World Press Freedom Day Awards

Mark Steyn is one of the finalists for this year's World Press Freedom prize. This is great news, because even if he does not win, it signals that the news establishment recognizes that the human rights complaints against Maclean's Magazine represent a threat to freedom of the press and that concern has moved beyond the echo chamber of conservative columnists and the Right side of the blogosphere.

OTTAWA, April 10 /CNW Telbec/ - Four Canadian journalists who have stood
up to threats to freedom of expression in Canada are the finalists for an
annual World Press Freedom prize.
   Toronto Star Asia Correspondent Bill Schiller, freelance journalist and
author Derek Finkle, reporters Joel-Denis Bellavance and Gilles Toupin of
Montreal's La Presse and Maclean's columnist Mark Steyn will be considered for
the $2,000 prize, which is awarded each year to the Canadian media worker who,
in the view of the jury, has made the most significant contribution to press
freedom in this country over the previous 12 months.
   The prize will be awarded by the Canadian Committee for World Press
Freedom at a lunch event marking World Press Freedom Day on Friday, May 2nd at
the National Arts Centre in Ottawa.


I bought myself a ticket yesterday.  All of the finalists have faced
some aspect of the growing threats to press freedom, whether human
rights complaints, pressure to reveal sources, or defamation suits
to stop investigative journalism. As the Blogger-5 (or six if
Connie and Mark Fournier of Free Dominion count as two) face a
defamation suit, these laws also have to be re-examined as well as
human rights laws and regimes.

This luncheon will attract the media elite of Ottawa. I would advise
anyone who wants to be there to order their ticket now.

Information on how to do so via the web or over the phone is
here: www.ccwpf-cclpm.ca