The intimidation of journalists in the form of physical attacks, threats and initiation of legal proceedings against them has reached a peak in Naveen Patnaik's state. GEETA SESHU travelled to Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Puri, and Jajpur to file this investigation for the Hoot's Free Speech Hub.

In less than twenty days of this month there have been six assaults on journalists and one arrest in Manipur, Kerala, Kashmir, Maharashtra, Orissa and Delhi. The worrying question is what does the increase in violence signify? A HOOT editorial.

Barring editors and office bearers of the journalists' union, not a single reporter has been spared the threat calls by unidentified persons in Manipur. NINGLUN HANGHAL wonders who will tell the story of the story teller

The incidents of organized crime, political corruption, criminal acts, black marketeering, and smuggling are the issues Nepali journalists consider taboo issues to be covered. Extracts from ‘Self-censorship and Nepali media', a study report by the South Asia Media Commission-Nepal Chapter April 2010.

The nexus of wrong doers and the authorities threaten journalists because their reports jeopardize this unholy nexus. writes MD. ALI

It is important to refrain from putting the police in charge of media regulation without tempering it with the participation of civil society. Meanwhile, the media's failure to self-regulate, while damaging itself severely, is also threatening the survival of our democracy, says PADMAJA SHAW

Google has decided to tell the world how many requests it receives from governments to disclose data on its servers, and to remove data hosted on its products like Orkut or YouTube. The Hoot Desk

Draconian laws, threats, violence and even derisive television anchors – all these are deployed to curb free expression of opinions. Pseudo discussions on TV generate more heat than light, more entertainment than enlightenment, says AMMU JOSEPH.

Arundhati Roy's essay 'Walking with the Comrades,' supporting the struggle of the CPI (Maoist) in the tribal areas, was published by a mainstream, corporate-controlled Indian magazine, Outlook. How would that be possible if India were just a ‘fake' democracy, asks ROHINI HENSMAN