19 Dec 2019 | Index in the Press
A researcher who lost her job at a thinktank after tweeting that transgender women cannot change their biological sex has lost a test case because her opinions were deemed to be “absolutist”.
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Forstater has been supported by Index on Censorship. Its chief executive, Jodie Ginsberg, has said previously: “From what I have read of [Forstater’s] writing, I cannot see that Maya has done anything wrong other than express an opinion that many feminists share – that there should be a public and open debate about the distinction between sex and gender.”
Read the full story here.
19 Dec 2019 | Press Releases
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“They like to think of themselves as strongmen but what, in fact, they are doing is channeling the worst kind of machismo,” writes Index on Censorship editor-in-chief Rachael Jolley.
In the winter issue published today Index reports on how macho leaders, from Trump and Johnson to Modi and Bolsonaro, protect their fragile egos by stifling dissent, debate and democracy.
Jolley continues: “They are extremely uncomfortable with public criticism. They would rather hold a Facebook ‘press conference’ where they are not pressed than one where reporters get to push them on details they would rather not address.”
All around the world, these so called “strong men” have stormed the polls and are coming to power. Many are being voted in democratically, but they don’t believe in freedom of speech, and are actively eroding it. “Right now these techniques are coming at us from all around the globe, as if one giant algorithm is showing them the way,” writes Jolley as part of a special report on this global trend.
In this issue news editor Miriam Grace Go of Filipino news publication Rappler writes about how the president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, tries to show his strength by being as foul-mouthed as possible. If you’re a critical journalist – and especially a woman journalist – as she is, what can you expect?
Indian journalist Somak Goshal reports on how people are being labelled as “Pakistani terrorists” for not showing “patriotism”. And Stefano Pozzebon talks to journalists in Brazil who are right in the firing line of Jair Bolsonaro’s attacks on the media, and who are now hiring security guards.
Mark Frary reviews the tools that autocrats are using to crush dissent and Caroline Lees looks at smears that are used as a tactic to silence journalists and other critics. We also publish a poem from Hong Kong writer Tammy Lai-ming Ho, which addresses the current protests engulfing the city, plus two short stories written exclusively for the magazine by Kaya Genç and Jonathan Tel.
Editor’s Notes: Index on Censorship Magazine
For interviews contact: [email protected]
Since its establishment in 1972, Index on Censorship magazine has published some of the greatest names in literature including Samuel Beckett, Nadine Gordimer, Mario Vargas Llosa, Hilary Mantel and Kurt Vonnegut. It also has published some of the greatest campaigning writers of our age from Vaclav Havel to Amartya Sen and Ariel Dorfman plus journalism from Mexico, Argentina, South Africa, China, India, Turkey and more. Editor Rachael Jolley was named British Society of Editors’ editor of the year in the specialist publication category (2016) and the magazine has received numerous awards including the APEX Award for Excellence and the Hermann Kesten prize.
Digital editions are on sale at exacteditions.com/indexoncensorship
Print copies of the magazine are also on sale at BFI, Serpentine Gallery and MagCulture (London), News from Nowhere (Liverpool), Home (Manchester) and Red Lion Books (Colchester).
Launch Event
Shake off the post New Year blues with drinks, snacks and debate at Index on Censorship’s winter magazine launch. Guest speakers include Xiaolu Guo, Dora Papp, Lindsey Hilsum and Rob Sears. The event will be hosted by Index editor-in-chief Rachael Jolley on Wednesday 15 January at Google’s London HQ. For media invitations please email: [email protected]
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18 Dec 2019 | Campaigns -- Featured, Statements
Jodie Ginsberg to join Internews Europe as CEO
Index on Censorship chief executive Jodie Ginsberg will step down in early 2020 after five and a half years in the role, Index said on Wednesday. The board, chaired by Trevor Phillips since 2018, will launch the search for a new chief executive shortly.
Since joining in 2014, Jodie has re-established Index’s credentials as one of the preeminent advocates for freedom of expression worldwide. Innovations at Index under her tenure include the development of Mapping Media Freedom, an extensive new media monitoring project; the launch of Free Speech is For Me, a US and UK scheme to create new on-campus champions for free speech; and the establishment of a fundraising arm in the United States. Index is also playing a significant role as a thought leader in the digital space, particularly in debates around online content.
“It has been a pleasure and a privilege to lead Index for the past half decade,” Jodie Ginsberg said. “When I first took on this role, people asked me why we still needed to defend free speech. Having watched threats to journalists, activists and online speech rise globally in the past five years – and especially in supposedly democratic countries – I am no longer asked that question. I am proud to have helped lead the fight back against rising censorship.”
Before joining Index, Jodie worked for more than a decade as a journalist for Thomson Reuters where she led the UK bureau for several years. She leaves Index to join Internews Europe as CEO.
Trevor Phillips OBE, chair of Index on Censorship, said:
“Jodie has brought stability and focus to Index; and she has established our voice as both distinct and significant. She leaves us with a dedicated and committed team, and the foundations for a strong future.”
David Aaronovitch, chair of Index on Censorship 2013 – 2018, said:
“Jodie has been an inspirational and eloquent champion of free expression at Index. She understood from the earliest moment that this was a unique organisation that wouldn’t compromise in championing the right of journalists, artists and other citizens to say what they wanted and needed to say. It was a pleasure to work alongside her.”
Index on Censorship, founded in 1972, is one of the world’s leading free speech organisations, publishing work by censored writers and artists in its award-winning magazine and celebrating those who tackle censorship through its annual Freedom of Expression Awards. Current and previous contributors, patrons and supporters include Margaret Atwood, Nadine Gordimer, Vaclav Havel, and Elif Shafak.
18 Dec 2019 | In the News, Index in the Press
Venice is drowning, Brazil is burning, the ice caps are melting. With these stark realities, the age of climate change denial might finally be coming to a close. But don’t rejoice just yet. The climate conversation still has a way to go. At the recent COP25 meeting in Madrid, Brazil and Saudi Arabia tried to block the words “climate urgency” being used in the UN. But censorship is just the bluntest of many tools being employed to silence climate activists…
Read the full story in the Independent from Jemimah Steinfeld, Index on Censorship Deputy Magazine Editor
