"The article examines how Brazilian women journalists claim gender-related issues influence the risks they experience in their professional routines and private life. Data was collected through 31 semi-structured interviews with female professionals who experienced episodes of violence during the co
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urse of their work between 2019 and 2020. Our investigation emphasizes (a) the connections between the political context and increasing hostility toward women journalists; (b) the impact of aggressions on production routines, family lifestyles, and emotional setbacks; and (c) how the lack of organizational support from news companies is associated with resilience and protection strategies. The results reveal that harassment and violence include physical threats and remarks about appearance, age, and sex life. Avoiding specific assignments or sources is among the journalists’ resistance strategies. Women journalists also describe implications on family routines and even dating practices to escape work-related abuse. Some interviewees claimed that news organizations are not prepared to support victims and that there is a government-sponsored “hate machine.” To extend beyond a descriptive account, the article discusses a set of factors characterizing the Brazilian media system that promote a thriving hostile environment, such as the male-led structure of news organizations and dependence on government funding." (Abstract)
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"The safety of journalists is one of the most formidable challenges for press freedom and democracy around the world. The problem is the result of the juxtaposition of various forms of violence that break journalists’ sense of security and autonomy – the ability to control and decide the paramet
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ers of their work. Threats to safety drive journalists to self-censorship and to use extreme caution. Here I propose that the problem of journalists’ safety is worse and more complex today than in the recent past. This explains why the problem has received growing attention globally, and why it is hard to find solutions. A growing academic and grey literature continues to demonstrate that violence is a sprawling problem, and the challenges for implementing effective, sustainable solutions to confront a multidimensional problem, with local and national particularities. The articles in this issue provide further insights for understanding threats to safety and debating solutions." (Abstract)
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"This study is aimed at investigating the impact of security threats on the freedom of expression of Pakistani Television (TV) journalists. It has been observed that a growing trend of curtailment of freedom of expression is becoming new normal in the country. One of the significant problems related
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to freedom of expression in Pakistani media has been attacks against journalists. Pakistan Press Foundation recorded that 73 journalists have been killed since 2002 (IPEX, PPF and RIDH, 2017). This study has identified the sources and nature of security threats to Pakistani TV journalists. These security threats include threats from owners to threats from secret agencies. The study has been done under the conceptual umbrella of Social Responsibility Theory since Normative Theory deals with agents of control that also govern the laws and regulation and put check on the press freedom. The qualitative research method was adopted to conduct this research. The data was collected from a group of 25 journalists, belonging to major TV news channels of Pakistan through purposive sampling. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted to gather responses. The data was analyzed through Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis technique. All responses were transcribed as verbatim, from which exploratory notes were prepared to derive emerging themes which were further categorized into sub-themes. The data revealed that the respondents not only had concerns regarding their job security rather they were also stopped from covering different packages. The research also presents recommendations to ensure maximum free expression for these journalists." (Abstract)
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"This chapter explores the current wave of coronavirus-related digital crackdowns in the Arab region, which are unfolding in multiple forms, and analyzes its causes, contexts, and consequences. It explores why and how the stifling of media freedom and freedom of speech online in the Arab region has
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been exacerbated in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, and sheds light on the various tools and mechanisms of control being used by Arab regimes to ensure that the official, state-orchestrated narrative around the pandemic dominates all communication platforms, both online and offline. In doing so, the chapter unpacks a number of methods of control that are being deployed by Arab regimes to achieve this end, ranging from closing down websites to arresting local journalists and ousting international correspondents, as well as exploiting punitive legal codes and laws to tighten their grip on all communication outlets, under the mantle of countering disinformation. It also sheds light on a closely-intertwined dimension in these new cyberwars, namely reliance on online surveillance and contact tracing tools and applications, which are justified by regimes as part of the effort to curb the spread of the deadly pandemic, but which simultaneously, and dangerously, open the door to threats to personal security, invasion of privacy, and government hacking of opposition. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the most important consequences and implications of these complex, and interconnected, phenomena, as well as the paradoxes and dilemmas they pose." (Abstract)
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"The murder of Gerry Ortega is indicative of structural problems concerning the safety of journalists in the Philippines; while the hitmen are often arrested, the powerful masterminds behind the killings of journalists often evade justice. Gerry Ortega was a prominent broadcast journalist and enviro
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nmental activist in the province of Palawan. Ortega’s work: informing the public on graft and corruption within the provincial government, made him a target for those in power. He was not afraid to openly criticize local politicians such as then-governor Joel T. Reyes for their corruption, publicly opposing Palawan mining projects. On the morning of 24 January 2011, Gerry was shot and killed. The alleged mastermind is that same former governor of Palawan, Joel T. Reyes. Reyes has escaped justice for more than a decade. He continues to wield influence over local public officials in Palawan. He has now filed his candidacy for the position of governor in the upcoming local elections in May 2022." (Abstract)
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"This research was conducted through a survey (involving 1,256 respondents) and interviews (six informants) of female journalists in 191 cities, representing western, central, and eastern parts of Indonesia. This survey included 25 questions about the respondents’ violence experiences related to t
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heir work in the digital and physical world. The forms of violence asked in the questionnaire cover all forms of violence that we could find in literature and case records in Indonesia and abroad, including various policies and practices of discrimination for female journalists in the workplace related to salaries, reporting assignments, and so on, which we included in the categories of violence in the physical domain. [...] According to the statements from the female journalists, as many as 1,077 respondents (85.7%) had experienced violence during their journalistic career. Of these, as many as 70.1% of the respondents had experienced violence in the digital domain as well as in the physical domain, 7.9% of respondents had experienced only violence in the digital domain (online), and 7.8% of respondents had experienced only violence in the physical domain (offline). Meanwhile, only 179 respondents (14.3%) never experienced any form of violence at all [...] Although the survey data do not show a strong relationship between the acts of violence and the topic of the journalists’ reporting, interviews show that female journalists are more vulnerable to violence when covering issues considered risky, such as gender and sexuality (LGBTIQ) and the environment. The latter finding is in line with the statement by the Committee to Protect Journalists, which classifies environmental investigations in developing countries as dangerous, second only to reporting of armed conflicts." (Executive summary, page 9)
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"The war in and against Ukraine has brought home the importance of accurate, trustworthy reporting — even from dangerous places. In mediation, particularly mediation arising from armed conflict, it is difficult to overstate the importance of accurate information to help mediate between claim and c
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ounter-claim. The media, in particular journalists, including camera operatives, are the world’s eye in both national and international conflict zones. This essay discusses the legal protection of those courageous individuals and their equipment under international humanitarian law. The question of legal protection for journalists is essential to global access to reliable information. While the war in and against Ukraine has reminded us of this, it has been recognised as being of crucial importance for many years. Both the Review Committee’s Report to the ICTY’s (the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia) Prosecutor concerning the bombing of Belgrade by NATO forces during the Bosnian war and the ICTR’s (the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda) judgment in the so-called Media case raise the question whether it is reasonable to target media stations and personnel. It is essential to oppose these arguments. Intelligent and well-informed mediation of conflict depends upon the work of those who strive to accurately describe what is going on behind the fog of war. Attacks on the media and on their places of work often take place in murky circumstances. But I will argue that, even if media stations are also used for military purposes (dual use), they ought to be protected as civilian objects. Also, I will summarise ways to improve protection for the media before observing that compliance with existing laws seems to plunge in times of conflict." (Abstract)
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"The recent barbaric murder of an investigative journalist in Malta who was looking into corruption at the top echelons of power sparked off a civil society movement, Repubblika, spurring ordinary citizens into participating in collective protest action. The movement also incorporated a loose groupi
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ng of women calling themselves ‘Occupy Justice’. Different forms of protest against government corruption have resulted in the resignation of various senior politicians and high-ranking officials, including the Prime Minister. Taking as a point of departure the struggle against the unequal distribution of power as defined by Michel Foucault and Jacques Rancière, the empowering force of civil protest is here examined in relation to how power is appropriated and how institutional power is resisted. Micromobilization and mesomobilization are seen as two means of staging protest and creating a common force with which to confront corrupt power structures. Protest, power, and resistance are viewed in the light of theatrical events; the creative means deployed to stage protests are discussed. The aesthetic qualities meant to transform perception and move people to action for bringing about political change are highlighted in relation to both sensory and symbolic dynamics." (Abstract)
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"The Philippine media presented itself as the vanguard of the Filipino people’s basic freedoms, especially the freedom of speech and expression. However, as with any responsibility that pertains to that freedom, the news media had its laws that may result in persecution. This study was aimed at in
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vestigating journalists' experiences in Surigao City on media persecutions. A qualitative research method was utilized where Colaizzi’s strategy for phenomenological data analysis was used to analyze the gathered data. The results showed 18 themes that emerged from the clusters such as responsible execution of duties and responsibilities, coverage of important issues in the society, persecutions encountered through harassment, intimidation, censorship, reasons why journalists were persecuted, public officials as the common persecutors, reactions upon receiving the persecution, addressing and facing the persecution. Therefore, there is a need to strengthen the safety and security of the journalist not only in Surigao City but in the whole country in general." (Abstract)
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"This study sought to examine work-related exposure to trauma and predictors of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms among regional journalists in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, a conflict-ridden area in northwest Pakistan. We recruited 216 KP journalists. Analysis of the surveys re
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vealed a high prevalence of trauma exposure and PTSD symptoms. All of the participants had covered at least one trauma inducing event. Exposure to work-related trauma, active emotional coping and avoidant emotional coping were statistically significant factors associated with PTSD symptoms. This study is the first to highlight the severity of the impact of trauma on regional journalists in Pakistan." (Abstract)
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"This qualitative feminist study analyzes Egyptian women journalists’ articulations of their shifting roles, struggles, and resistances to the political, legal, socio-economic, and professional challenges in a shifting, hybrid, and digitalized journalistic field. Through analyzing 16 interviews wi
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th women journalists representing different media affiliations, experiences, and demographics, this study explores their varied perceptions of the shifts in journalistic professionalism and press freedom in Egypt, their equally shifting professional roles and struggles, and their varied resistance mechanisms. On the one hand, this study unpacks the multiple challenges facing them, such as restricted journalistic autonomy, limited access to information and technology, sexual harassment, lack of job security, and other forms of professional discrimination, in a male-dominated profession and a patriarchal culture. On the other hand, it investigates the parallel resistance mechanisms they deploy to overcome these challenges. We argue that the amalgamation of these cyclical, push-and-pull dynamics gave birth to a new “differentiated media landscape” (Schroeder 2018), representing a third space between mainstream media and citizen journalism, the online and the offline, and the old and the new, in a rapidly evolving journalistic field." (Abstract)
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"Online harassment is a major societal challenge that impacts multiple communities. Some members of community, like female journalists and activists, bear significantly higher impacts since their profession requires easy accessibility, transparency about their identity, and involves highlighting sto
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ries of injustice. Through a multi-phased qualitative research study involving a focus group and interviews with 27 female journalists and activists, we mapped the journey of a target who goes through harassment. We introduce PMCR framework, as a way to focus on needs for Prevention, Monitoring, Crisis and Recovery. We focused on Crisis and Recovery, and designed a tool to satisfy a target’s needs related to documenting evidence of harassment during the crisis and creating reports that could be shared with support networks for recovery. Finally, we discuss users’ feedback to this tool, highlighting needs for targets as they face the burden and offer recommendations to future designers and scholars on how to develop tools that can help targets manage their harassment." (Abstract)
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"This report offers the most comprehensive assessment to date of Beijing’s global media influence and the ways in which democracies are responding. Drawing on media investigations, interviews, scholarly publications, Chinese government sources, and on-the-ground research by local analysts, it cove
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rs developments in 30 countries during the period from January 2019 to December 2021. It updates and expands upon two previous Freedom House studies published in 2013 and 2020, and it focuses largely on democracies to provide a more in-depth understanding of the deployment and reception of influence tactics in countries that possess relatively strong institutional protections for media freedom. Finally, the report offers recommendations to governments, the media sector, technology firms, and civil society groups on how they can bolster democratic defenses against CCP interference." (Page 3)
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"The Zimbabwean state has in recent years stepped up its surveillance efforts on citizens, civil society and journalists who are viewed as the “enemies of the state”. This state surveillance has been argued to infringe on citizens’ right to privacy and access to information. We are mindful tha
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t the “Second Republic” or the “New Dispensation” government has invested heavily in surveillance to silence its critics, among them activists, opposition leaders and journalists. Based on this, the study critically examines the use of surveillance strategies by Zimbabwean journalists and assesses the challenges and opportunities. The study uses in-depth interviews with selected journalists from Zimpapers, Alpha Media Holdings and freelance journalists around the country. The data show that journalists in Zimbabwe use different surveillance strategies, while some are benefiting from state sources for surveillance. Journalists further indicated that they live in fear of the state, which tracks them down. As a result, however, journalists have resorted to various means of security, which include “hunting in packs” and deploying digital security strategies. Findings further demonstrate that newsrooms are poorly equipped with technology for surveillance." (Abstract)
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"Given rising hostility toward journalists in the United States, this monograph illuminates how journalists experience hostility from news sources. Drawing on 38 in-depth interviews with U.S. journalists, this project uses the theory of intersectionality to understand how journalists experienced hos
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tility and how they changed their journalistic routines in response. Participants described four forms of hostility from news sources: general distrust of the news media, boundary crossing, safety-violating hostility, and microaggressions. Boundary crossing was primarily used toward younger women, and microaggressions were used toward White women and men and women of color. Although safety-violating hostility occurred least often, it was the most intense form of hostility and was disproportionately experienced by women, whose gender, race, age, tenure, and even their geographical location worked against them to create hostile and unsafe situations. These findings should inform how news editors think about story assignments and reporters’ safety on the job so that editors empathize more with reporters and do away with more dangerous reporting scenarios, such as person-on-the-street interviews and door knocking. Finally, as many reporters were unprepared for the hostility they experienced, journalism instructors should focus on hostility as a reality journalists will likely face in the field." (Abstract)
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"In a country like Ethiopia which is rich in languages, politics, cultures, and values and which experiences an exponentially growing population, media and the access to plural information is crucial for peace and development. This study finds, however, that the number of media and the diversity of
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their contents have not grown commensurate with the country’s character, while public trust also remains low. The independent journalism and media self-regulation are also in their early stages. This country report formulates data-driven, context-specific, and actionoriented recommendations to the government, journalism schools, civil society organizations, development partners and the media to achieve a strong Ethiopian media landscape that is supportive of freedom of expression and journalist safety, as well as conducive to the development of free, independent, and pluralistic media." (Back cover)
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"Academic studies and news stories alike have been documenting a quite devastating picture of the online trolling of journalists, especially women and minorities, around the world. The scale and the magnitude of trolling have attracted the attention of governments and international organizations, pa
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rticularly those considering it a threat to human rights. This chapter examines the dimensions and consequences of online trolling of journalists and suggest four lines of action to address the problem. Although journalists across news organizations and news beats are frequent targets of trolling, not all journalists are similarly vulnerable. Trolling is disproportionately directed at two clusters of journalists. Digital harassment is both a relatively new form of anti-press violence and censorship as well as the continuation of authoritarian forces determined to silence critical journalism and other forms of public expression." (Abstract)
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"As press freedom continues a downward trend across the globe against a backdrop of rapidly changing landscape for the safety of journalists, the 10th anniversary of the UN Plan provided an opportunity to take stock of its key achievements during this first decade of implementation, as well as to id
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entify solutions to challenges that have arisen along the way. In this respect, UNESCO coordinated a multi-stakeholder consultative process involving regional and thematic consultations to collect partners’ experiences in promoting safety of journalists over the last decade as a basis for informing the course of action in the next 10 years and beyond. The consultative process included five regional and sub-regional consultations (for Africa, South Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, Arab States and Europe), two thematic consultations (on the safety of women journalists, on risk management and transparency of digital platforms), and crosscutting academic consultations. This process brought together governments representatives, civil society organizations, academia, journalists, news organizations, IGOs and tech companies who shared experiences of the implementation of the Plan and provided and provided possible solutions to improve its coordination amidst a complex safety environment. From the eight consultations, UNESCO published a concise outcome document summarizing key processes and outcomes of each of the consultations. This document provided background reading and highlights of key issues and trends that informed discussions during the High-level conference on the Safety of Journalists which took place in Vienna on 3 -4 November. The conference was organized by the Austrian Federal Ministry of European and International Affairs in cooperation with UNESCO and the UN Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the UN Plan of Action and to reaffirm, recommit and reposition it for the next 10 years. Three other regional events were held to mark this anniversary. These are the Arab regional event that took place on 2-4 November in Tunis, Tunisia; the New York Group of Friends on Safety of Journalists event that took place in New York on 7 November 2022, and the Africa event that took place in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, on 11-12 November 2022. This report provides a detailed account of the three consultations held with academics on supporting and strengthening the future successful implementation of the UN Plan of Action." (Background, page 4-5)
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"The commentary highlights the analysis of an international organizations’ technocrat in charge of implementing multilateral policy designed to increase the safety of journalists by preventing, protecting, and prosecuting crimes against them. Being UNESCO the leading coordinating UN agency in the
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implementation of these policies, the lessons learnt from the first decade of the implementation of the UN Plan of Action on Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity are the crosscutting element of this commentary, particularly aiming to suggest areas of research that could further support evidence-based policymaking." (Abstract)
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