Thursday, May 1 - 12:00-2:00 p.m.
Lunch will be served from 12:00-12:30 p.m.

Radio Free Asia
2025 M Street NW, Suite 300
Washington, DC 20036
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Every single newspaper, radio station, and television broadcast in Vietnam is officially controlled by the Vietnamese Communist Party or government. But thanks to social media and news outlets based outside the country, Vietnamese citizens are increasingly gaining access to independent sources of news.

Faced with a rapidly changing media landscape, Vietnam’s authorities rely on a combination of restrictive laws, Internet controls and outright repression to stifle the free flow of information. Vietnam is second in the world only to China in the number of jailed netizens.

Given the economic impacts of a stifled Internet, online censorship is not only a human rights issue but increasingly a business issue. The business ramifications of Internet censorship have increasingly come to the forefront as the U.S. and Vietnamese government negotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

In marking World Press Freedom Day, join bloggers from Vietnam and other experts working to expand freedom of expression for a discussion on the challenges and opportunities in promoting a free media in Vietnam.

Featuring:

Vietnam-based bloggers and digital activists
- Ngo Nhat Dang, BBC contributor and independent journalist
- Le Thanh Tung (Anthony Le), independent journalist
- Nguyen Dinh Ha, blogger and digital activist
- Nguyen Thi Kim Chi, playwright and actress
- Nguyen Tuong Thuy, blogger
- To Oanh, independent journalist

Scott Busby
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor

Do Hoang Diem
Chairman, Viet Tan

Jon Fox
Global Advocacy Manager, Access

Libby Liu
President, Radio Free Asia

Meredith Whittaker
Program Manager, Google