Journalists are increasingly facing legal intimidation designed to silence public interest reporting.
The fear of costly and reputationally damaging lawsuits can discourage publication or force journalists to remove important stories altogether.
When legal pressure fuels self-censorship, public-interest stories that most need scrutiny – such as those exposing corruption, human rights abuses, environmental harm and wrongdoing by powerful actors – go untold. This weakens public debate, undermines democratic accountability, and allows powerful actors to operate with impunity.
Understanding legal risks and how to mitigate them is essential for journalists to continue reporting safely, ethically and with confidence in an increasingly hostile environment.
In response, we’ve developed a series of guides with practical pre-publication review checklists, helping journalists to:
- Minimise legal risks
- Report ethically, accurately and fairly
- Strengthen defences against unfair legal sanctions
These guides have been shaped by our global media development work, drawing on real-world challenges and needs identified through direct engagement with media professionals on the ground.
They address the potential legal risks arising from defamation, privacy, data protection, safeguarding, and AI, providing both global and region-specific checklists.
While these precautions may not prevent lawsuits, they can help journalists to publish stories from a position of strength, limit their exposure and raise a reasonable defence before a court if legal action is brought against them.
Share
Explore the reports
The guides are available in English, Spanish, Russian and Belarusian (language availability varies by guide).
years
We have over four decades of experience supporting independent media and training journalists to report on critical issues accurately and impartially.
journalists trained
We have promoted the highest standards in journalism to thousands of reporters worldwide and established a global alumni network.
newsrooms supported
Since 2025, we have worked with more than 100 independent newsrooms worldwide, running programmes that combine editorial, business, management, AI and legal support.
One of the biggest threats to press freedom is self censorship. Incorporating the guidelines within our editorial workflow has helped our journalists move from fear to confidence, it gives us clear guidelines on issues like privacy and defamation which journalists were afraid of. This is one of the tools that has strengthened our editorial standards as a community radio station.
We referred to the pre-publication review guide often, especially in the last stages of editing my investigation that was published last year. It helped us even at the point when we consulted lawyers for legal review. When they received the piece, because we had already done our checks, they did not have a lot of flags on it and so our interaction with the legal team was smooth. It was very helpful in thinking through all the possible oversights that we could have had, especially in the adrenaline of reporting and writing.
About our approach
The ‘Before you publish’ resource collection series forms part of our work to bolster the resilience of independent media by raising awareness of evolving threats and empowering key actors to effectively respond to them.
Related services and resources
Legal Service for Independent Media
Legal Network for Journalists at Risk
Formed in partnership with the Committee to Protect Journalists and Media Defence in…
Read more
Weaponisation of the Law
Our suite of resources identifying key legal threats to the profession of journalism.
Read more
Media Development Services
We provide a range of services that empower journalists and newsrooms to advance their skills and…
Read more