[JURIST] The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) [advocacy website] has released its annual Attacks on the Press report [text], expressing concern about increased censorship of journalists worldwide in 2011. The CPJ criticized the growing trend of government censorship, especially Internet censorship. It indicated that imprisonment of journalists has gone up 20 percent worldwide in the last year, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa. Among the imprisoned, most face anti-state or censorship charges. The group called for a global movement to end censorship, which it argues threatens the safety of individuals within a country, and strengthens authoritarian governments and criminal enterprises.

Last May, journalism rights group Reporters without Borders (RSF) [advocacy website] released [JURIST report] its annual list of predators of press freedom [materials; press release], which included the heads of state of several countries in the Middle East and North Africa. In April 2011, the US Department of State (DOS) [official website] released its 2010 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices [materials]. The reports cited many of the same leaders and organizations [JURIST report] as the RSF for violating freedom of the press. RSF’s 2010 report [JURIST report] also listed many of the same offenders.