Everyone's Responsability: Recommendations To Editors and Publishers for Safeguarding Journalists
Source : Beth Howe 08.06.2003
The safety of foreign journalists reporting from dangerous locations is a critical issue too often overlooked by the management at news organizations. The risks of death, injury, and mental trauma faced by overseas journalists and freelancers have ethical, financial, and legal implications for their employers. Managers can reduce the risks their journalists face by providing the proper training, equipment, and safety guidance. Failure to do so may result in not only the tragedy of losing someone in the field, but may also expose newspapers to potential legal action by the families of those killed on the job.
Print and broadcast journalists face both related and unique challenges in reporting overseas. Because print publications tend to have relatively few foreign correspondents they cannot afford to own expensive safety equipment like armored cars and rarely have in-country support. Fewer foreign correspondents also means that the body of knowledge about a given location or situation is likely to be less extensive than at broadcast organizations. Broadcast journalists, on the other hand, face a different set of risks. Because they travel with larger numbers of people and bulky equipment, broadcast journalists face greater risk of becoming targets for attack. Heavy equipment also makes it more difficult for broadcast journalists to escape potentially dangerous situations.
