Everyone hates a free press.” That was the best quote from a legendary journalist whom I admired. He was incarcerated for many years, labelled as a communist or worse, but he never wavered in his belief that a free press is the bedrock of any democracy.

Saudi Arabia shuts the local office of Al Jazeera, Qatar's influential satellite channel, hours after the kingdom and other Arab powers cut ties over Doha's alleged support for Islamists and Iran.