behind freelance foreign journalism
the risk of reporting: danger on the frontline
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Each week, on average, a journalist dies while doing his or her job. Yet, over the past 10 years, only 1 in 10 cases of crimes against journalists, media workers, and online producers has led to a conviction. To secure freedom of expression in all media journalists need more support and safety when reporting on the frontline.
Every day journalists risk their lives to bring us the news, their work is essential to creating a more peaceful and democratic world where everyone can seek out facts, share ideas and express their opinions. Over 600 journalists and media workers have been killed in the last 10yrs, 95% of victims are local media workers covering local stories and only 1 in 10 cases of crimes against journalists, social media producers and media workers has led to a conviction (2013).
In a situation like Syria, and many other complex situations around the world, the absence of accurate information can produce dire consequences in terms of formulating a measured international response. The safety of journalists is paramount. They play a necessary role transforming the truth.
Each week, on average, a journalist dies while doing his or her job. Yet, over the past 10 years, only 1 in 10 cases of crimes against journalists, media workers, and online producers has led to a conviction. To secure freedom of expression in all media journalists need more support and safety when reporting on the frontline.
"We need to query not the way art and journalism transforms the world, but the way they can transform the meaning of the world" Vilém Flusser
"Power and knowledge interlock in the organization
and production of facts and interpretations"
Foucault, 1991
"Journalists and other media professionals working in war zones face many dangers. Because of the very nature of their work, they are inevitably exposed to the dangers inherent in military operations. Instead of fleeing combat, they seek it out. Nevertheless, by far the greatest danger they face is that of deliberate acts of violence against them.
It is often said that the first casualty of war is truth. Accurate, impartial media reports conveyed from conflict zones serve a fundamental public interest: in the information era, images and news can have a decisive impact on the outcome of armed conflicts. As a consequence, the obstruction of journalistic tasks in times of armed conflict is alarmingly frequent. The spectrum of interference is wide: it ranges from access denial, censorship and harassment to arbitrary detention and direct attacks against media professionals." Robin Geiss
“Why risk it all to get the facts for people who increasingly seem only to seek out the information they want and brand the stories and facts that don’t conform to their opinions as biased or inaccurate?” Tom Peter