Freedom of Expression Revisited: Citizenship and Journalism in the Digital Era. Edited by Ulla Carlsson.

Abstract

From a Canadian context, we often forget what Kaarle Nordensteng reminds us of in his essay "Deconstructing Libertarian Myths About Press Freedom" that Nordic countries "enjoy top positions in the international rankings of press freedom" (p. 45). What some call the "the Nordic model" is, as Ulla Carlsson] highlights in her introduction, its reputation for strong democracies, media transparency, and a general absence of corruption. Nonetheless, a motivating factor for many of these essays is the weakening of the Nordic model as a result of blatant deregulation, professionalization, and an allconsuming interest in entertainment over and above investigative journalism. For Carlsson there is no doubt: "critical, independent journalism is now an endangered species" (p. gilt is on this point that the most impassioned article in the volume comes to light, William Horsley's "Towards a Better World: What the North Can Do-Safety and an Enabling Environment for Journalists." For Horsley, Carlsson's idea of journalism as an endangered species has less to do with the actual craft and more to do with the safety of journalists. Horsley reminds us that both "censorship and self-censorship work, often through fear and through unseen pressures" (p. 146). If we want to protect free speech, we must not forget to protect those individuals who expose corruption for the sake of democracies around the world. Responding to Joanne Lisosky and Jennifer Henrichsen's recent book, War on Words: Who Should Protect Journalists? Horsley argues that the solution requires both national and international monitoring. In addition to good training, support, and safety equipment, we also need "the establishment of functioning systems of national law, backed up by credible international mechanisms to bring about compliance" (p. 150), when matters of press freedom are jeopardized.