Media Arts and Studies Professor David Mould presents “Publish and (maybe) Perish: The Dangers of Journalism in Shady Regimes” at Café Conversation, Sept. 28
David Mould
Journalists who cover wars, demonstrations, natural disasters and organized crime face danger in their daily work. We don’t expect journalists covering politics, business or the environment to be in peril, but in many countries they are.
In the past 20 years, as I’ve traveled in Asia and Africa, I’ve met and talked with many journalists. In most countries, official censorship has disappeared, to be replaced by more subtle controls, or indirect pressures. The cancellation of media buys by a major advertiser. A power cut at the television transmitter just before the investigative news program goes on the air. A sudden shortage of newsprint at the printing plant. The blocking of websites and blogs. A raid on a media office by the tax police to audit the books. Libel judgments with damages high enough to put a media organization out of business. The arrest of journalists on vague charges of “inciting social discord.” A late-night visit to the journalist’s home by the police or security agents.
No wonder many journalists put personal survival ahead of principles and adopt self-censorship. They know which topics are safe to cover, which are not, and, for those on the borderline, how far they can go.
I have a standard question that I ask every journalist in an interview. "Which are the topics, not specifically prohibited by law (such as military deployments or commercial intelligence), do you not report on, or report only with caution?" Join me in my Café on Sept. 28 where I will discuss some of these interesting answers.
Café Conversations are part of Ohio University’s Café Series, Wednesdays at the Baker Center Front Room. The series provides a venue for students to informally share their interests during a conversational exchange with faculty presenters, staff and the Athens community. Free coffee is offered to the first 50 attendees, and participants who ask questions can win a free t-shirt.
The series is supported by the Ohio University Research Division.
Learn more! Watch the 1-minute Café Series video:
For the schedule of fall semester speakers and access to livestreaming of the event, visit