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Human-rights lawyer calls out Trump media vilification at press freedom gathering

Clooney says she’s grateful the two ministers are shining a light on the unprecedented dangers to journalists
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President Donald Trump listens to a question from a reporter on the South Lawn of the White House before departing for his Bedminster, N.J. golf club, Friday, July 5, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Human-rights lawyer Amal Clooney says U.S. President Donald Trump’s vilification of the media makes journalists more vulnerable to abuse around the world.

Clooney didn’t mention Trump by name but singled out the phenomenon as happening in the country of James Madison, a Founding Father who became the fourth U.S. president.

She says foreign ministers such as Britain’s Jeremy Hunt and Canada’s Chrystia Freeland need to pay more than “lip service” to media freedom.

The two countries are hosting an international conference on media freedom in London.

READ MORE: Donald Trump grants pardon to former media mogul Conrad Black

Clooney says she’s grateful the two ministers are shining a light on the unprecedented dangers to journalists around the globe but she says they need to do more than make supportive speeches.

Clooney has represented journalists imprisoned in Myanmar and the Philippines, but she says journalists have also been subjected to recent police actions in Britain and Australia.

The Canadian Press

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