Safety of Journalists CFOM Sheffield

The Centre for Freedom of the Media (CFOM) at the University of Sheffield (UK) is an interdisciplinary research centre with global outreach on issues of media freedom, journalism safety, editorial standards and impunity. During the 2022 Academic Consultation on the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity, CFOM conducted a literature stocktake to scope out academic literature published in the area of media freedom, journalism safety and impunity. CFOM collated this information and produced a literature database organised by themes or countries for accessibility. The collection is especially strong on country- and region-specific safety issues and on surveys of emotional wellbeing of journalists. This special collection is curated by gemma.horton@sheffield.ac.uk.

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The Protection of Citizen Journalists During Armed Conflicts

Mariateresa Garrido Villareal

In: The Assault on Journalism. Building Knowledge to Protect Freedom of Expression

Ulla Carlsson, Reeta Pöyhtäri (eds.)

Göteborg: Nordicom (2017), pp. 267-278

"Digital technologies are changing the way in which journalism is performed. Today, reports by citizen journalists (CJs) are extremely relevant when traditional journalists cannot access hostile and dangerous areas. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 90% of murdered reporters were lo ... more

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Fearing the Majority: Catholic Media in Muslim Indonesia

Wijayanto

Media Asia, volume 44, issue 1 (2017), pp. 33-39

"It was 16 June 2016, during the fasting month of Ramadhan. Inside the Kompas newsroom, tens of uninvited guests, mostly wearing white, were visiting the office of the media group. They were members of Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), a hardline Islamic group well known for its sporadic sweeping of In ... donesia, mostly in the name of defending Syaria law. Two days before, a letter had been sent to Kompas newsroom from the FPI, saying they wanted to seek clarification about some of the paper’s coverage. That night, one of the journalists said to me with a bitter smile, “This is a special exception where a guest determined the date and time of the visit without waiting for approval.” As planned, around 1 pm on June 16, those special guests were seated in one of the newspaper’s conference rooms, welcomed by chief editor of Kompas daily newspaper, Budiman Tanuredjo, as well as some other chiefs of the media group from Kompas.TV and Kompas.com. In a video that went viral on YouTube, people could see that the discussion was rather one-sided. The FPI members spoke while the journalist were mostly listening to them. Munarman, the FPI’s spokesperson, accused the media group of unfairly covering recent events. He highlighted the news about the latest swoop in Serang Regency, which caught a middle-aged woman, Saeni, selling food during the day during the fasting month. It was carried out by Satpol PP, the municipal police of the local government specifically functions as public order enforcers. Munarman believed that the raid was virtuous, to enforce Syaria law. He said Kompas had reported the news in a way that portrayed Saeni as a victim and the Satpol PP as the aggressor. Thus, in the view of FPI, Kompas had hurt the feeling of Muslim people. They demanded the coverage to be stopped. They also warned the news organization to never again do such reportage. The FPI members did not stop there. Munarman and other FPI members also incited violence. In an aggressive tone, Munarman warned that such coverage could provoke a repeat of the incidents of 1998. This was a reference to the mass riots in the days before the forced resignation of President Suharto on 21 May 1998. The riot involved ethnic violence against the Chinese minority. Thousands of stores owned by Chinese Indonesians were destroyed, robbed and burnt. Furthermore, tens of Chinese women were sexually abused. There is still ongoing debate about the underlying reasons why the Chinese were targeted, but one theory suggests that it was part of a regime strategy to channel public anger away from President Suharto. Interestingly, despite believing that Kompas was not wrong in a journalistic sense, their journalists responded to the accusations with submission. Responding with smile and a lower tone, Budiman Tanuredjo said, “If we were seen as already crossing the boundaries (kebablasan), please kindly let us know” (Budiman Tanuredjo, 23 June 2016). In the same vein, the journalists from Kompas TV responded that “we were advised that we might have crossed the boundaries in our way, our news routine, we really make it as a lesson”. The other senior journalists who acted as a spokesperson of the media said, “Thank you for your reminder.” Instead of arguing that they were acting according to their journalistic judgment, they decided to admit that they were wrong and apologise to the hardliners. The submissiveness of Kompas becomes more interesting when viewed against the fact that it was not the only media to report the incident. There were at least 10 other online media that reported the raid on Saeni. Those media were Republika, SindoNews, DW, BBC, BeritaSatu, Detik, Tempo, The Jakarta Post, Media Indonesia and Viva. Republika – an Islamic newspaper – was one of the most critical of the raid, explicitly describing Saeni as a victim. On 13 June 2016, they wrote that the spokesperson of the President said that the President had given support to Saeni, “who had been the victim of Satpol PP”. The article’s title was, “Jokowi Gave Charity to a Mother Who Sold Food.” The use of the word “victim” implied that there was a perpetrator, which was the Satpol PP. Yet, FPI did not attack Republika or any other media. Only Kompas became their target. This article argues that the allegations against Kompas and its response were a result of historical factors. Kompas has been repeatedly attacked by Islamic groups due to its Catholic roots. This tendency is exacerbated by the fact that existing blasphemy law provides immense space to prosecute anyone deemed to be offending the feelings of religious believers. Kompas journalists end up internalizing a belief that being minority Catholic is an “original sin” in a majority Muslim country." (pp.33-34) more

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Freedom of Expression and Violence Against Journalists

Radu Florin Geamanu

Lex ET Scientia International Journal (LESIJ), volume 2 (2017), pp. 118-135

"This study will contain an analysis on the international and regional standards in the field of freedom of expression, as stipulated in the United Nations conventions and in the European Convention of Human Rights. Further we will establish a link between the breach of the freedom of expression whe ... more

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Comparing Journalistic Cultures Across Nations

Folker Hanusch, Thomas Hanitzsch

Journalism Studies, volume 18, issue 5 (2017), pp. 525-535

"Comparative studies of journalism have become immensely popular in recent times, yet a range of methodological and logistical challenges persist in existing work. This introduction to the special issue on “Comparing Journalistic Cultures” provides a brief overview of these challenges, before pr ... more

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Freedom of expression and threats to journalists’ safety: An analysis of conflict reporting in journalism education in Pakistan

Sadia Jamil

Journalism Education, volume 6, issue 2 (2017), pp. 7-16

"This article has addressed the level of journalists’ safety in Pakistan, revealing the diverse threats to journalists’ safety and their right to freedom of expression in the country. Freedom of expression is an individual right, for which no one should be attacked or killed. However, in this st ... udy, journalists’ feedback reveals that not only their lives but their right to freedom of expression is at risk because of the prevailing unsafe environment in Pakistan. The study suggests journalism is a dangerous profession in Pakistan because of physical, psychological, financial, social, emotional and topic-specific risks, which constrain journalists’ right to freedom of expression and affect them most while doing their routine jobs. Despite the unsafe environment and constant threats, this study indicates that only 18% of surveyed journalists have received safety training to protect themselves in conflict and non-conflict situations. The following questions need to be addressed when analysing issues around journalists’ safety training in Pakistan, namely: who are the trainers? Are trainers themselves trained for journalists’ safety training, bearing in mind the local safety circumstances? What is the role of local and international NGO’s in promoting journalists’ safety education either at university or media organisational level? Further research on these aspects is crucial for the better training of journalists. This study reveals that the education of conflict reporting and peace journalism is not the major part of journalism curricula in Pakistan’s public and private sector universities. The curriculum in most of the universities do not reflect distinctively the local aspects of journalism teaching and approaches, which is important for enabling journalists to understand the context within which they perform their work. As highlighted by Abit and Kenneth in their article, the case of Kosovo is quite similar to Pakistan – where journalism education lacks local teaching approches. Therefore, in this article, I emphasize certain initiatives such as: the inclusion of journalists’ safety and peace journalism modules in curriculum; collaboration with international universities for innovative pedagogical models; regular curriculum revision and local-context teaching and research within this field. Others have underlined the need for a few more significant inititatives that I think are crucial as far as journalists’ safety education is concerned, such as: enhancing journalists’ awareness of their rights and physical and psychological safety; protection of their equipment, and legal protection while covering war or conflict." (Conclusion) more

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Protecting Journalism Sources in the Digital Age
Deep Insights

Julie Posetti

Paris: UNESCO (2017), 191 pp.

"This study, which covers 121 UNESCO Member States, represents a global benchmarking of journalistic source protection in the Digital Age. It focuses on developments during the period 2007-2015. The legal frameworks that support protection of journalistic sources, at international, regional and coun ... more

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Structural Working Conditions of Journalism in Egypt, Kenya, Serbia and South Africa: Empirical Findings from Interviews with Journalists Reporting on Democratisation Conflicts

Judith Lohner, Irene Neverla, Sandra Banjac

Media, Conflict and Democratisation (MeCoDEM) (2017), 21 pp.

"The structural conditions of journalism are shaped by legacies of the past (marked by non-democratic regimes and sometimes colonial rule) and persisting power structures. The state and powerful political actors are perceived to play an important role in the media sector, mirrored in different forms ... more

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What if ...? Safety Handbook for Women Journalists: Practical Advice Based on Personal Experience

Abeer Saady

International Association of Women in Radio and Television (IAWRT) (2017), 89 pp.

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An Attack on One is an Attack on All: Successful Initiatives to Protect Journalists and Combat Impunity
Deep Insights

Larry Kilman

Paris: UNESCO (2017), 98 pp.

"This report takes a look at a selection of the innovative, successful ways media companies, individual journalists and civil society organizations are coming together to improve journalist safety. These are cases of people taking the initiative, of acting on behalf of the profession, of not sitting ... more

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Unwarranted Interference, Fear and Self-censorship among Journalists in Council of Europe Member States

Marilyn Clark, Anna Grech

In: The Assault on Journalism. Building Knowledge to Protect Freedom of Expression

Ulla Carlsson, Reeta Pöyhtäri (eds.)

Göteborg: Nordicom (2017), pp. 221-226

"Journalists may be exposed to a number of risk factors for unwarranted interference. This is often compounded by a culture of impunity. The extent of unwarranted interference, the experience of fear associated with such interference, and the consequent possibility of self-censorship among journalis ... more

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Defending Journalism: How National Mechanisms Can Protect Journalists and Address the Issue of Impunity. A Comparative Analysis of Practices in Seven Countries
Deep Insights

Elisabeth Witchel, Esben Q. Harboe (eds.)

International Media Support (IMS) (2017), 250 pp.

"The research documents how, despite immense ongoing challenges, in Afghanistan, Iraq, Nepal and Pakistan, some important advances have been made to develop joint structures and innovative approaches to defend the practice of journalism. It examines the long road Colombia has followed in the establi ... more

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World Trends in Freedom of Expression and Media Development: Global Report 2017/2018
Deep Insights

Nicole Stremlau, Iginio Gagliardone, Monroe Price et al.

Paris: UNESCO (2017), 200 pp.

"We have noted profound transformations in the field of media freedom, which is making progress in certain areas, but losing ground in others. Media freedom is limited in particular by many legal restrictions on the right to impart information and ideas, although progress is being made with regard t ... more

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Roads to Influence: A Practical Toolkit to Increase Safety for Journalists Through Advocacy in Somalia/Somaliland

International Media Support (IMS); Fojo Media Institute (2017), 20 pp.

"The overall approach to advocacy in this toolkit is generic, but the toolkit focuses on increasing safety for journalists in Somalia/Somaliland. The order of the different steps follows a logical sequence. However, do keep in mind that advocacy is not necessarily a linear process. Advocacy rarely f ... more

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Journalists and Safety Training: Experiences and Opinions

Autumn Slaughter, Bradley Brummel, Susan Drevo, Elana Newman et al.

Dart Center for Journalism & Trauma; University of Tulsa, Trauma Research Lab (2017), 57 pp.

"The report, based on answers from 247 respondents, summarises the ‘good news’, that journalists do implement changes in their behaviour when they have attended safety trainings, and the gaps and challenges, including the fact that few journalists keep their training up to date in spite of indus ... more

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Prevent – Protect – Prosecute: Acting on UN Human Rights Council Resolution 33/2

London: Article 19 (2017), 38 pp.

"In September 2016, the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) broke new ground with the unanimous adoption of HRC Resolution 33/2 on the safety of journalists. The HRC is the world’s highest human rights body and its resolutions are a strong collective commitment from States to act on priority human right ... more

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Google Scholar (51)

WorldCat (41)

Philippine and global research on news media safety: Crossing disciplines, bridging gaps

Ramon R. Tuazon, Paz H. Diaz, Therese Patricia C. San Diego

Media Asia, volume 44, issue 1 (2017), pp. 8-16

"This chapter therefore proposes steps toward closing the gaps in the research on the safety of journalists and media workers in the Philippines and across the globe. While there is no absence of research on the subject, there is a preponderance of anecdotal research and a lack of empirical studies. ... more

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Google Scholar (28)

WorldCat (31)

Reporting from the Danger Zone: Frontline Journalists, Their Jobs, and an Increasingly Perilous Future

Maria Armoudian

London; New York: Routledge (2017), 165 pp.

"Journalism is a dangerous business when one’s "beat" is a war zone. Armoudian reveals the complications facing frontline journalists who cover warzones, hot spots and other hazardous situations. It compares yesterday’s conflict journalism, which was fraught with its own dangers, with today’s ... more

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Google Scholar (52)

WorldCat (46)

Global violence against journalists: The power of impunity and emerging initiatives to evoke social change

Jeannine E Relly, Celeste Gonzalez de Bustamante

In: Routledge Companion to Media and Human Rights

Howard Tumber, Silvio Waisbord (eds.)

London; New York: Routledge (2017), 10 pp.

"Civic organizations, groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, play a key role in the production and circulation of human rights discourses. Scholars have examined the strategies civic organizations use to attract media coverage, the permeability of the news media to human rights me ... more

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Safe+Secure Handbook
Key Guides

DOC Funders Network (2017), 59 pp.

"Getting to the heart of stories by asking the really tough questions and going places where no one wants to go. That’s documentary at its best. This Safe+Secure Handbook has been designed to help filmmakers get there—and back—and get their stories into the public domain as safely as possible. ... more

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Byte Back: A Journalists' Guide to Combat Cyber Harassment in South Asia

Geeta Seshu, Laxmi Murthy

International Federation of Journalists (IFJ); South Asia Media Solidarity Network (SAMSN) (2017), 8 pp.

"[...] This is a guide to provide support and advice based on shared experience of others worldwide and includes handy links to other research and IFJ resources. With courage, wit and sheer determination, we’ve seen many journalists demonstrate how to take on trolls, call them out, respond to pate ... more

Protecting Journalism Sources in the Digital Age Deep Insights

An Attack on One is an Attack on All: Successful Initiatives to Protect Journalists and Combat Impunity Deep Insights

Defending Journalism: How National Mechanisms Can Protect Journalists and Address the Issue of Impunity. A Comparative Analysis of Practices in Seven Countries Deep Insights

World Trends in Freedom of Expression and Media Development: Global Report 2017/2018 Deep Insights

Safe+Secure Handbook Key Guides

Protecting Journalism Sources in the Digital Age
Deep Insights

An Attack on One is an Attack on All: Successful Initiatives to Protect Journalists and Combat Impunity
Deep Insights

Defending Journalism: How National Mechanisms Can Protect Journalists and Address the Issue of Impunity. A Comparative Analysis of Practices in Seven Countries
Deep Insights

World Trends in Freedom of Expression and Media Development: Global Report 2017/2018
Deep Insights

Safe+Secure Handbook
Key Guides