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WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is saluting journalists working in countries that repress freedom, saying a free press is under attack in many places because governments want to avoid the truth.
Obama invited three foreign journalists to the White House Friday to discuss their experiences in observance of Sunday's World Press Freedom Day.
The three journalists, from Russia, Vietnam and Ethiopia, have been harassed, detained, tortured or imprisoned for their work.
Obama said it's important for the U.S. to speak out for freedom of expression in other countries.
Obama recalled journalists killed by terrorists, including Steven Sotloff, James Foley and Luke Somers. He pledged to seek the release of journalists such as Jason Rezaian of The Washington Post, who is imprisoned in Iran.
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