Radio Free Asia

In this week's Dispatch, we take a look at the latest flare up between China and Vietnam at the disputed Paracel Islands. Subscribe here to get this newsletter delivered straight to your inbox every week:?https://lnkd.in/eRz2aaMw

Today, Sept. 29, marks the 28th anniversary of Radio Free Asia. Nearly three decades later,?as the media industry faces increasingly oppressive media laws and government-led crackdowns on independent press, RFA President and CEO Bay Fang emphasized the urgent need for the organization's journalism. Read more in this week's Dispatch, and check out RFA's full anniversary press release here: https://lnkd.in/e9RsTmwd

RFA President and CEO Bay Fang honored Hong Kong media mogul and democracy advocate Jimmy Lai on Capitol Hill last week. The bipartisan event featured Lai's son Sebastien alongside members of the Senate and the House, and spotlighted Lai's ongoing detention and the vital connection between free speech, press freedom, and democracy. Watch Bay’s featured statement here: https://lnkd.in/g4H5u-by ?

Across Myanmar, tens of thousands of young people have joined a range of anti-junta forces. RFA's Burmese Service has more in this week's Dispatch >>

Amid a global rise in AI and disinformation, the need for a standards editor in the newsroom has become crucial. As RFA is funded by the US government but retains editorial independence, the value of its reporting depends on its credibility. That’s where Steven Springer comes in. Steven joined the organization in February 2023 as its first standards editor. In this role, he works with RFA’s nine language services, its English newsroom and digital brands - often in tandem with RFA’s General Counsel - to ensure their reporting is as fair, as accurate and as impartial it can be. For Steven, journalism offers an unmatched thrill, especially when producing a vital piece of news. “I can’t imagine doing anything else,” he says. Born and raised in the Bronx, Steven is also a lifelong Yankees fan. This week, Steven participated as a guest speaker at a Georgia State University Journalism Practicum course, where he discussed his career in journalism and met with students and faculty to talk about the many issues facing news organizations around the world. (Photo credits: Gemunu Amarasinghe/RFA, Georgia State University)

Good morning.?In this week's Dispatch, we take a look at the guilty verdict and sentencing of award-winning RFA blogger Nguyen Vu Binh in Vietnam.?

RFA, PEN International, the Vietnamese Abroad PEN Centre (VNAPC), and PEN America issued the following statement condemning Vietnamese blogger Nguyen Vu Binh’s guilty verdict and sentencing to seven years in prison: https://lnkd.in/edKhPxEB

A new flashpoint has emerged in the South China Sea: The Sabina Shoal. To get The Dispatch delivered to your inbox every Friday, subscribe here: https://lnkd.in/eRz2aaMw

The North Korean embassy in Dakar was one of seven shuttered worldwide last year. Reporters from RFA's Korean Service were given a rare opportunity to visit the abandoned space. The Dispatch will return after Labor Day. Subscribe here to get it delivered straight to your inbox: https://lnkd.in/eRz2aaMw

Congratulations to RFA's Burmese service and its Investigative and Creative Teams, whose multimedia report “Under the Gun in Myanmar” was named a winner of a National Murrow Award by the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA). The winning report examines the horrific realities of life in Myanmar since the 2021 coup through data, personal stories and powerful imagery. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/e2XZ-q9n