JOURNALISM IN THE AMERICAS

By decree, authorities have banned media images of violent events — such as accidents, crimes and deaths — in order to comply with the individuals' constitutional right to privacy, El Universo reported. read more »

The man who helped coin the phrase Web 2.0 says that a recent New York Times profile of "Daily Show" host Jon Stewart is "a must-read for anyone who cares about the future of journalism." read more »

President Hugo Chávez's National Guard impeded the work of the Paraguayan press as they tried to cover the Venezuelan president during his visit to Paraguay for the inauguration of President Fernando Lugo, ABC Color reported. read more »

El Nuevo Día Orlando — the mainland edition of Puerto Rico's biggest paper that was central Florida's only Spanish-language daily — is shutting down, Editor & Publisher reported. read more »

A top government official denied that the Ecuadorean government plans to use the new constitution to appropriate 50 percent of profits generated by private radio and television stations, El Comercio reported. read more »

Elena Varela is free but under house arrest three months after she was detained and accused of being involved in 2005 attacks organized by an extremist group, La Nación reported. read more »

Singer João Gilberto, who created Bossa Nova 50 years ago, is known for his refusal to talk to the press. Folha de S.Paulo's editor, Plíno Fraga, reveals that he had to pretend he was a butler for the musician to obtain quotes in 1992, at the first concert Gilberto and Tom Jobim did together after 30 years. read more »

The Paraguayan Journalists' Forum (FOPEP) and the Knight Center held a new workshop "Journalism 2.0: the Information Revolution" for 70 Paraguayan colleagues. Brazilian journalist Carlos Castilho taught the course.

The topics included: digital journalism tools, the role of the reader as a producer of news, the employment outlook for journalists, and new journalistic values in the digital age.

FOPEP's Pedro Gómez wrote this story.

For the first time since it began teaching online courses in 2003, the Knight Center combined an online training class for journalists with traditional, face-to-face classroom sessions.

The Knight Center and Consejo de Redacción (The Newsroom Council), an investigative journalism organization, concluded the online course "Covering Armed Conflicts" at a seminar held in Bogotá, Aug. 9-10, 2008. Thirty-nine journalists from 14 cities participated. read more »

The National Journalists Guild accused the government of President Hugo Chávez of using the law as a political tool, claiming that his decrees have violated the fundamental rights of citizens, El Universal reports.

At their national convention, the journalists said the government had waged a defamation campaign against their profession, and deliberately concealed public information. read more »