Lakome.com was an independent Moroccan news website. It was started in 2010 and banned in 2013.
 | |
Type of site | News website |
|---|---|
| Available in | Arabic, French |
| Founded | 2010 |
| Dissolved | 2013 |
| Successor(s) | lakome2 |
| Headquarters | Casablanca, |
| Country of origin | Morocco |
| Created by | Ali Anouzla Aboubakr Jamaï |
| URL | lakome |
| Launched | 22 September 2010 [1] |
| Current status | Inactive |
Content license | All rights reserved |
| Written in | Joomla! |
History and profile
editLakome.com was founded in December 2010 by Ali Anouzla, later joined by Aboubakr Jamaï. The site had articles in Arabic and in French.[2] Ali Anouzla was also the editor of the English edition of the website.[3] Aboubakr Jamaï was the editor of the French edition.[3]
A laureate of the Committee to Protect Journalists' International Press Freedom Award[4] and the World Association of Newspapers' Gebran Tueni Prize,[2] Jamaï had previously started two newspapers in Morocco, Le Journal Hebdomadaire and Assahifa al-Ousbouiya. His papers were banned by the government of Morocco on multiple occasions for their explorations of politically taboo topics, and Jamaï soon won an international reputation for independent reporting.[4][5] After a series of ruinous libel suits and alleged government pressure on advertisers, however, the papers went bankrupt, with Le Journal shut down by court order in 2010.[6]
When the Arab Spring-inspired 2011 protests broke out in Morocco, however, Jamaï began an web-based news service, Lakome.com. The site had a small staff and focuses on reporting political events throughout Morocco. By April 2011, it was the fourth-most-visited website in Morocco.[7]
On 17 October 2013, both the Arabic and French version of the site were closed down in Morocco. As of May 2014, the website remained blocked.[8][9]
References
edit- ^ lakome.com whois lookup
- ^ a b Andrew Heslop (7 July 2011). "The irresolvable dilemma of the newspaper publisher". World Association of Newspapers. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ^ a b "Lakome news website still blocked despite editor's repeated requests". Reporters without Borders. 20 February 2014. Archived from the original on April 15, 2014. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
- ^ a b "Morocco: Aboubakr Jamai". Committee to Protect Journalists. 2003. Retrieved 2 February 2012.
- ^ Jane Kramer (16 October 2006). "The Crusader". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2 February 2012.
- ^ "Morocco: Pioneer of independent press silenced amid censorship worries". Los Angeles Times. 16 February 2010. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ^ Aida Alami (28 April 2011). "Web Offers a Voice to Journalists in Morocco". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ^ "Morocco: Human Rights Organizations Call for the Charges against Journalist "Ali Anouzla" to be Dropped, and "Lakome" Website to be Unblocked". All Africa. 19 May 2014. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
- ^ "Lakome news website still blocked despite editor's repeated requests". Reporters without Borders. 20 February 2014. Archived from the original on April 15, 2014. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
External links
edit- Official site (Arabic)