Barack Obama actually said...

"These are the men and women who work to ensure that debate on public issues can be, in the words of Justice William Brennan, 'uninhibited, robust, and wide open.'"

"The United States condemns the Asad regime's use of brutal violence and human rights abuses and calls on the Asad regime to stop its violence against the Syrian people."

"The United States calls for the release of those who have been imprisoned for exercising the freedom of expression that is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights."

"We thank the journalists around the world without whom democracy could not flourish and whose courageous work helps hold authorities to account."