World Press Freedom Day 2023
The UO-UNESCO Crossings Institute at the UN headquarters for the 2023 World Press Freedom Day events.
L-to-R, F-to-B: Maxwell Ely, Nishtha Yadav, Berit Thorson, Charlie Deitz, Ruby Wool, Erica Pulley, Emma Johnston, Zach Jones Neuray, Dr. Peter Laufer. Missing from the picture is Nahla Bendefaa.
World Press Freedom Day conferences offer opportunities for journalists, researchers and other members of the media from around the world to discuss the diverse, global challenges to the freedom of the press. This year, events include discussions about initiatives to protect journalists in Latin America and the Caribbean, about content moderation and free speech, and about weaponizing the law to attack media freedom.
These events mark the 30 years since the UN General Assembly’s decision proclaiming an international day for press freedom. This anniversary edition of World Press Freedom Day will include a full day of activities at the UN Headquarters on May 2.
Journalists with the Crossings Institute have attended World Press Freedom Day events for 12 years, with a new group of students reporting each year. The 2023 cohort of UO School of Journalism and Communication students have diverse backgrounds and skillsets, including multimedia, writing, and social media journalism, with focuses on climate change, business, incarceration, and the Global South.
News
Meet the Team
The 2023 World Press Freedom Day conference in New York City is covered by seven student journalists from the University of Oregon-UNESCO Crossings Institute for Conflict-sensitive Reporting and Intercultural Dialogue. The journalists attend and report on the daily sessions and events, which cover a range of topics relating to global press freedom.
The team is led by UO James Wallace Chair Professor of Journalism Peter Laufer, co-director of the Crossings Institute, and Charlie Deitz, another journalism professor at the UO, serves as managing editor.
You can listen to some of our news correspondents reflect on their experiences reporting on the WPFD conference below.
Peter Laufer, Ph.D.
Co-Director of the Crossings Institute
Dr. Peter Laufer is the James Wallace Chair Professor in Journalism, School of Journalism and Communication. Laufer’s writing focuses on borders, migration, identity, and animal rights.
Charlie Deitz, Ph.D.
Managing Editor
Nishtha Yadav
News Correspondent
Nishtha Yadav is a doctoral student at the University of Oregon, School of Journalism and Communication. Yadav has served as a 2020-21 Princeton in Africa Fellow and has over a decade of experience in journalism and communication.
Erica Pulley
News Correspondent
Erica Pulley is a doctoral student at the University of Oregon, School of Journalism and Communication. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies and a Master of Arts in Broadcast Communication Arts. Pulley is producing and editing highlight reels of UNESCO World Press Freedom Day 2023 plenaries and events in NYC.
Nahla Bendefaa
Website Content Manager
Nahla Bendefaa is a digital content creator, strategist, and project management consultant based in Eugene, OR. Her work has spanned quasi-governmental organizations, public radio and non-profit journalism, corporate communications, and higher education administration.
Berit Thorson
News Correspondent
Berit Thorson is a journalism master’s student telling stories at the intersection of systems and individuals. Her interest in climate change and the prison system has led her to tell the story of incarcerated wildland firefighters in Oregon.
Berit shares her experience as a photojournalist and Day 1 of the WPFD events
Ruby Wool
News Correspondent
Ruby Wool is an avid journalist from the University of Oregon’s School of Journalism and Communication. She is passionate about social justice issues and their impact on the global world. Wool believes that diversity and multiculturalism support progress and effect change.
Ruby reflects on interviewing J. Ivy on Day 2
Maxwell Ely
Digital Editor
Maxwell Ely is a communications professional and researcher from Oregon, United States. Ely has expertise in public diplomacy, social media management, public relations planning, media relations, copywriting, and copyediting. He will work alongside the institute’ news correspondent as a digital editor for the 2023 UNESCO World Press Freedom Day.
Maxwell reflects on how his SOJC courses helped him be a vital member of the WPFD team
Emma Johnston
News Correspondent
Emma Johnston is a Journalism and Global Studies student at the University of Oregon with an interest in international relations and global supply chain advocacy. Through her public relations work for the Mills International Center, she publicizes and organizes events to bring domestic and international students together. Johnston is a Crossing Institute contributing writer and reporter for 2023 World Press Freedom Day events.
Emma discusses what she took away from her visit to NYC for WPFD23
Zachary Jones Neuray
News Correspondent
Zachary Jones Neuray is a reporter based in the Pacific Northwest, originally from Brussels, Belgium. Jones Neuray’s multicultural background cemented his passion for cross cultural storytelling. Throughout his career, Jones Neuray has been a contributor on the Daily Emerald, served on Carolyn Long’s 2018 midterm campaign, and reported with the Catalyst Solutions Journalism Project.