In the spring of 2018, a group of volunteers began discussing how freelancers could benefit from the gains of collective bargaining. As thousands of workers have unionized with the Writers Guild of America, East and the NewsGuild-CWA, the question of how we could stand in solidarity with staff workers while advocating for our own rights […]
Sign the Petition to Save Mumia’s Eyesight
Recently the National Writers Union learned of a petition to save journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal’s vision. In 1982, he was sentenced to death after being convicted of murdering a white policeman in Philadelphia. Circumstances surrounding his trial, however, cast serious doubt on the veracity of the proceedings. Over his decades in prison, his health has deteriorated. Recently, Abu-Jamal was diagnosed with glaucoma, […]
Conference Seeks to Bolster Global Worker Rights
The International Labor Organization (ILO) renewed a Centenary Declaration for the Future of Work on June 21 in Geneva, Switzerland. The event coincided with the 100th anniversary of the Conference, where the organization adopted a new international Convention against violence and harassment at work, while vowing to hold governments accountable for violations. Sharan Burrow, general […]
A Greener Way to Write
I’d like to suggest that the NWU kick off a campaign for the membership to adopt a gentler writing lifestyle to help heal the planet. Please post in next newsletter: How can writers adopt a gentler writing lifestyle? Since the New York chapter is hosting a panel discussion in November on “Writing to Save the […]
Police “Confiscate a Newsroom” to Try to Reveal a Confidential Source
On Friday, May 10, ten San Francisco police officers and two FBI agents raided the home of freelance journalist and videographer Bryan Carmody. They showed up with sledge hammers and battering rams with guns drawn, and a search warrant looking for “stolen or embezzled” property. In reality, they were not so much looking for a […]
World Press Freedom Day 2019 – Support the IFJ Convention on the Safety and Protection of Media Workers
Lyra had worked at the Belfast Telegraph, was a member of the National Union of Journalists UK and Ireland and was a freelancer and novelist. She was killed after a gunman, apparently with the New IRA, fired shots towards the police. She was standing nearby, reporting live from the scene.
IFJ at UNCSW63: Journalism and Media Workers at Risk
An IFJ survey of 400 women journalists in 50 countries found that “almost one in two women journalists have suffered sexual harassment, psychological abuse, online trolling and others forms of gender-based violence while working.”
Follow Ongoing Events at the UN Commission on the Status of Women
Journalists face daily threats of being attacked, imprisoned, threatened and harassed for doing their job. A survey of over 400 women journalists in 50 countries by the International Federation of Journalists showed that “almost one in two women journalists have suffered sexual harassment, psychological abuse, online trolling and others forms of gender-based violence while working.” […]
Manuel Duran Wins Temporary Stay of Deportation
Last August, the NWU Delegate Assembly passed a resolution in support of journalist Manuel Duran Ortega, a Salvadoran immigrant seeking asylum in the US. Duran Ortega was a TV reporter in El Salvador who became a respected journalist in Memphis, TN, writing for the Spanish-language publication Memphis Noticias. While wearing a press badge and reporting at […]
16 Days Against Gender-Based Violence
Almost two-thirds of women journalists have been subjected to online abuse, according to a new IFJ survey. Respondents reported various forms of harassment, including death or rape threats, insults, the devaluation of their work, sexist comments, being the recipient of obscene images, cyberbullying, cyberstalking, and account impersonation. Among those who suffered online harassment, the survey suggests, […]
NWU is the sole provider of IFJ Press Passes to freelance journalists in the U.S.