In honor of World Press Freedom Day, Dr. Esther Brimmer, Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs, and Michael Posner, Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor will participate in a panel discussion on press freedom at the U.S. Capitol Visitors Center (Room 210-12).

The event, hosted by the Congressional Caucus for Freedom of the Press and the National Endowment for Democracy’s Center for International Media Assistance, will take place on May 3, 2011 from 9 am to 10 am.

U.S. Ambassador to UNESCO David Killion will moderate the discussion that will also feature U.S. Representative Adam Schiff, Chair of the Congressional Caucus for Freedom of the Press, Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, Mariane Pearl, journalist, author, and widow of Daniel Pearl, and Wael Abbas, Egyptian journalist and blogger.

The discussion will focus on the vital role played by independent media in democratic development worldwide and how to protect new social media platforms that have proven crucial across the globe in enabling individuals to voice their opinions and access information.

This event is being organized in coordination with the World Press Freedom Day events taking place in Washington, DC, May 1-3, 2011 at the Newseum and National Press Club. It will also mark the first anniversary of the Daniel Pearl Press Freedom Act, which expands the State Department’s annual human rights reports to include information about attacks on journalists.

Media Contact:

National Endowment for Democracy

Laura Mottaz

LauraM@ned.org

202-378-9575