RFE/RL condemns six year sentence for Ukrainian Service journalist Vladyslav Yesypenko

16 February 2022

RFE/RL condemns six year sentence for Ukrainian Service journalist Vladyslav Yesypenko

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) condemns today’s sentencing of RFE/RL freelance journalist Vladyslav Yesypenko to six years in prison by a Russian-controlled court in occupied Crimea.

Said RFE/RL President Jamie Fly, “This judgement against Vladyslav is a travesty. As a journalist doing nothing more than reporting the facts, he should never have been detained in the first place, much less put through the physical and mental torture that he has endured over the past eleven months. Vladyslav needs to be returned home to his wife and daughter immediately.”

Yesypenko, a dual Russian-Ukrainian citizen who contributes to Crimea.Realities, a regional news outlet of RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service, was detained by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) in Simferopol on March 10, 2021, on suspicion of collecting information for Ukrainian intelligence. Yesypenko left Crimea for mainland Ukraine with his wife, Kateryna, following the 2014 Russian annexation, where she gave birth to their daughter, Stephania; he would later return to Crimea periodically to report for RFE/RL on the social and environmental situation on the peninsula.

Following his detention, Yesypenko was brutally tortured by Russian FSB officers, to force him to make a false ‘confession’ on Russian television. Yesypenko was formally charged with possession and transport of explosives on July 15, 2021. He pleaded not guilty, facing up to 18 years in prison if convicted. The indictment made no mention of espionage or work for Ukrainian intelligence, as stated previously by the FSB.

Speaking at the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington on October 21, 2021, Yesypenko’s wife read out an appeal from her husband. In the letter dictated from his jail cell, Yesypenko called on U.S. President Joe Biden and U.S. lawmakers to do more to free the more than 100 political prisoners detained by the FSB over their activities in Crimea.

Sixteen Ukrainian human rights NGOs, Ukrainian Ombudswoman Lyudmyla Denisova, and the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv have denounced the verdict in online statements, as has Reporters Without Borders. In December 2021 Amnesty International launched an online petition demanding Yesypenko’s immediate release. Press-freedom advocates, including the Committee to Protect Journalists, along with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and the U.S. State Department, are among those who have called for the same in the absence of any evidence of wrongdoing.
[Source: RFE/RL press release]

Thomas Fenton appointed Deputy Director at France 24

10 February 2022

Thomas Fenton appointed Deputy Director at France 24

Marie-Christine Saragosse, CEO of France Médias Monde, has appointed Thomas Fenton as Deputy Director of France 24, in charge of the English service. He will take up his post on March 4, 2022.

A French-American graduate of Duke University in the United States, Thomas Fenton has spent his entire career working for major international news networks. He joined CNN in 1986, where for 26 years he successively held the positions of Deputy Managing International Editor in Atlanta, Bureau Chief in Frankfurt and Jerusalem, Executive Producer in London, and Managing Editor for the Middle East in Abu Dhabi.

In 2011, he joined Al Jazeera as Executive Producer in Doha and then in New York. In 2019, he was called by CBS to help relaunch the CBS Evening News. For the past year, he has been Story Editor for “The Take”, an AJ English-language flagship podcast. Thomas Fenton has received numerous awards, including three Emmy Awards for CNN (1993, 2001, and 2012) for coverage of events during the wars in Somalia, Sierra Leone, and the Egyptian revolution.

Three international broadcasters face online silence in Turkey

10 February 2022

Three international broadcasters face online silence in Turkey

Three international broadcasters have been told their online services in Turkey will be silenced unless they apply for licences.

DW, Voice of America and Euronews all face online blackouts in Turkey unless they apply for licences within 72 hours of an announcement made by Turkey’s media regulator RTUK on 9 February 2022.

“A decision was taken with a majority of votes that 72 hours be granted to the websites of amerikaninsesi.com, dw.com/tr, and tr.euronews.com to get licenses,” Ilhan Tasci, a member of RTUK’s board, said on Twitter.

Licences for online broadcasting cost 13,375 Turkish Lira (€865) for radio and 133,750 Turkish Lira (€8648) for television. Licences are granted for ten year periods.

A new law came into force in 2019 that requires all broadcasters delivering online radio or TV services to apply for a licence, as well as establishing a Turkey-based company to represent them. It is unclear which services have already acquired licences as the RTUK website does not appear to provide details of licensees. Reports carried in the Turkish press suggest that streaming services Netflix and Amazon Prime acquired licences in 2020 to cover their Turkish operations.

According to the International Press Institute, the regulator’s “decision puts international independent media operating in Turkey online under state scrutiny and risks making them the target of fines and even broadcast bans.”

Voice of America spokesperson Bridget Serchak said: “VOA believes any governmental efforts to silence news outlets is a violation of press freedom, a core value of all democratic societies.

“Should the Turkish government formally block our websites, VOA will make every effort to ensure that its Turkish-speaking audience retains access to a free and open internet using all available methods.”

A DW spokesman said: “We have learned from the media about a possible decision by the RTÜK that could also have implications for DW.”

“However, we will be able to make a conclusive analysis and decide how to proceed only once we have received official notification from the authority.”

Turkey is a signatory to the European Convention of Transfrontier Television. This allows TV channels licensed in another ECTT signatory country to broadcast in Turkey, and Turkish channels to broadcast in all other ECTT signatory nations. Turkey operates international news channel TRT WORLD that is available on cable, satellite and online platforms in territories worldwide.

BBC files urgent complaint to UN against Iranian harassment against BBC News Persian staff

10 February 2022

BBC files urgent complaint to UN against Iranian harassment against BBC News Persian staff

Escalating security concerns see BBC file urgent complaint to UN against Iran’s ongoing harassment of BBC News Persian journalists and their families

The BBC has today filed an urgent complaint against Iran with the United Nations over ongoing harassment and sanctions against BBC News Persian journalists and their families in Iran. The urgent complaint is made amid escalating security concerns after a year in which Iran has conducted unlawful, extra-territorial operations against journalists and dissidents.

The urgent complaint comes as Liliane Landor, Senior Controller of BBC International News and Director of World Service, and Rozita Lotfi, Head of BBC News Persian, today address the Third Global Conference for Media Freedom being held in Tallinn, hosted by the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

For more than a decade Iran has targeted BBC News Persian journalists and their families. Journalists have not been able to return to Iran for fear of arrest, while family members have been subjected to travel bans, interrogated and arbitrarily detained.

Based on interviews with staff members about incidents in the last year, including since the new Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi took office, the new UN complaint filed today reveals a concerning increase in harassment and security risk. The BBC has reported to the UN:

Increased security concerns for BBC News Persian journalists in the light of extra-territorial threats, including in the UK and in third countries;
Increased harassment of family members in Iran;
Increased financial pressure from the ongoing asset freeze, which operates as a blunt financial sanction against BBC News Persian journalists and their extended families;
Increased intelligence and counter-intelligence activity aimed at undermining the professional reputation of BBC News Persian and its journalists;
Increased and continued online attacks and online violence, particularly directed at women journalists;
The BBC has requested urgent action from UN experts, that the matter be communicated to Iran and that the protection of BBC News Persian journalists be raised at the UN Human Rights Council.

Liliane Landor, Senior Controller of BBC News International Services and Director of World Service said: “We appeal to the UN and the international community to continue to condemn Iran for their unacceptable treatment of our BBC News Persian colleagues. There have been escalating actions and threats, including an asset freeze which penalises the journalists and their families, online harassment, gendered attacks on women journalists and death threats. It must stop. The BBC will continue to speak up for its journalists who should be free to carry out their jobs without fear of threats or intimidation towards them or their families in Iran.”

Caoilfhionn Gallagher QC and Jennifer Robinson (Doughty Street Chambers), Counsel for BBC World Service, said: “We know from Iran’s past actions that it is willing to take cross-border and deadly action to silence its critics, and that it perceives independent journalism about Iran as a risk to their power. Our clients from BBC News Persian receive threats of death and violence simply for doing their jobs – simply for being journalists. We call on the United Nations experts and the Human Rights Council to take swift, robust action to hold Iran to account and ensure that BBC News Persian journalists can report without fear.”

The NUJ’s national broadcasting organiser, Paul Siegert, said: “It is a sad state of affairs that in 2022 these kind of attacks and abuse against individuals are still an on–going problem. Journalists and their families are being threatened just because of the job they do. It has to stop. Our members will not be silenced and will not stop doing their jobs. We once again call on the Iranian government to put a halt to this unacceptable behaviour.”

“Joelle Unfiltered”, the MENA region’s first reality TV show on Shahid VIP

9 February 2022

“Joelle Unfiltered”, the MENA region’s first reality TV show on Shahid VIP

Shahid VIP – the world’s leading Arabic SVOD streaming platform, and part of MBC GROUP – announces the arrival of the region’s very first reality TV show by Shahid Originals.

“Joelle Unfiltered” – starring Joelle Mardinian – is set to offer viewers a no holds barred look into the life of the star TV presenter and beauty mogul. Promising an insight into her life like never before, “Joelle Unfiltered” will showcase many aspects of Mardinian’s life, including her blended family, demanding career, very personal moments, and the challenges involved in juggling her business empire.

And to celebrate the programme’s debut this month, Shahid VIP hosted a special preview and press conference at DREAM restaurant in Dubai, that gathered Mardinian and her family alongside the region’s press, and influencers.

COMPLETELY UNFILTERED

Discussing the show, Mardinian told the audience that she would describe “Joelle Unfiltered” as an edutainment show, stating: “First, there’s the professional aspect, of which the show offers a focus on what it takes to run successful businesses – including how to establish, launch, and manage small ventures, investments, and larger commercial projects – while balancing fame and the social media aspect. Viewers will get to see all the massive challenges involved in the fashion, beauty, and lifestyle sectors, and just what really goes into it.”

“Joelle Unfiltered” will include snippets of her blended family – providing an example of how families can successfully manage co-parenting and shedding light on her journey with adopting her youngest son. The show will take viewers to several locations as well – including Dubai, London, and the Maldives – and will also offer an insight into personal moments, such as Mardinian’s fears, sorrows, anxieties, success and more.

She continued: “While it is ‘unfiltered’ I am keen to point out that it also remains in line with the values and traditions of our society. The unfiltered aspect relates to showcasing the realities of my life – balancing motherhood and family with career, the fame, and my journey – it’s not all glitz and glamour as people may initially think.

“MBC GROUP has forever been a pioneer in unrivalled family entertainment, and I cannot wait for everyone to check out the show on Shahid VIP.”

ONE OF TV’S BIGGEST STARS

With nearly 18.5 million followers on Instagram alone, Mardinian is one of the Arab world’s biggest TV stars, having graced MBC’s channels with a number of lifestyle shows for over ten years now.

She’s also a successful businesswoman, known for Joelle Group, a leading beauty multi-conglomerate that includes Maison de Joelle, Clinica Joelle, and Joelle Paris.

Offering a final note on her upcoming reality show, Mardinian said: “I hope it inspires viewers and encourages them to chase their dreams and be creative. I hope it showcases how women can be empowered through their career, family support, and important partnerships and relationships.

“And as I have mentioned earlier, don’t be fooled by the glamour of it all… Of course, there are lots of highlights, but life does not just comprise happiness and luxury, and I am keen to showcase the reality of this lifestyle.

“Success definitely does not arrive overnight – there has been a lot of blood, sweat, and tears – stress, fatigue, plenty of late nights, and so much more. This is a 360-degree view of my life.”

“Joelle Unfiltered” has been in the making for 4 years, and debuts on Shahid VIP on 14 February 2022.

Shahid and Shahid VIP are part of MBC GROUP, the largest and leading media company in the MENA region.

[Source: Shahid press release]

Cheryl Lai appointed chairperson of RTI

9 February 2022

Cheryl Lai appointed chairperson of RTI

Distinguished media executive Cheryl Lai has been appointed as the new chairperson of Radio Taiwan International (RTI), Taiwan’s national broadcaster. RTI announced the appointment on Wednesday after a meeting of the board of directors and other senior figures.

Lai is a senior media executive who has held many important roles in Taiwan’s media and cultural sectors. She previously served as RTI’s president from 2003 to 2006. Lai was the Editor-in-Chief of the Central News Agency, the Director of the Cultural Division of the Taipei Representative Office in the UK, and the Editor of the Thinking Taiwan Forum. She is also a consultant to The Cultural Taiwan Foundation.

Culture Minister Lee Yung-te says he believes Lai’s leadership will enable RTI to continue to play a key role in Taiwan’s connection to the world and to allow Taiwan’s voice to be heard in the global community.

RTI is the only broadcaster that provides print, audio, and video news and features about Taiwan in 14 languages. Its programs have won many top awards at Taiwan’s Golden Bell Awards, the New York Festivals Radio Awards and the UK’s Association for International Broadcasting. The station also works with the Voice of America and the BBC in their programming.

Lee is also thanking the outgoing board of directors and supervisors for their contribution. He says that the new board has many outstanding executives who can lend their expertise in broadcasting, culture, finance and public affairs to bring RTI to new heights.