After 65 days in committee, a controversial media law is ready for debate by the full National Assembly, Reuters and El Comercio report. Media outlets and press groups responded by calling the bill an attack on free expression, BBC Mundo adds. read more »

A group of newspapers included an insert saying they want "respect" for the rights of citizens to freely choose their source of news, EFE reports. read more »

Some 500 editors and publishers are gathered in Buenos Aires for the Inter American Press Association's Annual Assembly, taking place Nov. 6–10. read more »

The Chamber of Deputies, supported by President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, voted to eliminate prison terms for libel and slander offenses, meeting a long-standing demand from journalism groups, La Nación reports. The law still needs to pass the Senate. read more »

An Inter American Press Association (IAPA) delegation that recently visited Quito says it is deeply concerned about a proposed law that would allow the government to control information and media content. read more »

Civil society groups organized a protest against the government's proposed broadcast law, which the Senate could approve on Friday. Organizers said 5,000 people attended, but police counted only half that number, La Nación reports. read more »

Social movements planned demonstrations in Buenos Aires and other cities against a media law proposed by the government of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, Perfil reports.

The Senate is preparing to debate the bill on Friday. The Chamber of Deputies approved the bill two weeks ago. read more »

Reforms to the Law of Journalism Practice, which are now under review by a legislative commission, will be debated by the public as well in a process called "street parliamentarism," El Universal reports. read more »

President Hugo Chavez's government considers several cable channels to be “national production” and has enacted the Radio and Television Responsibility Law requiring them to air government broadcasts, DPA and El Universal report. read more »

The lower house of Congress approved a controversial measure that would curb the power of news conglomerates and regulate TV and radio broadcasters, The Wall Street Journal and CNN report. read more »

After eight years in the Legislative Assembly, a freedom of expression bill is no closer to passage, the Inter Press Service (IPS) says.

The legislation deals with topics like source confidentiality, access to public information, and libel and slander laws. Its opponents have branded it “liberticide,” and its supporters insist Costa Rica needs to keep current with other countries in the Americas. read more »

The journalist and government-allied lawmaker Rolando Panchana planned to present a draft media law this week, which according to the constitution must be approved by Oct. 14, Radio Sucre and El Universo report. read more »

Hours before the presidential summit of the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) in Bariloche, Argentina, President Cristina Fernandez sent a draft law to Congress that would limit private ownership of broadcast frequencies, Reu read more »

The president of Venezuela’s National Journalists' Guild (CNP), William Echeverría, said the union has decided to declare a permanent state of emergency due to severe restrictions on freedom of expression, El Universal and El Nacional reports. read more »

Leaders of the opposition to Hugo Chávez's government, joined by parents, teachers, students, and university authorities, have asked the National Assembly to postpone approving the Institutional Education Act (Ley Orgánica de Educación), El Universal reports. read more »

People who publish information that is “false or manipulated” and “harms the interest of the State” or “public morals” could receive up to four years in prison under a media crime bill that will be presented to the National Assembly, El Universal reports. read more »

With the end of the university degree requirement for journalists, several commonplace - yet serious - professional practices have come under question.

One of the most controversial, especially for criminal cases, is the right to source confidentiality. read more »

Parliament members will discuss a proposed law on the cultural content of television, radio, and cinema that seeks to “defend freedom of expression” and create a cultural “ombudsman,” Últimas Noticias reports.

The law, which intends to “neither control nor censor,” would require an undefined minimum level of domestically produced content, the national director of culture, Hugo Achuga, said. It will also issue scheduling guidelines for broadcasting such content. read more »

"Right-to-know" campaigns have generated news and attention in Latin America in the last year, and three countries enacted information access laws in 2008 alone. These cases reveal the important role that the media play in promoting public awareness and influencing the resulting legislation, Greg Michener writes for FreedomInfo.org. read more »

Journalism students, professionals, and union members protested in several parts of the country against the Supreme Court's ruling to eliminate the degree requirement for journalists. read more »