Event showcases journalist safety, press freedom
The phrase “hard act to follow” kept popping into my head last night as I listened to my fellow panelist Lucy Westcott talk about journalist safety and press freedom.

Westcott’s presentation, and mine, were part of an online forum, “Press Freedom in Crisis,” sponsored by the Indiana Council on World Affairs.

About 50 attendees heard Westcott, the Emergencies Director for the Committee to Protect Journalists, discuss the challenges facing journalists, including those who are jailed, killed, or forced into exile. She highlighted Iran, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Myanmar, and Russia as placed where journalists are most under threat. She noted that attacks on journalists’ physical and mental well being are more than volleys against individuals, but are moreover broadsides that erode press freedom. Westcott also talked about the particular risks faced by freelance journalists, who operate without the support of news organizations.

Lucy Westcott, CPJ

I chimed in and gave the example of the threats faced by journalists in India and Pakistan. I’ve been working with these journalists for the last three years on a cross-border reporting project. The journalists in this region are all concerned about their safety, some to the point where self-censorship becomes a real issue. I mentioned that that threats and intimidation are especially acute for female journalists, who suffer a deluge of harassment both in person and online. I cited a new report, The Chilling, produced by the International Center for Journalists, that shows a disturbing pattern of abuse directed against women journalists. “Nearly three quarters (73%) of our survey respondents identifying as women said they had experienced online violence. Threats of physical violence (identified by 25% of survey respondents) including death threats, and sexual violence (identified by 18%) also plagued the women journalists we interviewed. And these threats radiated: 13% of survey respondents and many interviewees said they had received threats of violence against those close to them, including children and infants.” 

I also made a brief presentation about peace journalism, and included a discussion about if journalists believe practicing PJ makes them safer than if they practiced traditional (and sometimes sensational and inflammatory) journalism. According to a small study I did a few years ago in Cameroon, the answer is yes, PJ does help to insulate journalists from harm. (See The Peace Journalist magazine, October 2018, pg. 8).

During the Q and A, I jumped the line and asked Westcott about notorious press-hater Donald Trump’s presidential announcement. Her answer was reassuring, that we’ve been there before and managed to weather the anti-media rhetoric, and that if need be, we can do it again. I hope she’s right.

Thanks to the Indiana Council on World Affairs for organizing such an important, stimulating event. I hope to work with them again in the future.