"Journalists in Mexico face hundreds of attacks each year, ranging from online harassment and physical intimidation to outright murder. The official narrative typically claims that murdered journalists are the victims of general criminal violence. This article finds that despite the rampant violence
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in Mexico, the murder of journalists cannot be attributed to the country's general criminal violence problem alone. Instead, the evidence points to the targeting, and even political targeting of journalists. First, journalists are at a much higher risk of being murdered than the general population. Second, the divergence between homicide rates among the general population and among journalists varies considerably between Mexican states. While recent scholarship has shown that subnational governments can successfully remain authoritarian despite democratization at the central or federal level, this literature has largely ignored the use of political killings in subnational undemocratic regimes. This article attempts to understand the murder of journalists not just as a problem of criminal violence, but also of political violence, and thereby connects the findings to the existing scholarship on subnational authoritarianism." (Abstract)
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"The problem of disinformation and misinformation undermining credible journalism and reliable information has escalated dramatically in the social media era. Consequences include the deliberate targeting of journalists and other online publishers, along with their sources, who are seeking to verify
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or share information and commentary. The associated risks can further undermine trust in journalism, along with the safety of journalists and their sources." (Abstract)
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"Journalists' safety as well as media workers has become a subject of discussion on press freedom and the working condition of reporters following dangerous development on the media scene which has become a preoccupation with journalism professional bodies. As such, in order to achieve the objective
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of the study, qualitative research approach was used as the most tenable means of getting valuable data for this study; In-depth Interview (IDI) and focus group discussion (FGD) was selected as the research method for gathering relevant information. A sample size of 16 respondents was drawn using purposive sampling technique. The findings of the study revealed that journalists in Oyo State are aware of their safety. They agreed that journalism safety is the freedom the press has to perform their professional task without fear or intimidation. The study concluded that the issue of safety and protection of journalists in Nigeria must be given due consideration. The way and manner in which journalists lost their lives in trying to serve human needs on what is happening in the society is alarming. Furthermore, there is a need for media houses in Nigeria, especially in Oyo state to have safety policy that may guarantee the smooth operation of journalists. Training and retraining of journalists on safety issues is another measure that will create awareness on safety tips for journalists. The study recommended that media organisations in Nigeria and Oyo state in particular should have safety policy. By so doing, the safety and protection of journalists will be guarantee. There is also a need for training and retraining of journalists on safety issues in the media houses they are working for." (Abstract)
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"Covering women’s issues does not come without danger. A female editor was murdered for denouncing a sexist policy. A reporter was imprisoned for interviewing a rape victim. A woman reporter was physically attacked for defending access to tampons, while a female blogger was threatened online for c
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riticizing a video game. For International Women’s Day, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) wants to turn the spotlight on violence against journalists covering these issues. This report does not address the status of women journalists, equal employment of women in journalism or sexist (or non-sexist) attitudes in the media. These issues have been widely covered and debated elsewhere. This report focuses specifically on threats and violence against both men and women reporters covering women’s rights. In 2016 and 2017, RSF registered more than 60 cases in more than 20 countries of the rights of journalists being violated in connection with reporting on the condition of women. Almost 90 cases have been registered since 2012. This data has allowed us to classify the kinds of violence: murder, imprisonment, verbal attacks, physical attacks and online aggression. Cyber-harassment represents more than 40% of the cases registered. In RSF’s view, the information predators responsible for this violence fall into three main categories. Some are religious groups. They target journalists who challenge their propaganda by advocating the emancipation of women. Some are criminal organizations that object to media meddling in their affairs by denouncing their exploitation of women. And finally, there are autocratic governments that are determined to defend their patriarchal societies." (Introduction)
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"For women journalists, online harassment may result in emotional stress and may require legal and technological remedies to mitigate the damage caused to their identity and reputation. Perpetrators can use a combination of online and offline attacks that threaten the employment and safety of journa
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lists. In the case of women writers, misogynistic and racist attacks can create a chilling effect that silences their voices online and creates a deterrent to freedom of expression that ultimately erodes the freedom of the press. Based on the examination of seminal work, case studies and personal anecdotes, this chapter investigates the consequences of abuse via Twitter and Facebook on the freedom of speech, the emotional and psychological impact on women journalists, and its implications on press freedom. Moreover, before suggesting digital defense strategies for journalists, the chapter also chronicles the development of TrollBusters, a platform for women journalists that counters online hate with positive messaging and just-in-time rescue services." (Abstract)
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"Across time, in a variety of forms and spaces -from homes and workplaces to digital domains of social media- women have become victims of male dominance. So also are the other vulnerable sections that suffer multi-layered abuse, and endure sexual harassment in social media. Yet, this phenomenon is
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insufficiently explored. Therefore, this article argues that social media spaces have become domains for sexual harassment and subjugation of women. This article examines gender-trolling on Twitter as a form of sexual violence against women. Employing qualitative analyses of the Twitter conversations on Indian journalists, namely Barkha Dutt, Sagarika Ghose, and Rana Ayyub, it exposes the nature and form of sexual violence against women on the micro-blogging space, and argues that social media platforms constitute convenient havens of harassment against assertive women." (Abstract)
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"While many reporters regularly experience online violence, women journalists are more likely than their male counterparts to be targeted for abusive comments and image focused, violently sexualised aggression. With such gendered violence having serious implications for media freedom, diversity and
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equity, as well as participation online, it is imperative that digital safety initiatives address the specificity and diversity of online attacks on women journalists and in ways that address the structural factors underpinning them – that is, going beyond an emphasis on individual responsibility. This paper analyses the gender-specific digital safety strategies proposed for women journalists by international anti-violence projects and how they address the responsibility for acting on gendered online attacks. It evaluates the emphasis safety training packages put on promotional, preventative, procedural, or prosecutorial measures and on individual, collective or networked and managerial approaches to these attacks. Drawing on a feminist “ethics of care”, the paper argues that gendered online violence needs to be tackled as a multilevel online governance issue rather than just a personal safety issue, with better support from peers, employers and legal and political institutions." (Abstract)
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"Cross-national research has identified crime, corruption, and human rights abuses as explanations for threats against journalists in democracies and authoritarian hybrids plagued by antipress violence. In-depth studies additionally suggest gender or occupational characteristics such as risky newsbe
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ats increase the likelihood of being threatened. We overcome data limitations in many of these studies by analyzing work-related threats reported by journalists in Mexico, a territorially uneven democracy. Findings confirm that contexts of criminal insecurity are the strongest predictor of threats but only for journalists who are frequently harassed. For the infrequently threatened, democratic normative commitments are a stronger predictor. Subnational government corruption is another important predictor of threat but operates counter to expectations. We believe this is because clientelism sufficiently controls journalists without the need for threat. Neither occupational traits nor gender were individually important predictors. Findings suggest future research should compare threat and harassment across lower and higher risk contexts, and measure public insecurity and clientelism at the local level where journalists actually work. Measurement improvements might better reveal the gender dynamics of threat. More broadly, comparative research and policy-making in democracies and authoritarian hybrids should focus on how local authoritarians limit journalists’ democratic normative aspirations." (Abstract)
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"Yuan Zeng analyses the mixed uncodified strategies that Chinese authorities use to obstruct the work of foreign journalists." (Abstract)
"According to The Committee to Protect Journalists, 2 per cent of all journalists killed since 1992 worked on the sports beat. At present, however, we have limited knowledge of the specific dangers faced by sports journalists. This chapter presents findings from exploratory research on 78 reports of
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violations of the media freedom or personal safety of sports journalists. Threats to media freedom include being banned from press conferences or events, the seizure of passports or denial of accreditation. The personal safety of sports journalists is compromised through verbal abuse, assaults, attacks, personal and social media harassment, detention, legal pressure, and killings. The key perpetrators identified in the sample were fans, athletes and coaches, owners and officials of sports clubs and national associations, international sports federations, and authorities in authoritarian regimes hosting sports mega-events." (Abstract)
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"This report identifies eight basic types of harassment present in Hungary: rhetorical aggression; trolling; bullying; threats; public shaming; violation of personal privacy; cyber attacks and site hacking; and malicious social media activity. The study found that the most common types of online har
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assment are trolling and rhetorical aggression, which are experienced by Hungarian online journalists on a daily basis through both public and private channels. Overall, comments made through private channels are more severe. Facebook comments are generally the least aggressive in nature, followed by comment sections under individual articles. Abusive messages sent via private channels (email, Facebook messages) are the most aggressive and straightforward. Many journalists agreed that the most disturbing element of online harassment is not necessarily the harshness or explicit nature of comments but the frequency and overwhelming persistence of them." (Executive summary)
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"Introduction: journalists in Latin America continue to face numerous threats in the exercise of their journalistic profession, which has increased the concern of the international community over its protection in recent years. Methodology: The objective of this research is to analyse nearly 500 cas
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es of murders and disappearances in Latin America from 2000 to the present, as well as to elaborate on a profuse bibliographic review of the main sources of information and national and international programs in this regard. Results and conclusions: The results show a considerable gap between the international willingness to create programs for the protection and fight against impunity, the complex and insecure national realities in the region, and the number of information professionals who died or disappeared violently in Latin America." (Abstract)
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"The relationship between journalists and political sources has been characterized by a tug of war between reporters and officials where top politicians have the upper hand in the coproduction of news through their ability to provide critical information subsidies that most news media rely on. The d
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ynamic of the journalist–source relationship has, however, mostly been analyzed in stable high-income democracies. This article goes beyond existing research by analyzing the relationship between reporters and officials in Nigeria, in principle, a democracy but in practice, a hybrid regime where journalists face substantial political pressures. Through a combination of content analysis and in-depth interviews, it shows how journalists in Nigeria are not only dependent on the information subsidies found in the West but also affected by politicians using positive (monetary awards) and negative (intimidation and violence) tangible incentives that go well beyond information subsidies. The article argues that this shapes the nature of coproduction of news in Nigeria and that more broadly, the resources available to politicians to influence journalists through such positive tangible incentives and the degree to which they, with impunity, can use negative tangible incentives, should be key dimensions for future comparative work on relations between reporters and officials as political communication research goes beyond stable democracies where money handouts and violence is unlikely to be the key factors influencing news production." (Abstract)
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"This chapter focuses on gender dynamics in media safety in Nigeria. It critically examines the safety challenges journalists in Nigeria face in executing their duties in a country that has experienced different forms of conflicts, ranging from political instability, organized crime, terrorism, and
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communal conflict. It analyses these challenges in relation to gender. To achieve this, the researcher made use of primary data generated from interviews with journalists. The chapter discloses issues of gender-based discrimination, sexual and violent harassment, abuse at work and outside work, murder, and unwarranted arrest and intimidation, showing they are among the challenges journalists face. It identifies some gender-specific safety concerns among the journalists interviewed. Importantly, it finds that safety challenges such as sexual harassment are hardly reported and when reported, they are usually trivialized, most times re-shaming the victim(s) and causing the victim to shy away from reporting future occurrences." (Abstract)
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"Contrary to popular belief, being at or near the top of media freedom rankings doesn’t mean a country is free from interference and threats to journalists’ safety, Ilmari Hiltunen observes. When talking about censorship and journalism the attention has usually been focused on explicit violence
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and crude repressive methods used to silence critical journalists in authoritarian or semi-democratic states. Yet recent studies have shown that outside interference and fear-induced self-censorship have tangible effects on journalism even in democratic countries with strong cultural, legal and institutional safeguards for press autonomy." (Abstract)
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"This research examines the everyday sexism and workplace sex discrimination experienced by women journalists in India. Nearly all of the popular and scholarly attention to the experiences of Indian women journalists has focused on high profile instances of rape and sexual assault. But this focus on
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highly egregious, dramatic stories deflects attention from ongoing global structural problems as well as ongoing sexism and gender discrimination in journalism. Interviews with Indian women journalists indicate a concern with everyday sexism and discriminatory practices at the hands of sources, colleagues, and editors. Additionally, women journalists are not confident that newsrooms will become less toxic for women any time soon. They describe legal guidelines designed to protect women as ineffective and rarely implemented. We ground our understanding of sexual harassment in theories about the politics and power of women but also connect the persistence of these sexist practices--and women's powerlessness to prevent them--to the growing casualization of the journalism workforce in India. The precarity of the journalism industry leaves women vulnerable but reluctant to complain." (Abstract)
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"Are female journalists more at risk in covering conflict than their male colleagues? Beck states ‘risk is the anticipation of the catastrophe – so it is existent and non-existent’. Is the contention that female journalists are more at risk, knowledge, or a construction of knowledge? Are Edito
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rs and journalists who decide that women are more at risk merely anticipating a catastrophe? There is no certainty that women would be more at risk, but the fear that women are more at risk can prevent them from being sent to cover conflict, or force them to decide not to go to dangerous places. It is not possible to say with certainty that women journalists are targeted because they are women or because they are journalists. An IED or rocket fire does not distinguish between sexes. In many situations being female actually helps women journalist in conflict zones. In this paper we conduct a survey of journalists who work in conflict zones and ask whether it is the job or the gender which is the most dangerous. The question of whether it is more dangerous to be a woman might be debatable, but the survey shows that sexual harassment is a concern for female journalists." (Abstract)
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"Every 3rd of May in the year, the world celebrates the freedom of the press. The celebration often serves as a reminder on the need for the protection of the Fundamental Human Rights and Freedom of Expression as embedded in the universal declaration of Human Rights as well as the constitution of co
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untries that are liberal democracies. In the past decade however, the World Press Freedom Day has remained a constant reminder of the escalation of violence and conflicts all over the world. The consequences of which journalists and other media workers have had to bear in their quest/bid to fulfill a sacred mission: the people deserve the right to know. Statistically, more than 1000 media professionals were said to have been killed in the line of duty. Some of these killings were state ogranised, while very few cases were investigated and the perpetrators brought to justice. In Nigeria, in spite of the nation’s democratic experience, a sizeable number of journalists and media professionals had been harassed, intimidated and murdered, in the discharge of their duties especially with the Boko Haram insurgence. This study examines the impact of the World Press Freedom Day to the safety of journalists and other media professionals with the specific focus on Nigeria. It also wishes to draw attention to the vital role of the media in promoting sustainable peace, democracy and development. The paper adopts a historical observation method and hopes to underscore the connection between the safety of journalists and peoples freedom of expression." (Abstract)
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"Female journalists’ experiences of sexual harassment are barely documented in the literature about Australian news journalism despite evidence of its ongoing prevalence. There have been some stories of harassment detailed in autobiographies by female journalists and the occasional article in the
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mainstream media about individual incidents, but it wasn’t until 1996 that a union survey provided statistical evidence of an industry-wide problem. That Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance survey found that more than half of the 368 female participants had experienced sexual harassment at work. In 2012, I conducted the largest survey of female journalists in Australia finding that there was an increased number of respondents who had experienced sexual harassment in their workplaces. In a bid to better understand female journalists’ experiences of sexual harassment, this paper analyses written comments made by survey participants in relation to key questions about harassment. It finds that most downplay its seriousness and do not make formal reports because they fear victimisation or retaliation. As a consequence, a culture of secrecy hides a major industry problem where many women believe they should work it out themselves and that harassment is the price they have to pay for working in a male-dominated industry." (Abstract)
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"Previous studies of intimidation and harassment of journalists have (rightly) focused on non-democratic and authoritarian nations and/or transitional/emerging democracies. In this article, we examine the situation in Sweden, a country with strong de facto and de jure safeguards of journalistic free
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dom and autonomy. We report the findings from a representative survey of Swedish journalists where three themes are analysed: the extent of harassment, the forms of harassment, and the consequences of intimidation and harassment. The results show that a third of the respondents had experienced threats at work in the past year, and an overwhelming majority said they had received offensive and insulting comments. Intimidation and harassment also had consequences, both professionally and personally, such as fear and self-censorship. We therefore argue that it is time to add the dimension of external pressure and threats to the discussion of journalistic autonomy—including in countries like Sweden." (Abstract)
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