Compare: who did what, when: secrets and espionage laws

Each row is a tactic and each column a country. A cell lists the dated incidents in which that country's government used that tactic, with the head of government at the time and the outcome. Every incident links to its sources.

17 incidents, 7 tactics, 7 countries.

Tactics by country
Tactic	Australia	Egypt	Hong Kong	Myanmar	Nigeria	United States	Zimbabwe
Licensing and closure of outlets			December 15, 2025 China (Hong Kong): conviction and 20-year sentence of the media owner Jimmy Lai under the National Security Law, 2025 to 2026. John Lee. Sustained
Prior restraint						December 19, 1941 United States creates an Office of Censorship and a wartime code for the press. Franklin D. Roosevelt. Sustained. Issue of the day: The United States had just entered the Second World War after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, and the government wanted to prevent newspapers and broadcasters from unintentionally publishing information useful to enemy forces. June 15, 1971 United States government seeks an injunction to stop The New York Times publishing the Pentagon Papers. Richard Nixon. Reversed. Issue of the day: The Pentagon Papers documented decades of internal government decision-making on the Vietnam War that contradicted public statements by several administrations, and the Nixon administration sought to prevent further disclosure of the classified history.
Secrets and espionage laws	June 5, 2019 Australian Federal Police raid the national broadcaster over reporting on alleged war crimes in Afghanistan. Scott Morrison. Reversed. Issue of the day: ABC's 2017 "Afghan Files" reporting on allegations that Australian special forces soldiers killed people in breach of the laws of armed conflict.	December 29, 2013 Egypt arrests and later convicts three Al Jazeera journalists on terrorism-related charges. Adly Mansour. Reversed. Issue of the day: The Egyptian military's July 2013 removal of President Mohamed Morsi and the government's subsequent designation of his Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization.	December 15, 2025 China (Hong Kong): conviction and 20-year sentence of the media owner Jimmy Lai under the National Security Law, 2025 to 2026. John Lee. Sustained	September 3, 2018 Myanmar sentences two Reuters journalists to seven years under the Official Secrets Act for reporting on a massacre. Aung San Suu Kyi. Reversed. Issue of the day: The Reuters investigation into the killing of ten Rohingya Muslim men and boys by Myanmar soldiers and local residents in Inn Din village, Rakhine State, in September 2017.	July 1995 Nigeria's military government convicts journalists by special tribunal over coup-plot reporting. Sani Abacha. Reversed. Issue of the day: An alleged March 1995 coup plot against General Sani Abacha's military government, which the journalists had reported on.	1917 United States Postmaster General Burleson strips the Milwaukee Leader of its mailing rate. Woodrow Wilson. Upheld by a court. Issue of the day: The Leader had published articles criticizing United States participation in the First World War and the draft, which the Post Office treated as violations of the Espionage Act's ban on obstructing military recruitment. July 1917 United States postmaster bars the magazine The Masses from the mail under the Espionage Act. Woodrow Wilson. Upheld by a court. Issue of the day: The United States had entered the First World War three months earlier and introduced a military draft. The Masses had run cartoons and articles opposing the war and conscription, which the Post Office treated as material likely to obstruct recruiting. December 19, 1941 United States creates an Office of Censorship and a wartime code for the press. Franklin D. Roosevelt. Sustained. Issue of the day: The United States had just entered the Second World War after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, and the government wanted to prevent newspapers and broadcasters from unintentionally publishing information useful to enemy forces. June 15, 1971 United States government seeks an injunction to stop The New York Times publishing the Pentagon Papers. Richard Nixon. Reversed. Issue of the day: The Pentagon Papers documented decades of internal government decision-making on the Vietnam War that contradicted public statements by several administrations, and the Nixon administration sought to prevent further disclosure of the classified history. July 6, 2005 New York Times reporter Judith Miller jailed for refusing to name a confidential source in the Valerie Plame affair. George W. Bush. Upheld by a court. Issue of the day: The Bush administration's case for the 2003 Iraq War and the public dispute over former ambassador Joseph Wilson's contrary account of Iraqi uranium claims. July 5, 2010 United States charges Army analyst Chelsea Manning under the Espionage Act for leaking to WikiLeaks. Barack Obama. Reversed. Issue of the day: United States conduct of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and detainee treatment, including the CIA's interrogation program. January 25, 2013 United States prosecutes former CIA officer John Kiriakou under the Espionage Act for identifying a covert colleague to a journalist. Barack Obama. Upheld by a court. Issue of the day: Public disclosure of the CIA's post-September 11 interrogation program, including its use of waterboarding. May 20, 2013 United States search warrant names Fox News reporter James Rosen a possible co-conspirator in a leak case. Barack Obama. Sustained. Issue of the day: A 2009 Fox News report, sourced to a State Department analyst, forecasting North Korea's response to new United Nations sanctions. October 10, 2013 United States: Espionage Act prosecutions of sources for leaks to the press, 2009 to 2013. Barack Obama. Unknown October 17, 2014 United States pursues New York Times reporter James Risen's testimony for years before dropping its demand for his source. Barack Obama. Reversed. Issue of the day: A 2006 book account of a botched CIA operation meant to disrupt Iran's nuclear weapons program. May 23, 2019 United States indicts WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange under the Espionage Act. Donald Trump. Reversed. Issue of the day: WikiLeaks' 2010 publication of leaked United States military reports and diplomatic cables supplied by Chelsea Manning.	July 14, 2023 Zimbabwe's Patriotic Act criminalizes journalists' contact with foreign governments. Emmerson Mnangagwa. Sustained. Issue of the day: The bill passed weeks before Zimbabwe's August 2023 general election, at a time when the government accused foreign-linked civil-society and media figures of working to undermine it ahead of the vote.
Insult and defamation laws							July 14, 2023 Zimbabwe's Patriotic Act criminalizes journalists' contact with foreign governments. Emmerson Mnangagwa. Sustained. Issue of the day: The bill passed weeks before Zimbabwe's August 2023 general election, at a time when the government accused foreign-linked civil-society and media figures of working to undermine it ahead of the vote.
Surveillance and subpoenas	June 5, 2019 Australian Federal Police raid the national broadcaster over reporting on alleged war crimes in Afghanistan. Scott Morrison. Reversed. Issue of the day: ABC's 2017 "Afghan Files" reporting on allegations that Australian special forces soldiers killed people in breach of the laws of armed conflict.					July 6, 2005 New York Times reporter Judith Miller jailed for refusing to name a confidential source in the Valerie Plame affair. George W. Bush. Upheld by a court. Issue of the day: The Bush administration's case for the 2003 Iraq War and the public dispute over former ambassador Joseph Wilson's contrary account of Iraqi uranium claims. May 20, 2013 United States search warrant names Fox News reporter James Rosen a possible co-conspirator in a leak case. Barack Obama. Sustained. Issue of the day: A 2009 Fox News report, sourced to a State Department analyst, forecasting North Korea's response to new United Nations sanctions. October 10, 2013 United States: Espionage Act prosecutions of sources for leaks to the press, 2009 to 2013. Barack Obama. Unknown October 17, 2014 United States pursues New York Times reporter James Risen's testimony for years before dropping its demand for his source. Barack Obama. Reversed. Issue of the day: A 2006 book account of a botched CIA operation meant to disrupt Iran's nuclear weapons program.
Shutdowns and blocking						1917 United States Postmaster General Burleson strips the Milwaukee Leader of its mailing rate. Woodrow Wilson. Upheld by a court. Issue of the day: The Leader had published articles criticizing United States participation in the First World War and the draft, which the Post Office treated as violations of the Espionage Act's ban on obstructing military recruitment. July 1917 United States postmaster bars the magazine The Masses from the mail under the Espionage Act. Woodrow Wilson. Upheld by a court. Issue of the day: The United States had entered the First World War three months earlier and introduced a military draft. The Masses had run cartoons and articles opposing the war and conscription, which the Post Office treated as material likely to obstruct recruiting.
Detention and violence		December 29, 2013 Egypt arrests and later convicts three Al Jazeera journalists on terrorism-related charges. Adly Mansour. Reversed. Issue of the day: The Egyptian military's July 2013 removal of President Mohamed Morsi and the government's subsequent designation of his Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization.	December 15, 2025 China (Hong Kong): conviction and 20-year sentence of the media owner Jimmy Lai under the National Security Law, 2025 to 2026. John Lee. Sustained	September 3, 2018 Myanmar sentences two Reuters journalists to seven years under the Official Secrets Act for reporting on a massacre. Aung San Suu Kyi. Reversed. Issue of the day: The Reuters investigation into the killing of ten Rohingya Muslim men and boys by Myanmar soldiers and local residents in Inn Din village, Rakhine State, in September 2017.	July 1995 Nigeria's military government convicts journalists by special tribunal over coup-plot reporting. Sani Abacha. Reversed. Issue of the day: An alleged March 1995 coup plot against General Sani Abacha's military government, which the journalists had reported on.	July 5, 2010 United States charges Army analyst Chelsea Manning under the Espionage Act for leaking to WikiLeaks. Barack Obama. Reversed. Issue of the day: United States conduct of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and detainee treatment, including the CIA's interrogation program.

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