"If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear"
George Orwell
The influence of Iran’s clerical regime extends into the West, where it poses a growing threat to Iranian dissidents in exile and to Jewish communities. In its efforts to exert influence, the regime has at times benefited from alliances on the political left — a pattern that is particularly visible in France.
When church leaders turn a blind eye to the persecution of Christians while opening the door to symbolic displays of power, it is not tolerance. It is a sign of pre-emptive capitulation.
Ideological conformity, activist journalism and a widening disconnect from readers are pushing the embattled newspaper deeper into both financial decline and a crisis of credibility.
Raymond Ibrahim documents the persecution of Christians and the role of religion in contemporary conflicts — a body of work that has earned him not only criticism and attempts to silence him, but also the Danish Free Press Society’s Freedom of Expression Award, the Sappho Prize, which he will receive on Saturday, 21 March.
Starmer’s handling of the Iran war reveals a weakened Britain that no longer speaks with one clear voice. The question is whether political and demographic changes are beginning to reshape British politics.
Why the wording of the news is one of the most powerful – and least noticed – tools of political influence.
Chairman Aia Fog and Deputy Chairman Michael Pihl of Danish Free Press Society comments on The Free Speech Union and their obvious lack of interest in supporting the working class.
Freedom of expression is under tremendous strain. Nationally and globally, writers, artists and politicians are threatened upon their lives and/or with their livelihoods, or sued in court for expressing particular views. Fear, self-censorship and oppressive anti-defamation laws are in the process of undermining our main liberty: Freedom of expression.
The Free Press Society’s freedom of expression prize, the Sappho Award, is awarded to a person who has shown uncompromising courage in the struggle for the free word.
