Killing Journalists
70 journalists have been killed since the start of 2024. More than 60 are missing and 320 imprisoned, as of December1, 2023 worldwide. To silence journalists and suppress uncomfortable truths, countless others are threatened, harassed, assaulted and spied on daily. In the face of increasingly organised enemies of the press, there is strength in unity. Why kill one journalist when there are dozens of others ready to continue their work by challenging the authoritarian regimes? Anything they want to hide will be amplified.

In a world where journalists are risking their lives in Gaza , Kyiv and Lebanon so that the world knows what is happening---revealing much more than propaganda images from involved governments and actors---investigative reports on the targeting the media will continue.

In a world where journalists investigating environmental crimes are some of the most at risk and with Azerbaijan preparing to host COP29 ‘Forbidden Stories’ will continue to publish investigations by journalists from Abzas Media, imprisoned for more than a year in the IlhamAliyev administration’s jail cells.

In a world where Donald Trump considers journalists “enemies of the people”, and Elon Musk has made X a global “fake news” factory committed journalists will continue their investigations on the deadly disinformation industry, pursuing the work of GauriLankesh, noted Indian journalist assassinated in 2017.

Each investigation and each piece of information that manages to reach millions of people is a victory against impunity. The press is a vital counterweight in democracies, and people need journalists to investigate and expose environmental crimes, corruption, surveillance, organised crime, corporate exploitation and human rights violations.

Today is not only a powerful reminder of the dangers that journalists face on the ground across the world. It is a call to action.
Laurent Richard, Journalist and ‘Forbidden Stories’ Executive Director

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Frontier
Vol 57, No. 21, Nov 17 - 23, 2024