Shooting a glance at the uncanny paraphernalia on my desk feels like watching a “Breaking Bad” teaser: A fist-sized rock near my monitor, a half-burnt tear gas canister on the rock, holding a pen, and a handwritten letter from a … Read more
I began writing this piece with trepidation, wondering if it would be fair to compare the president of the United States of America to a president in SyFy’s cult classic made-for-TV movie franchise “Sharknado.” Serious-sober journalistic … Read more
On July 19, Black Lives Matter Toronto activists held a press conference about the release of three demonstrators from police custody in connection with pink paint that had been thrown on three statues — including one … Read more
Some years ago, I was turning in my invoice for payment to NPR at the end of a month. I haven’t been a full-time employee at NPR, where I spent 20+ years as a producer and live-show director, since 2008. Read more
Today, nearly every African country holds multiparty elections of some kind, but – as in the case worldwide – relatively few fully respect political rights and civil liberties. This situation was already worrying before the pandemic. In 2019, advocacy group Freedom … Read more
On the morning of July 20, 2020, a group of men arrived at the Harare home of Zimbabwean journalist Hopewell Chin’ono, smashed a glass door to gain access and took him away. “They are breaking into … Read more
Many news consumers in the United States may have no idea that some of the world’s best reporting on what is happening in authoritarian societies and fragile democracies comes from news services that are funded by the U.S. government but … Read more
I’ll never forget the day the publisher spotted me as I was returning to my desk after lunch. She dressed me down in the middle of the newsroom, with more than a few of my colleagues within earshot. She scolded … Read more
On May 29, I watched in disbelief as the police handcuffed a CNN crew while broadcasting live from Minneapolis in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder. The appalling violation of freedom of the press would have … Read more
