she holds a master’s degree in international relations and economics from the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at the Johns Hopkins University. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Marta Ferrara is the executive director of Seeds for Democracy in Paraguay. She has experience working with regional civil society organizations, and has also served as a print and radio journalist. She studied sociology at Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic University. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Jacey Fortin is a freelance reporter based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with a focus on business and politics. Her work has been featured in outlets including Agence France-Presse, Al-Jazeera, Inter Press Services, and the International Business Times. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English language and literature from Northeastern University. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Sumit Galhotra is an Asia program research associate at Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). He served as CPJ’s inaugural Steiger Fellow and has worked for CNN International, Amnesty International USA, and Human Rights Watch. He has reported from London, India, and Israel and the Occupied Territories, and specializes in human rights and South Asia. He holds master’s degrees in journalism and human rights from Columbia University. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Roman Golovenko is a media lawyer who works with the Institute of Mass Information in Ukraine. He received his master’s degree from the Faculty of Law at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy. He frequently provides legal representation to journalists and civil activists in defamation and access to information cases, and is one of the authors of Ukraine’s 2011 access to information law. He served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Sylvana Habdank-Kołaczkowska is a political analyst and researcher specializing in postcommunist Europe. She has previously served as the director of Nations in Transit, Freedom House’s annual report on democratic governance from Central Europe to Eurasia, and as the managing editor of the Journal of Cold War Studies, a peer-reviewed quarterly. She received a master’s degree in Eastern European and Eurasian studies from Harvard University and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of California, Berkeley. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Summer Harlow is a PhD candidate in journalism at the University of Texas at Austin. An Inter-American Foundation Grassroots Development Fellow conducting her dissertation research on the digital evolution of activist media in El Salvador, she is a journalist with more than 10 years of experience. She has reported and blogged from the United States and Latin America, covering immigration, city government, transportation, minority affairs, and press freedom issues. Her main research inquiries are related to the links between journalism and activism, with an emphasis on Latin America, digital media, alternative media, and international communication. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Sanjana Hattotuwa is an alumnus of Ashoka, Rotary World Peace, and TED with extensive experience in the use of information and communications technologies to strengthen peace, reconciliation, human rights, and democratic governance. He is the curator of the award-winning website Groundviews, an online platform for citizen journalism in Sri Lanka. He teaches new media literacy, web activism, digital security, and online advocacy in Sri Lanka and internationally, focusing particularly on information management during crises. He served as an Asia analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Hilary Hemmings holds a bachelor’s degree in foreign service from Georgetown University and a master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University. She was previously an Alfa Fellow in Moscow, Russia, where she worked in a humanitarian health clinic serving the Tajik migrant worker population. She currently works at the International Rescue Committee in the Emergency Preparedness and Response Unit. She served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Franklin Hess is the coordinator of the Modern Greek Program at Indiana University, a senior lecturer at the Institute for European Studies, and codirector of a working group on the sovereign debt crisis. His scholarly work examines Greek popular culture, exploring the economic, geopolitical, and geocultural contexts of its production. His other research interests include immigration and the cinematic representation of violence. He served as the secretary of the Modern Greek Studies Association from 2007 to 2009. He holds a PhD in American studies from the University of Iowa. He is also a contributor to Freedom in the World. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Celeste Hicks is a freelance journalist focusing on the Sahel and North Africa. Previously, she worked as a BBC correspondent in Chad and Mali and as an editor for BBC Africa service news programs. Her work has also appeared in the Guardian and Al-Jazeera America. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Valerie Hopkins is an American journalist based in the Balkans. She currently works for the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, where she runs Big Deal, a project that produces reporting and research about agreements between Kosovo and Serbia. Her work has appeared in Foreign Policy, Al-Jazeera, the Guardian, OpenDemocracy, and a number of other international outlets. She previously worked at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina and served as online editor of the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University and a bachelor’s in international relations from the College of William and Mary. She served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Sa’eed Husaini is a PhD student in the Department for International Development at the University of Oxford, focusing on the intersection of urbanization, political participation, and democratic institutional development in Nigeria. He also works on research projects related to natural resource governance, security, and public sector reform in sub-Saharan Africa. He holds a master’s degree in African studies from the University of Oxford and a bachelor’s in political science and international studies from Hope College. Previously, he served as an intern at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), where his research focused on electoral processes, economic development, and security in West and Central Africa. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Melanie Jakupovic is a proposal and philanthropic strategy specialist at ChildFund International in Washington, D.C. Previously, she worked as a program manager at the Center for Peacebuilding in Sanski Most, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and served as a program officer for the Global Freedom of Expression Campaign at Freedom House. She holds a master’s degree in international affairs from George Washington University with a concentration in human security and development and a regional concentration in Europe and Eurasia. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Cedric Jourde is an associate professor of political studies at the University of Ottawa. His research interests include sub-Saharan and Sahelian politics, Islam and politics, and the politics of identity in post-colonial African states. He holds a PhD in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Erick Kabendera is a freelance journalist based in Dar es Salaam who writes for international and regional publications, covering politics, trade, and the extractive industries, and regularly contributes to the East African, the Africa Report, the Economist Intelligence Unit, and Inter Press Service. He also writes for British newspapers, including the Guardian, the Observer, and the Independent. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Mark A. Keller is deputy editor of the Latin Trade Group in Miami. His work focuses on the company’s market intelligence and research arm, providing insight into business, economic, and political developments relevant to businesses operating in Latin America. Previously, he worked as a research intern at Freedom House and as an editorial associate at Americas Society/Council of the Americas. He holds a master’s degree in Latin American studies from the University of Oxford, where his work focused on Brazil and the Southern Cone, and a bachelor’s degree in history from Columbia University. He served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Mujeeb Khalvatgar is a media activist and the managing director of Nai Supporting Open Media in Afghanistan. Previously, he worked as a journalist, editor in chief, and general manager for the national broadcaster Salaam Watandar and also served as media coordinator for Open Society Institute in Afghanistan. Khalvatgar was a campaigning nominee of the Index Awards 2015, organized by the Index on Censorship. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Niklas Kossow is a PhD candidate and communications officer at the European Research Centre for Anti-Corruption and State-Building in Berlin, focusing on the use of new media tools in anticorruption movements. He holds a bachelor’s degree in European social and political studies from University College London, and a master’s degree in public policy from the Hertie School of Governance. He previously worked as a volunteer fellow for Freedom House, an advisor for Transparency International, and a consultant for the UN Development Program and the World Wide Web Foundation. He is also a contributor to Freedom in the World. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Joshua Kurlantzick is a senior fellow for Southeast Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations. Previously, he was a scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he focused on Southeast Asian politics and economics and China’s relations with Southeast Asia. He is a longtime journalist whose articles have appeared in Time, the New Republic, the Atlantic Monthly, Foreign Affairs, and the New Yorker, among others. He is the author of the recently released book Democracy in Retreat: The Revolt of the Middle Class and the Worldwide Decline of Representative Government. He received a bachelor’s degree in political science from Haverford College. He is also a contributor to Freedom in the World. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Astrid Larson is the manager of programs and special events at American Friends of the Louvre. She has served as an analyst for Europe, sub-Saharan Africa, and Asia-Pacific for Freedom in the World. She received a master’s degree in international media and culture from the New School. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Besar Likmeta is the Albania editor for the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. Previously, he served as the Albania correspondent for Balkan Insight, a reporter for the Florida Times-Union, the features editor for the Tirana Times, and the world news editor for the channel TV Ora News. He regularly contributes to international news platforms and publications, and is a recipient of the Award for Outstanding Merits in Investigative Journalism, granted by the Central European Initiative and the South East Europe Media Organisation. He studied philosophy at the University of North Florida. He served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Ibrahim al-Marashi is an assistant professor of Middle Eastern history at California State University, San Marcos. His research deals with the modern history of Iraq. He is the coauthor of Iraq’s Armed Forces: An Analytical History. He obtained his PhD at the University of Oxford, completing a thesis on the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. He served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Eleanor Marchant is a PhD candidate at the Annenberg School for Communications at the University of Pennsylvania, specializing in media, information communication technologies and policy in Africa, and ethnographic research methods. She is also a research associate at the Center for Global Communication Studies and an international fellow at iHub Research in Nairobi, and advises on research projects related to technology, development, and media policy at both centers. Previously, she worked at the Programme in Comparative Media Law and Policy at Oxford University, the Media Development Investment Fund, the Media Institute in Nairobi, and Freedom House. She received a master’s degree in international relations from New York University and a bachelor’s degree in politics and economics from the University of Bristol. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Răzvan Martin is project coordinator at ActiveWatch, a media monitoring organization in Romania, as part of its FreeEx program, which aims to promote freedom of speech and media accountability. His work includes monitoring attacks on press freedom, assisting journalists or citizens in challenging restrictions on freedom of expression, contributing to the program’s press freedom reports, and helping shape media self-regulation mechanisms and legal initiatives. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Zororo Mavindidze is a senior researcher at the Freedom of Expression Institute, a South African non-profit organization. His professional interests include innovation and technology, digital security, and media convergence. Previously, he worked in various capacities with civil society and government organizations in Southern Africa. He is a member of the Internet Society (Gauteng Chapter) and a fellow at the African School on Internet Governance. He holds a master’s degree in development studies from the University of the Western Cape. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Michael McCarthy is a research fellow at American University’s Center for Latin American and Latino Studies. Previously, he worked from Caracas with the Carter Center’s Venezuela Election Study Missions in 2012 and 2013, and lived in Venezuela in 2008–09 carrying out field research as a Fulbright and Inter-American Foundation Fellow. He is completing his dissertation on Chavismo’s populism with the Political Science Department at the Johns Hopkins University. He served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Kristian McGuire is an independent researcher and the associate editor of the website Taiwan Security Research. He earned a master’s degree in international affairs from George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs and a bachelor’s degree in international relations from the University of the Pacific’s School of International Studies. His research interests include human rights issues in East Asia, U.S.-Taiwan relations, cross-Strait relations, East Asian regional security, and two-level games in alliance politics. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Maia Mikashavidze is a mass communication scholar and development professional. She serves as the deputy chair of Georgia’s Accreditation Council for Educational Programs, an advisory board member for the International Center for Journalists’ Knight Fellowships program, and the board chair for Creative Initiatives. She cofounded and served as the first dean of the Caucasus School of Journalism and Media Management at the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs, and is also the cofounder of the Management Academy, an executive-level training program. She has previously worked at the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi and has provided consulting services to the U.S. government, the Council of Europe, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and Freedom House. She holds a PhD in mass communication from the University of South Carolina and a master’s degree from the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs. She served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Martijn Mos is a doctoral candidate at the Department of Government at Cornell University. His scholarly work focuses on the dynamics of shared understandings in international politics. He holds a master’s degree in European politics and society from the University of Oxford, a master’s degree in global history from the University of Vienna, and a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts and sciences from Utrecht University. He is also a contributor to Freedom in the World. He served as a Europe and Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Azra Naseem is a research fellow at the School of Law and Government at Dublin City University. Previously, she worked as a journalist in the Maldives and in Dublin, and was a lecturer in Media Law and Ethics at Griffith College Dublin. She is the author of Dhivehi Sitee, a website of analysis and commentary on political and social affairs of the Maldives. She holds a PhD in International Relations from Dublin City University. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Jean-Regis Nduwimana is a lecturer in communications at Lake Tanganyika University in Burundi as well as a media consultant and blogger. He received his master’s degree from the School of Communication and Performing Arts at Daystar University in Kenya. Previously, he was chief editor of the radio station CCIB FM+, producing programs that focused on economic, political, and security issues. He regularly contributes to foreign media outlets about politics and media in Burundi. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Caroline Nellemann is an international consultant specializing in digital media and democratization. Previously she has worked for Freedom House, the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University, the Danish Aid Agency, and the Danish Ministry for Science, Technology, and Innovation. She holds a master’s degree in international development from Roskilde University, Denmark. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Mooya Lynn Nyaundi is a staff attorney with the Justice Defenders program at the American Bar Association Center for Human Rights, where she coordinates pro bono assistance for human rights defenders in sub-Saharan Africa. She is also a volunteer country specialist for Zambia and Namibia with Amnesty International. She has extensive experience in international and comparative law, particularly in freedoms of expression, assembly, and association as well as the right to a fair trial. She holds an LLD degree from the University of Zimbabwe and an LLM degree in international legal studies from Georgetown University. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Sarah Oates is a professor and senior scholar at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland. She has published widely in the field of political communication, with a particular focus on the way in which the traditional media and the internet can support or subvert democracy in places as diverse as Russia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Her most recent book, Revolution Stalled: The Political Limits of the Internet in the Post-Soviet Sphere, analyzed the ability of the internet to contribute to freedom of speech in Russia. Her current research examines the Russian state’s strategic narrative and how media framing is distributed in the online sphere. She served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Tetiana Pechonchyk is head of the board of the Human Rights Information Center in Ukraine. She received a PhD from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, where she focused on freedom of speech and Ukrainian mass media. She has worked as a media professional for several Ukrainian mass media, including the news agency UNIAN, and is a member of the National Union of Journalists and the Independent Media Trade Union of Ukraine. She served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Nicole Phillips is an adjunct professor at the University of California Hastings College of the Law, a law professor at the Université de la Fondation Dr. Aristide in Port-au-Prince, and staff attorney with the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti. She also serves as a member of the board of directors of Human Rights Advocates, an organization with consultative status to the UN. She earned her bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of California, San Diego and her JD from the University of San Francisco. She is also a contributor to Freedom in the World. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Arch Puddington is senior vice president for research at Freedom House and coeditor of Freedom in the World. He has written widely on American foreign policy, race relations, organized labor, and the history of the Cold War. He is the author of Broadcasting Freedom: The Cold War Triumph of Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty and Lane Kirkland: Champion of American Labor. He received a bachelor’s degree in English literature from the University of Missouri, Columbia. He served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Andrew Rizzardi is a program coordinator with the Institute for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University. He previously served as a researcher with Freedom House, working extensively on press freedom issues. He holds a master’s degree in international affairs from American University’s School of International Studies. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa and Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

David Robie is an associate professor of journalism in the School of Communication Studies at Auckland University of Technology and director of the Pacific Media Centre. He holds a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Technology, Sydney, and a PhD in history and politics from the University of the South Pacific, Fiji. He is founding editor of Pacific Journalism Review and convener of Pacific Media Watch, and has written several books on Pacific media, including Mekim Nius: South Pacific Media, Politics, and Education. He also publishes the media freedom blog Café Pacific. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Ryan Salzman is an assistant professor of political science in the College of Arts and Sciences at Northern Kentucky University. He holds a PhD in political science from the University of North Texas, where his studies focused on news media consumption and political behavior among Latin Americans. He continues to research how individual-level media consumption affects Latin Americans via traditional news media. His recent research projects focus on social media use and protest behavior in Central American states. He served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Hyunjin Seo is an assistant professor and Docking Young Faculty Scholar in the William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Kansas. She has published studies in the areas of digital media, international journalism, and strategic communication. Prior to receiving her PhD from Syracuse University, she was a foreign affairs correspondent for South Korean and international media outlets. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Jorge Luis Sierra is a Knight International Journalism Fellow at the International Center for Journalists. He is an expert on cyber security, and focuses on the intersection of digital security, technology, and investigative journalism. He studied international journalism at the University of Southern California, and defense policy and economics at the Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies, National Defense University. He served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Steven Silverstein has previously worked as a consultant for the Environment and Natural Resources Global Practice at the World Bank, as a senior analyst at Georgetown University’s Imaging Science and Information Systems Center, as a fellow with Liberia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, and as assistant to the president of the Cape Verde Jewish Heritage Project. He holds a master’s degree in public policy from Harvard University. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Valerie Sinden is an assistant program and conferences officer for the Center for International Media Assistance at the National Endowment for Democracy. She received a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and a master’s degree from the Whitehead School of Diplomacy and International Relations at Seton Hall University. Previously, Valerie held internships at Freedom House and the U.S. State Department in Dublin, Ireland. She also served as a senior editor for content for the Whitehead Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Jeffrey Smith is an international human rights consultant with experience in public advocacy and research, and has held prior positions at Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, Freedom House, the National Endowment for Democracy, the Institute for Democratic Alternatives in South Africa, and UNESCO. He has planned and conducted human rights assessment missions to a number of African countries, and has organized African delegations to the United States and to UNHRC. He frequently contributes commentary to international media outlets, and has published extensively on policy and human rights issues. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Janet Steele is an associate professor of journalism in the School of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University. She received a PhD in history from Johns Hopkins University and has taught courses on the theory and practice of journalism in Southeast and South Asia as a Fulbright senior scholar and lecturer. Her book, Wars Within: The Story of Tempo, an Independent Magazine in Soeharto’s Indonesia, focuses on Tempo magazine and its relationship with the politics and culture of New Order–era Indonesia. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Juliette Storr is an associate professor of communications at Pennsylvania State University, Beaver. Her scholarship focuses on international and intercultural communication with an emphasis on post-colonial media systems of the Caribbean, and includes research on the development of journalism in the Caribbean, Caribbean media production, public broadcasting, African and Caribbean diasporas, Caribbean public relations, and media representations of women and minority groups in the Caribbean. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Nicole Stremlau is coordinator of the comparative media law and policy program at the University of Oxford, where she is also a research fellow in the Centre of Socio-Legal Studies. She holds a PhD from the London School of Economics in development studies. Her research focuses on media policy during and following guerrilla struggles in the Horn of Africa. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Natalie Sykes is a JD candidate at Columbia Law School. Previously, she worked as an intern at Freedom House. She holds a master’s degree in human rights from the London School of Economics and a bachelor’s degree in international politics from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Bernard Tabaire is a media trainer and director of programs at the Kampala-based African Centre for Media Excellence, a nonprofit organization he cofounded in 2009. He is also a columnist with the Sunday Monitor, and a radio and television commentator on public and current affairs. Previously, he served as managing editor at the Daily Monitor, Uganda’s leading independent newspaper, and was a 2006–07 visiting journalist fellow at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at Oxford University. He holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology and literature in English from Makerere University in Uganda and a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Judy Taing is a senior program officer at ARTICLE 19, where she specializes in free speech on the internet, hate speech and religious intolerance, access to information, and protection of human rights defenders, particularly in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Cambodia. Judy holds a master’s degree in human rights from the London School of Economics, and a bachelor’s degree in political science and development from the University of California, Berkeley. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Kai Thaler is a PhD student in the Department of Government at Harvard University, focusing on comparative politics and international relations in Africa, Latin America, and the Lusophone countries. He has been an affiliated researcher of the Portuguese Institute of International Relations and Security, a consultant for Handicap International, a researcher at the Centre for Social Science Research at the University of Cape Town, and a research fellow at the Portuguese national archives. He holds master’s degrees in political science and sociology from Harvard University and the University of Cape Town, respectively, and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Yale University. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Michael Toomey is a lecturer of political science at Wenzhou-Kean University in Wenzhou, China. He earned his master’s degrees in international studies and European politics from the University of Limerick and Lund University, respectively, and holds a PhD in global affairs from Rutgers University. He is also a contributor to Freedom in the World. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Pedro Vaca Villareal is the executive director of the Foundation for Press Freedom in Colombia. He is an attorney specializing in constitutional law, and holds a master’s degree in law from the National University of Colombia. He has extensive experience in consulting, representing, and treating victims of human rights violations in criminal, constitutional, and international courts. Previously, he was the chairman of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX) network in Latin America and the Caribbean. He served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Cristian Vaccari is a reader in politics at Royal Holloway, University of London, and an associate professor in political science at the University of Bologna. He focuses on political communication in a comparative perspective and is the principal investigator of a comparative research project on the role of social media in citizens’ and politicians’ practices of political communication in Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom. His latest book is Digital Politics in Western Democracies: A Comparative Study. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Rebecca Vincent is a human rights activist and former U.S. diplomat who has worked on human rights issues in Azerbaijan for more than nine years. She is currently the coordinator of the Sport for Rights campaign, and has worked with a wide range of Azerbaijani and international human rights organizations. She has published widely on human rights issues in Azerbaijan for outlets including Al-Jazeera English, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Index on Censorship, and the London-based Foreign Policy Centre, where she is a research associate. She holds a master’s degree in human rights from University College London, and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of North Texas. She served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Advisers

Rosental Calmon Alves holds the Knight Chair in International Journalism and the UNESCO Chair in Communication in the School of Journalism at the University of Texas at Austin. He is also the founding director of the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas. He holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and was the first Brazilian to be awarded a Nieman Fellowship to study at Harvard University. A board member of several national and international organizations, he has been a frequent speaker and trainer as well as a consultant. He served as an Americas adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Barbara Borst teaches in master’s programs at New York University’s Journalism Institute and the Center for Global Affairs, and has extensive reporting experience from Kenya, South Africa, France, and Canada. Previously, she served as an editor at the international desk of the Associated Press. Her articles have been published by the Associated Press, the Boston Globe, the Dallas Morning News, the Denver Post, Inter Press Service, GlobalPost, and Huffington Post, among others. She received a bachelor’s degree in English from Yale University and a master’s degree in international relations from Boston University. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Jeffrey Conroy-Krutz is an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at Michigan State University, where he is also a core faculty member of the African Studies Center. He earned a PhD in political science from Columbia University. His research focuses on Africa, with particular emphasis on electoral decision-making, ethnic politics, and the media. His work has appeared in a number of peer-reviewed journals, including African Affairs, the British Journal of Political Science, Comparative Political Studies, Electoral Studies, the Journal of Modern African Studies, the Journal of Politics, and Political Research Quarterly, as well as in several edited volumes. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa adviser for Freedom of the Press.

John Dinges is the Godfrey Lowell Cabot Professor of Journalism at Columbia University and a former correspondent in Latin America. He was awarded the Maria Moors Cabot gold medal in 1992. His books include The Condor Years: How Pinochet and His Allies Brought Terrorism to Three Continents; Assassination on Embassy Row (with Saul Landau); and Our Man in Panama: The Shrewd Rise and Brutal Fall of Manuel Noriega. He was an assistant editor for the foreign desk of the Washington Post; deputy foreign editor, managing editor, and editorial director of NPR News; and was founder/director of the Centro de Investigación e Información Periodística in Chile. He served as an Americas adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Ashley Esarey is a professor of political science at the University of Alberta. His research focuses on Chinese domestic politics and international relations, political communication and digital media in China, and Taiwanese identity and democratization. He received a PhD in political science from Columbia University and held the An Wang Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies at Harvard University. He served as an Asia adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Eric Freedman is a professor of journalism and former associate dean of international studies and programs at Michigan State University. He has taught journalism as a Fulbright scholar in Lithuania and Uzbekistan, led workshops and seminars for professional journalists in Central Asia, and lectured in Singapore, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Japan and Kyrgyzstan. He is the author of numerous books, and his research interests include press systems and journalism practices in the former Soviet Union; international journalists’ professional standards and education; public affairs reporting; news coverage of human and political rights; and U.S. political history. Freedman earned his bachelor’s degree in government from Cornell University, his law degree from New York University, and his master’s degree in resource development from Michigan State University. He served as a Eurasia adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Jeffrey Ghannam is an attorney and media professional who has contributed widely to the analysis and debate about the role of digital media leading up to and following civil movements in the Arab world, including a two-part report for the National Endowment for Democracy’s Center for International Media Assistance. He has written separately on the subject for the Economist and the Washington Post. He received a Knight International Journalism Fellowship to develop programs in the Middle East and North Africa, where he has also served as a media development trainer and adviser. He previously worked at the Detroit Free Press and the New York Times. He served as a Middle East and North Africa adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Robert Lane Greene is the deputy editor for books and arts at the Economist in London, and a former adjunct assistant professor of global affairs at New York University. He holds a bachelor’s degree in international relations and history from Tulane University and a master’s degree in European politics from Oxford University, where he was a Marshall Scholar. He served as a Europe adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Peter Gross is director of the School of Journalism and Electronic Media at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. His scholarly specialization is in international communication, with a focus on Central and Eastern Europe. He helped establish a new journalism program at the University of Timisoara, Romania, and has previously served as a consultant for the International Media Fund, the Freedom Forum, and the Eurasia Foundation, among other organizations. He is the author of Entangled Evolutions: Media and Democratization in Eastern Europe, as well as five other scholarly books and three textbooks, and is the coeditor of two books, including Media Transformations in the Post-Communist World: Eastern Europe’s Tortured Path to Change. He served as a Europe and Eurasia adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Daniel C. Hallin is a professor of communications at the University of California, San Diego. His books include The “Uncensored War”: The Media and Vietnam; We Keep America on Top of the World: Television Journalism and the Public Sphere; and, with Paolo Mancini, Comparing Media Systems: Three Models of Media and Politics and Comparing Media Systems Beyond the Western World. He has also written on media and politics in Mexico and on media and political clientelism in Latin America. He served as an Americas adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Sallie Hughes is an interdisciplinary communications scholar with a specialization in Latin America, the Caribbean, and their diasporas. She is the coauthor of the book Making a Life in Multi-Ethnic Miami: Immigration and the Rise of a Global City and author of Newsrooms in Conflict: Journalism and the Democratization of Mexico. She also serves on the editorial board of the International Journal of Press/Politics. She teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in the Department of Journalism and Media Management and the Latin American Studies Program at the University of Miami. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom of the Press.

Karin Karlekar is the director of Free Expression Programs at PEN America. Prior to joining PEN, she served as director of the Freedom of the Press project. As well as acting as an expert spokesperson on press freedom issues, she has developed index methodologies and conducted training sessions on press freedom, internet freedom, freedom of expression, and monitoring of dangerous speech; authored a number of special reports and academic papers; and conducted research, assessment, and advocacy missions to Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. She has also worked as an editor at the Economist Intelligence Unit and as a consultant to Human Rights Watch, and served as chair of the governing council of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX) network. She holds a PhD in Indian history from Cambridge University and a bachelor’s degree from Vassar College. She served as an Asia-Pacific adviser for Freedom of the Press.

William Lawrence is a visiting professor at George Washington University. Previously, he served as International Crisis Group’s North Africa director and as a State Department senior adviser for global engagement. He has taught at Georgetown University, Johns Hopkins University, and Tufts University; is coauthor of After the Uprisings: Political Transition in Tunisia, Libya, and Yemen; and has published articles in Foreign Policy, the Guardian, Jeune Afrique, Figaro, Rue 89 (Nouvel Observateur), Al-Hayat, and Asharq al-Awsat, as well as for the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. He studied at Harvard University’s Center for Middle East Studies and holds a master’s degree and PhD from the Fletcher School at Tufts University. He served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Folu Ogundimu is a professor in the School of Journalism and the College of Communication Arts and Sciences at Michigan State University, East Lansing. He is coeditor of Media and Democracy in Africa, and has also worked as a senior research associate for Afrobarometer and the Center for Democracy and Development, Ghana; a research associate for the Globalization Research Center on Africa, UCLA; and a visiting professor at the University of Lagos, Nigeria. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Robert Orttung is assistant director of the Institute for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies at George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs, president of the Resource Security Institute, and a visiting scholar at the Center for Security Studies at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich. He is managing editor of Demokratizatsiya: The Journal of Post-Soviet Democratization and a coeditor of the Russian Analytical Digest and the Caucasus Analytical Digest. He received a PhD in political science from the University of California, Los Angeles. He served as a Eurasia adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Tudor Vlad is associate director of the James M. Cox Jr. Center for International Mass Communication Training and Research at the University of Georgia. He holds a PhD from the Babes-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Bucharest. He has been a consultant for the New York Times and the Russian Journalists’ Union, and a senior research adviser for Gallup World Poll. His research focuses on media systems in emerging democracies, assessments of press freedom indicators, international media assistance programs, and journalism and mass communication curriculums. He served as a Eurasia adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Peter VonDoepp is an associate professor of political science at the University of Vermont. His research focuses on African politics with specific attention to democratization issues. His most recent book, Judicial Politics in New Democracies: Cases from Southern Africa, examines judicial development in new Southern African democracies. His other published work appears in a variety of peer-reviewed journals and several edited volumes. His research has been supported by the National Science Foundation, Pew Charitable Trusts, and the Fulbright-Hays program. He received his PhD from the University of Florida. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa adviser for Freedom of the Press.

Meredith L. Weiss is an associate professor of political science at the University at Albany, SUNY. She is the author of Student Activism in Malaysia: Crucible, Mirror, Sideshow and Protest and Possibilities: Civil Society and Coalitions for Political Change in Malaysia, as well as numerous articles and book chapters. Recently, she was coeditor of Global Homophobia: States, Movements, and the Politics of Oppression and Between Protest & Powerlessness: Understanding Student Activism in Asia. Her research focuses on issues of collective identity and mobilization, sociopolitical development, civil society, human rights, and electoral politics in Southeast Asia. She served as an Asia-Pacific adviser for Freedom of the Press.